Cheryl Boone Isaacs Doesn't Think the Academy Has a Diversity Problem

This morning we learned that the 2015 Academy Awards will be one of the whitest in recent memory. Not a single person of color was nominated in any of the acting categories and with the snub of Selma‘s Ava DuVernay, no women were nominated for Best Director.

In 2013, the LA Times found that the voting population of the academy was 93 percent white and 76 percent male. By most accounts, that would signal that the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has a bit of a problem cultivating and recognizing diversity.

Inexplicably, Cheryl Boone Isaacs, the president of the academy (and the first black person and only the third woman to hold the position), doesn’t think that the organization has anything to worry about when it comes to diversity.

Vulture asked Isaacs this morning if she thought the academy has a diversity problem. She responded:

“Not at all. Not at all,”

Hmm. If you’re looking for a longer non-explanation that doesn’t address the question or issues at hand, fear not:

“The good news is that the wealth of talent is there, and it’s being discussed, and it’s helpful so much for talent — whether in front of the camera or behind the camera — to have this recognition, to have this period of time where there is a lot of publicity, a lot of chitter-chatter.”