--- description: Meet the executive at CBS Entertainment who created the diversity and inclusion department title: Meet the CBS Executive Who's Bringing Diversity to TV image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blte492fb7f7cf8b797/6988b3b897cdff8c056aef4f/tiffany-smith-anoai.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 --- Jan 03, 2017 # Network Exec Pushing for Diversity in the Entertainment Industry by Jane Porter  Tiffany Smith-Anoa'i, Executive Vice President, Diversity, Inclusion & Communications, CBS Entertainment. Photo: Francis Cavanaugh/CBS ©2016 CBS Broadcasting, Inc. All Rights Reserved Tiffany Smith-Anoa'i, Executive Vice President, Diversity, Inclusion & Communications, CBS Entertainment. Photo: Francis Cavanaugh/CBS ©2016 CBS Broadcasting, Inc. All Rights ReservedFrancis Cavanaugh—CBS _Tiffany Smith-Anoa’i_ spent two years pitching the higher-ups at CBS Entertainment a diversity and inclusion department and convincing them that she was the one to oversee it. Now she focuses on making sure that the network’s shows reflect the real world. Smith-Anoa’i, 46, spoke with _Real Simple_ about bold proposals and sweet victories. **What were your dreams as a kid?** I was mesmerized by the sports broadcaster Jayne Kennedy. She was a woman of color who looked like me, and I didn’t see that often. I said, “That’s what I want to do.” I went to college for broadcast journalism and got an internship in a newsroom. But that made me realize that I didn’t want to be in front of the camera. I wanted to be behind it. **What’s an important life lesson you learned early on?** I had an academic scholarship to Howard University. All I had to do was maintain a 3.0 GPA, but I wasn’t taking things seriously enough. At the end of my first year, I had a 2.9 and lost my scholarship. I’ll never forget, my mother said to me, “You took someone’s spot.” It broke my heart, and I knew, from that moment on, I was never going to squander \[an opportunity\] again. **So what did you do?** I enrolled in community college at home in Whittier, California, in 1989\. My parents said, “If you want to go back to Howard, you pay for it.” I worked and was able to save $17,000\. I went back and graduated with honors. **You worked for Nike for a while. Then what?** I worked for Sinbad, the comedian, doing publicity. Then I got a publicity job at CBS. **You eventually pushed the network to create a new department.** After I had been there for six years, I created a PowerPoint on why we needed a diversity and inclusion executive for entertainment. I went into my boss’s office one day and said, “This is where television is going, and this is the role we need.” I was nervous, but I felt so passionate about it that I wasn’t going to leave that office without being heard. **What made this so important to you?** Every network around that time had a corporate diversity executive. But it wasn’t rooted in entertainment—the people responsible for casting, directing, writing, and developing shows. Most people hire people they know or people who look like them. I wanted to connect executives to a group of talent they might not normally come into contact with. **How did that go?** It took two years. But I kept at it, and eventually I was able to present my PowerPoint to our then chairman, Nina Tassler. Two weeks later, I was promoted to vice president and was able to create the department. **How does the job play out?** I introduce writers, directors, and young executives into this pipeline, and then it’s on the executives to hire them. I’m not the “diversity police.” **What type of leader are you?** Before we start staff meetings, I’m always asking, “How are you doing?” and “How do you feel? Anything going on?” You never know what’s going on in someone’s life. Also, I empower my team to use their voices. When we meet, I don’t talk first—they talk first. **What is life outside work like for you?** I have a daughter who’s 12\. I’m really involved as a parent at her school. My husband is a professional wrestler, and he owns and operates his own wrestling academy in Los Angeles. He does live shows once a month, and my daughter and I work the concession stand. That’s part of our family tradition. **Thoughts on work-life balance?** There is no balance. I refuse to feel guilty for it. I have a great support system at home with my husband. We are able to really divide and conquer. **What do you wish you could tell your younger self?** Not to worry so damn much. I worried about what people thought. That’s such a waste of time. Another lesson I’ve learned as an adult is the value of the word _no_ and how to really use it as a complete sentence. **Parting advice?** Always reach for something you feel is unattainable, because that’s when victory is sweetest. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"Article","@id":"https://time.com/collections/american-voices-2017/4596947/tiffany-smith-anoai-american-voices/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/collections/american-voices-2017/4596947/tiffany-smith-anoai-american-voices/"},"headline":"Meet the CBS Executive Who's Bringing Diversity to TV","datePublished":"2017-01-03T15:57:41.000Z","dateModified":"2026-03-02T23:19:42.379Z","description":"Meet the executive at CBS Entertainment who created the diversity and inclusion department","url":"https://time.com/collections/american-voices-2017/4596947/tiffany-smith-anoai-american-voices/","keywords":["American Voices"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blte492fb7f7cf8b797/6988b3b897cdff8c056aef4f/tiffany-smith-anoai.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"TIME Staff","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/time-staff/"}],"creator":"TIME Staff","articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blte492fb7f7cf8b797/6988b3b897cdff8c056aef4f/tiffany-smith-anoai.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/collections/american-voices-2017/4596947/tiffany-smith-anoai-american-voices/","name":"Meet the CBS Executive Who's Bringing Diversity to TV"}}]}] ```