I don’t know about anyone else, but one of the things I have learned in my professional life is that one’s relationship with their boss can make or break how you feel about your job.
Last week, Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel star Charisma Carpenter accused the show’s creator and showrunner Joss Whedon of creating a toxic workplace.
Since the news broke, her BVTS and Angel costars have banded together, supporting Carpenter and stepping back from the man who helped to build their careers.
Some people think that just because they are an artistic genius or at the top of their professional field, they can treat their staff like shit. But, the reality is that a television show or any product is rarely created by one person. It takes a team, and if there is negative energy coming from the top, it will quickly engulf everyone invovled.
The sad irony is that both BVTS and Angel brought strong female characters to the forefront of pop culture. Instead of elevating the women who worked for him, he treated them like the monsters of the week treated the characters.
I used to respect Joss. His work as a writer and creator is undeniable. But that is never an excuse for thinking that you can treat another person like they are dirt on the bottom of your shoe.
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Writergurlny 
Sadly, those who make money for the parent company can get away with this sort of thing. I call it, “Sales Hide All Sins.” There have been a lot of managers at my location, and the two worst ones in terms of the way they treat employees were also the two most successful ones in growing the business. They could get away with anything, and they knew it. So they did.
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I have also experienced something similar. What I have learned is the bosses who were ‘most successful in growing the business’ could not have done so without the individual contributors. These are the same contributors they also treat very poorly.
Joss Whedon, just like his staff, may have talent in what he does; but that does not give him the right to emotionally and psychologically hurt those who work under him.
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