Serena Williams calls out New York Times after mistakingly using photo of her sister, Venus
Serena Williams called out The New York Times on Wednesday after the newspaper used a photo of her sister, Venus Williams, in a story instead of her.
The story, which highlighted the more than $100 million she raised for her new venture capital fund, used a small photo of Venus instead in print.
No matter how far we come, we get reminded that it's not enough. This is why I raised $111M for @serenaventures. To support the founders who are overlooked by engrained systems woefully unaware of their biases. Because even I am overlooked. You can do better, @nytimes. pic.twitter.com/hvfCl5WUoz
— Serena Williams (@serenawilliams) March 2, 2022
“No matter how far we come, we get reminded that it's not enough,” she wrote on Twitter. “This is why I raised $111M for Serena Ventures. To support the founders who are overlooked by engrained systems woefully unaware of their biases. Because even I am overlooked. You can do better, New York Times.”
The newspaper responded to her on Twitter soon after.
“This was our mistake,” their business account tweeted. “It was due to an error when selecting photos for the print edition, and it did not appear online. A correction will appear in tomorrow’s paper.”
That mistake, regardless of the intent behind it, is not a great look.
Serena’s new venture capital firm, Serena Ventures, raised $111 million to help it get off the ground, according to The New York Times, and already has an investor with a portfolio of 60 companies. About 75% of portfolio company founders that her firm is bringing in, she said, come from historically underrepresented backgrounds, per the report.
“I’ve always been fascinated with technology, and I’ve always loved how it really shapes our lives,” Serena told The New York Times. “When I met my husband, that was our first conversation. That’s how we met. I was talking about investments.”
