Mixer Team Accused Of Racist Behavior, Phil Spencer Responds

Doomed streaming service Mixer‘s team is under fire following a statement made by a former employee concerning the racist comments he heard from an executive during his time working there, and Xbox boss Phil Spencer has responded. The employee shared his experience as one of few Black employees during his time at Mixer, expressing disappointment and concern about how his supervisors and the company’s HR failed to handle his complaints about the executive.

Mixer was established as Microsoft’s in-house streaming service in 2017 as a competitor to streaming juggernaut Twitch. Although it never rose to the same level as the Amazon-owned platform, Mixer still enjoyed some public-facing success, especially once it obtained exclusive streaming contracts with popular former Twitch streamers like Ninja. It even rose above YouTube and Facebook Gaming in some metrics, but it was announced yesterday that Mixer will be shut down on July 22 and that Microsoft will now be partnering with Facebook Gaming.

The former Mixer employee, Milan Lee, released a statement about his time with the company, quoting racist comments made by an executive and the lack of discipline and concern his direct supervisors and Mixer’s HR team showed in response. The Mixer executive was later identified as Head of Business Development Natalia Domingo (confirmed by industry insider Rod Breslau). Microsoft has yet to release an official response, but Xbox’s head Phil Spencer reached out to Lee in order to get more information about the situation. Though Lee graciously accepted the offer, he added that Domingo’s behavior is “what [he] emailed [Spencer] about while working there.”

Since, Domingo has deleted her Twitter account, and it was announced that Mixer would be shut down. Spencer clarified in a later tweet that Lee and Domingo’s actions had nothing to do with Mixer’s sudden shutdown, and Microsoft has yet to release an official statement regarding Domingo and Lee. Since it was announced that Mixer will be shuttered, other streamers appear to be more concerned with negotiating new deals and streaming contracts than banding together behind Lee. The fate of the rest of Mixer’s team, including Domingo, are currently unknown.

In the wake of the many Black Lives Matter protests occurring across the country, it’s becoming more essential than ever to call out the racist behavior exhibited by others, whether it be family, friends, or employers. No matter how casually the comments are made, the commenters must know that what they are saying is wrong and harmful, and they must face consequences. If Spencer and other Microsoft executives did know in some capacity about Domingo’s remarks, then they are complicit in Mixer‘s racist environment. Going forward, whether Microsoft releases an official statement or not, they should pay attention to employees’ words and use their influence to show their support for Black Americans and other people of color in streaming and throughout the gaming industry wherever possible, as they should have always done.

Source: Milan Lee, Rod Breslau, Phil Spencer