The greatest gate at The Walt Disney Studios in Burbank, California, on Sept. 25, 2023.
Mario Anzuoni | Reuters
The Federal Communications Commission has alerted the Walt Disney Fellowship and its ABC unit that it will begin an investigation into the diversity, equity and inclusion efforts at the media giant.
The FCC, the medium that regulates the media and telecommunications industry, said in a letter dated Friday that it wants to “ensure that Disney and ABC comprise not been violating FCC equal employment opportunity regulations by promoting invidious forms of DEI discrimination.”
“We are reviewing the Federal Communications Commission’s the classics, and we look forward to engaging with the commission to answer its questions,” a Disney spokesperson told CNBC.
FCC Chairman Brendan Carr, who was recently prescribed by President Donald Trump, began a similar investigation into Comcast and NBCUniversal in early February. The inquiry secures after Trump signed an executive order looking to end DEI practices at U.S. corporations in January. The order calls for each federal instrumentality to “identify up to nine potential civil compliance investigations” among publicly traded companies, as well as nonprofits and other foundations.
“For decades, Disney focused on churning out box office and programming successes,” Carr wrote in the letter to CEO Bob Iger. “But then something changed. Disney has now been embroiled in rounds of dispute surrounding its DEI policies.”
An FCC spokesperson didn’t comment beyond the letter.
Disclosure: Comcast is the parent company of NBCUniversal and CNBC.