Paula Deen

Paula Deen is a television chef and cookbook author.

The quick read Reason for concern Reviewed Aug 22, 2026

The quick snapshot

Public concern on the record.

These are summaries, not scores. Open every receipt before deciding.

Public concern

Why people pushed back

Reuters reported that in the Jackson v. Deen deposition Deen was asked if she had used the n-word and answered, “Yes, of course.” Food Network said on June 21, 2013, it would not renew her contract. The suit by a former restaurant manager alleged racial (and other) discrimination; those are allegations. This file does not claim a finding of liability in that civil case.

Sworn admission
May 17, 2013: deposition admission in Jackson v. DeenReuters reported that celebrity chef Paula Deen, in a legal deposition, admitted using a racial slur in the past. Asked if she had used the n-word, she answered, “Yes, of course.” The deposition was taken May 17, 2013, in Lisa T. Jackson v. Paula Deen, et al., Southern District of Georgia, No. 4:12-cv-00139. CNN reported the underlying lawsuit alleged racial and sexual harassment at Deen’s Savannah restaurants. Those lawsuit claims are allegations. This file does not treat them as a finding of liability.Source: CNN ↗

Aug 22, 2026 · The Cookout Editorial Desk

Paula Deen admitted the n-word under oath; Food Network walked

BLUF

In Jackson v. Deen, Paula Deen admitted using the n-word. Food Network ended her contract on June 21, 2013. The restaurant suit is not treated here as a liability finding.

What happened

On May 17, 2013, Paula Deen sat for a deposition in Jackson v. Deen in the Southern District of Georgia. Reuters reported that when she was asked whether she had used the n-word, she said, “Yes, of course.” CNN reported the suit by a former manager alleged racial and sexual harassment at her Savannah restaurants. Those claims are allegations. This file does not record a liability finding in that civil case.

On June 21, 2013, Food Network said it would not renew her contract. CNN and Reuters reported that decision. CNN also reported she posted apology videos that day. An apology on YouTube is a personal statement, not a racial-equity program and not a substitute for what she already said under oath.

The Cookout read

Concern. The sworn admission is the receipt. A major food network declining to renew is a market consequence, not a court. This file will not upgrade the lawsuit into a verdict it does not have, and it will not treat a video apology as erasing the deposition.

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Now / update

Where the record stands.

Last reviewed Aug 22, 2026. This is present-day status, not a new verdict.

The June 2013 Food Network decision is the last dated sponsor action opened here. Later brand deals are not independently cataloged.

Last reviewed August 22, 2026.

Source file

Open the full passages.

Links may change after publication. Dates describe the event or publication listed in the record.

01
CNN
June 2013: Food Network dropped her; she posted apologies · Jun 21, 2013
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02
CNN
May 17, 2013: deposition admission in Jackson v. Deen · May 17, 2013
Read source ↗

Community temperature check

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