FCC orders research on Disney's practices

The president of the Federal Communications Commission said Friday that he had opened an investigation into the diversity, equity and inclusion programs of Disney in the last attempt under the Trump administration to stop such efforts.

In a letter to Robert A. Iger, the executive director of Disney, Brendan Carr, president, said that the company's programs to increase diversity in hiring and promote breed -based affinity groups seemed to violate regulations for equal employment opportunities.

“I want to make sure that Disney ends each and every one of the discriminatory initiatives in the substance, not just the name,” said Carr in the letter, which was sent on Thursday. “For another, I want to determine whether Disney's actions, whether they are continuous or finished recently, complied at all times with applicable FCC regulations.”

A Disney spokesman said the company was checking the FCC letter. “We hope to get involved with the commission to answer your questions.”

Mr. Carr, a republican regulator veteran, began his mandate as president of the FCC in January at the beginning of a radical campaign to analyze the media, trying to eliminate the accusations of left bias and policies despised by the president.

Last month, a similar investigation of diversity and inclusion in Comcast began, the nbcuniversal parent company. Carr has also said that mergers reviews carried out by the agency will now include investigations of the company's Dei programs.

The investigations continue An executive order by President Trump on his first day in the position that prohibits Dei “illegal and immoral” programs in the federal government. A day later, Mr. Carr announced that any promotion of diversity and equity in the strategic plan, the budget and economic reports of the FCC would end.

It is not clear if the FCC, which generally delivers licenses to broadcast television and radio stations and plays the role of Watchdog for cable television, has the power to punish a media company for its diversity initiatives. Mr. Carr has argued that the agency can apply a broad standard of “public interest” in the examiner of companies such as Disney, which ABC and ESPN has, as well as in television stations throughout the country.

Mr. Carr's investigations could be challenged in court, FCC experts said.

“This is about intimidation and intimidation,” said Andrew Schwartzman, main advisor to the Benton Institute for Broadband & Society. Mr. Carr's most powerful tool is his vote on the commission to approve mergers and acquisitions, he said.

Carr, who was nominated by Mr. Trump, has begun investigations since he assumed the position of president in multiple news organizations, including PBS and NPR, accusing them of left -wing political bias. He examined an interview that the “60 minutes” of CBS were held with former vice president Kamala Harris, and announced an investigation into KCBS, a San Francisco radio station, for its coverage of immigration application actions.

Carr has publicly agreed with the promises of the administration to reduce regulation, go after the great technology and punish television networks for political bias. Mr. Carr is restructuring the independent agency, expanding its mandate and wielding it as a political weapon for the law, they have said that telecommunications lawyers and analysts.

Brooks Barnes Los Angeles contributed reports.