Hallmark: Hallway Pass for Ageism?

A Christmas tree next to a television screen which has a pink screen and text that reads, "Countdown to Christmas"
‘Tis the season folks! Put up your tree, bake your cookies and turn on the Hallmark Channel? Well, maybe. The channel has recently been accused of ageism. Naya Reyes talked to real Hallmark watchers to hear what they think.
WNUR News
WNUR News
Hallmark: Hallway Pass for Ageism?
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[natural sound: Hallmark Countdown to Christmas 2024 commercial fades in and out]

Since 2009, the Hallmark Channel has been celebrating the holiday season with a Countdown to Christmas that plays new and old original holiday-themed movies. Over the years, the channel has produced more than 300 original Christmas movies, this year alone there are over 30 new movies.

Tabi Parent: “we have the Hallmark movie playing in the background while we are decorating the tree. It’s a whole, you know, ritual of like my mom gets out all the ornaments and then we’re all unwrapping them carefully and then someone breaks one and she starts yelling at us and it’s so fun and family-oriented.” 

That’s Tabi Parent, she’s a senior in Medill. Like many people, Hallmark has been the soundtrack to her holiday seasons. Like the instrumental music you have on at dinner parties, you don’t consciously know it’s there, but it would be weird without it.   

[Jazz piano arrangement of White Christmas by Calvin Clavier fades in and out]

Lucky for Parent, there’s no shortage of movies. But over the time the channel has faced its fair share of serious critiques ranging from racism to ableism. This year the company could add one more thing to their naughty list…ageism.

[natural sound: Diane Anderson phone call]

Diane Anderson is 83 years old and has been watching Hallmark for somewhere between 15 to 20 years. 

Diane Anderson: And there’s one, and her first name is Penny, maybe you’ve seen it. Whenever I see that she’s, you know, at the end when they say she’s the one that has picked who’s in it, they are all my favorite.  

She’s talking about Penny Perry, a former casting director for Hallmark who is 79 years old. After she was fired, she filed a lawsuit in October claiming that she was wrongfully let go due to her age. Perry said the issue isn’t exclusive to her. She claims she heard conversations about the channel wanting to replace 60-year-old leading woman Holly Robinson Peete.

So, in light of this lawsuit and us being close to the holiday season, I talked to real Hallmark watchers to see if they feel the ageism in the movies and if they care about it.  

[Jazz piano arrangement of White Christmas by Calvin Clavier fades in and out]  

Noreen McConnell is 74 years old, and Lacey Chabert is one of her favorite Hallmark actresses. You might better know Chabert, who is 42 years old, from her role as Gretchen Wieners in the 2004 movie “Mean Girls”.

Noreen McConnell:  I just really enjoy getting away from watching the news and listening to a feel-good story with a happy ending. It just makes me feel good and feel happy and puts my mind in a good place.

The October lawsuit mentions Chabert. An Associated Press article says that Vice President of Programming Lisa Hamilton Daly is accused of saying Chabert is “getting older and we have to find someone like her to replace her as she gets older.” 

McConnell: I think it’s unfortunate, age discrimination is out there and it’s not really just in Hallmark either, it’s just across the board in all the different professions. With Lacy, I sure would hate to see her go.

While viewers like McConnell know you can’t play the young hopeless romantic forever, they believe that aging doesn’t have to mean the end of a career. 

McConnell: You know, I still would watch it. I really watch it for entertainment, but I don’t get too much into the politics about things. It would be disappointing, I think they probably could come together and figure out, you know, roles she could play and I mean, gee, she’s only 40.

Parent says she’ll still watch the movies too, but that it’s high time we have a conversation about the expiration date we put on women in film. 

Parent: I think that the movies will still be on in the background when we’re decorating on Christmas, and if there’s an added bonus of, oh, they’re more inclusive, and more people might relate to them, that’s better. 

Now, Hallmark fans wait as the lawsuit unfolds, unsure about what a verdict could mean for the channel. In late October, a Hallmark Spokesperson denied all the claims in the lawsuit. Still, many fans– even non-Hallmark fans, tend to agree on a phenomenon pointed out by McConnell. 

McConnell: That’s unfortunate when, you know, when you identify yourself with your career and you’re really not ready to retire, you know, it’s heartbreaking.

This lawsuit probably isn’t changing the minds of too many people who crave movies like the ones Hallmark produces. In a world of happy endings, allegations like this make us remember that it really is all just lights and cameras and a lot of Christmas magic. Still, sometimes it’s nice to indulge in a bit of fantasy. 

Anderson: They’re nice clean movies. They’re about romance. There’s no bad people. No cruelty.

For WNUR News, I’m Naya Reyes

[Jazz piano arrangement of White Christmas by Calvin Clavier fades in and out]