It was reported that FCC Chairman Brendan Carr will block transfer applications of companies that continue to support DEI policies at their companies. An article in Inside Radio stated:
“Just what such a crackdown by the FCC will look like remains to be seen. But Carr told Bloomberg in an interview on Friday that he would block acquisition and merger approvals for any company sticking with the DEI effort.
“We can only under the statute move forward and approve a transaction if we find that doing so serves the public interest,” Carr said. “If there’s businesses out there that are still promoting invidious forms of DEI discrimination, I really don’t see a path forward where the FCC could reach the conclusion that approving the transaction is going to be in the public interest.” His advice for any company regulated by the FCC is to “get busy” ending their DEI programs.”
Last week’s statements are consistent with the FCC’s concerns about Comcast/Universal/NBC’s DEI program. Chairman Carr reportedly met with Robby Starbuck, who is on record as opposing DEI policies.
The key issue for stations is where the FCC will draw the line. The FCC’s EEO rules and policies are still on the books and stations still must comply with those rules. However, it is not clear what activities will rise to the level of “invidious discrimination” and trigger FCC action. Strict compliance with existing FCC regulations should not trigger a DEI review, but we are in the early stages of this new policy.
There is also some question whether the policy will be extended to policies that promote diversity from suppliers. An article in Radio and Television Business Report noted the following:
“What, exactly, would the Commission review? Carr said the FCC may examine corporate DEI programs beyond hiring practices — including supplier diversity initiatives that have grown in commonality in recent years and select content decisions.”
In the past, the FCC has warned stations about discriminatory advertising practices. Stations have long been prohibited from discrimination in advertising.
We are watching this issue closely.
You can see the article in Inside Radio here.
You can see an additional report on Fox News here.
You can see the article in RBR here.