The Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Brendan Carr has sent a letter to the Chief Executive Officer of the Walt Disney Company over the company’s diversity practices.
The letter, sent on Friday, acknowledged that Disney has “recently made some changes to how it brands certain” diversity efforts within the company, but expressed concern that Disney may not have gone far enough in those changes — and may continue to be considering diversity and equity goals in its hiring decisions.
“Numerous reports indicate that Disney’s leadership went all-in on invidious forms of DEI (diversity, equity and inclusiveness) discrimination a few years ago, and apparently did so in a manner that infected many aspects of your company’s decisions,” Carr wrote.
Federal rules prohibit licensed broadcasters from discriminating on the basis of certain elements, including race, religion, age and gender. Disney owns the ABC network, and eight local ABC television stations hold FCC-issued broadcast licenses to use public radio spectrum.
DEI initiatives have been a target for the Trump administration since President Donald Trump was inaugurated into a second term in office nearly three months ago.
On his first day back in office, Trump signed an Executive Order requiring federal agencies to end DEI programs within their offices and terminate employees who were tasked with executing on DEI-related initiatives, among other matters.
Carr has understood that to mean that the FCC must also ensure the industries and companies within its purview also end their DEI practices. In February, he sent a letter to the CEO of Comcast, Brian Roberts, demanding information about the company’s DEI practices. Comcast is regulated by the FCC for its ownership of NBC- and Telemundo-owned broadcast stations, which are also licensed, as well as its various broadband services, which use public rights of way.
The letter sent to Disney CEO Bob Iger is Carr’s first since he became Chairman in January, and his second in recent months — Carr served as a Commissioner within the FCC when he informed Iger that he intended to scrutinize Disney and ABC on a number of matters, including their DEI initiatives and their treatment of independently-owned ABC affiliates.
On Friday, Carr limited his notice just to DEI practices at Disney, and demanded “an accounting of Disney and ABC’s DEI programs, policies and practices.” The FCC’s Enforcement Bureau is expected to follow up with Disney on the specific information being sought.
A spokesperson for Disney said the company was “reviewing the (FCC’s) letter, and we look forward to engaging with the Commission to answer its questions.”
