FCC Will Investigate Disney And ABC Over DEI Practices
Key Facts
In the letter posted on X by chair Brendan Carr to Disney CEO, Bob Iger, he said he wants to be sure Disney is not violating FCC regulations “by promoting invidious forms of DEI discrimination.”
Carr recognized that Disney—which he called an “iconic American company”—has reportedly “walked back some of its DEI programs,” but said “significant concerns remain.”
In the letter, Carr took specific issue with Disney launching what he said “would amount to racially-segregated affinity groups and spaces” among its staff and with its mandatory inclusion standards across ABC that required 50% of “‘regular and recurring characters’ be drawn from ‘underrepresented groups.’”
In February, Disney was one of a number of major companies that shifted away from DEI initiatives in response to executive orders from President Donald Trump that sought to remove diversity and equity initiatives both in the government and private sector.
A memo sent to the company’s employees in early February explained the company was changing its corporate culture to more closely “align our initiatives with our business goals and company values” and would be rebranding its diversity initiatives, Axios reported.
Disney told Forbes in a statement the company is reviewing the letter and looks “forward to engaging with the commission to answer its questions.”
Crucial Quote
“As you know, Disney started out a century ago as an iconic American company. For decades, Disney focused on churning out box office and programming successes,” Carr wrote to Iger. “But then something changed. Disney now has been embroiled in rounds of controversy surrounding its DEI policies.”
Has Trump Targeted Disney In The Past?
Trump sued ABC News, which is owned by Disney, and George Stephanopoulos last year, arguing the network broadcast statements from Stephanopoulos that were “false, intentional, malicious and designed to cause harm.” In the suit, Trump took issue with Stephanopoulos saying Trump was found “liable for rape” at least 10 times, when he was actually found liable for sexual assault. In December, Disney settled the suit and agreed to pay $15 million as a contribution to a “presidential foundation and museum” to be established by or for Trump in the future, along with $1 million for Trump’s attorneys’ fees. The settlement led to accusations that Disney had caved to Trump and that it could “embolden” Trump to file similar suits, The New York Times reported.
What Is The Fcc?
The Federal Communications Commission is a government agency designed to be an independent regulator of “interstate and international communications by radio, television, wire, satellite, and cable.” It currently has three commissioners, two Democrats and one Republican though one of the Democratic commissioners just announced his resignation. Carr—a Trump appointee who previously served as a commissioner—is the chair.While the agency is supposed to be independent, it recently broke precedent by calling for an investigation into CBS’s “60 Minutes” for its interview with former Vice President Kamala Harris, the same story Trump himself filed a $10 billion lawsuit against CBS over. When talking about the complaint, Carr said Trump was “ahead of the curve” and “has been right on these media bias issues,” Variety reported.
Has Carr Launched Similar Investigations?
Yes. In February, Carr ordered a similar investigation into DEI programs at Comcast, the parent company of NBC and Universal Studios. Though not DEI based, Carr also launched investigations into NPR and PBS for corporate sponsorships of programming.
Key Background
Almost immediately after taking office for his second term, Trump zeroed in on ending all DEI initiatives in both the public and private sectors. DEI policies rose in the U.S. in 2020 after the killing of George Floyd, but have come under fire in recent years from Republicans for being “woke.” On his first day in office, Trump signed an executive order that called for the elimination of all DEI programs in the federal government and the end of agencies considering diversity in hiring, and it threatened to punish some private entities that use them. The order said the government had been infiltrated with DEI programs and referenced an executive order from former President Joe Biden that called on federal agencies to address racial inequities. To respond to Trump’s calls to banish DEI from hiring practices and workplaces, dozens of companies and organizations—including Paramount, Goldman Sachs, Citigroup and more—have been reframing or removing their policies in recent months. Most recently, the Major League Baseball association told the Associated Press it removed references to diversity from its website to comply with federal law, though it said the organization’s “values on diversity remain unchanged.”
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