Paramount’s gay CEOs rollback company’s DEI initiatives to appease Trump

by Curated February 28, 2025 · Gay News / Gay Pride / Gay Rights / LGBTQ Nation

The memo said that Trump’s executive orders, which pledged persecution of companies that endorse DEI efforts (especially if they receive any federal funding), has necessitated “changes in the way the company approaches inclusion moving forward. As a result, some of our policies must change to comply with these new mandates.” The company has already removed all mentions of DEI from its webpages.

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The co-CEOs also said the company would end its DEI metric that spent 5% of funding for DEI programs and “aspirational representation goals,” but added, “With our business objectives firmly in mind, we will continue to evaluate our programs and approach to ensure that we are widening our aperture to attract talent from all geographies, backgrounds and perspectives.”

In a September 2024 interview, the gay co-CEOs spoke about the importance of representation in media. McCarthy said, “When I was growing up there were no out LGBTQ+ people in my life or surroundings. TV provided the only way to escape, see myself and begin to dream of a different world.”

Cheeks said, “After knowing someone personally, media representation is the number one way to foster empathy and understanding of differences,” adding, “As a biracial man, I always felt an extra layer of vulnerability,” he told Fortune. “Early in my career, when I was trying to find a way to come out, I kept a James Baldwin quote at my desk. ‘Not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is faced.’”

Fortune wrote that the co-CEOs “believe that an intentional diversity, equity and inclusion mindset is the way to make Paramount Global’s values sing out.”

In its 2023 Studio Responsibility Index, the LGBTQ+ media watchdog organization GLAAD noted that 25% of Paramount’s studio, theatrical and streaming releases had LGBTQ+ representation in them. However, GLAAD gave Paramount an “insufficient” rating on queer representation.

Variety noted that Paramount’s move may be partially motivated by its desire to conduct an $8 billion merger deal with the production company Skydance. Trump’s appointed Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Brendan Carr could potentially disrupt the deal if he opens an investigation into the company’s DEI practices, just as he has done for Comcast and NBCUniversal.

Consumers could punish Paramount for its DEI rollback

A number of companies have recently rolled back their DEI initiatives, including Walmart, Stanley Black & Decker, Molson Coors, Jack Daniels, Ford Motor Company, John Deere, Lowe’s Hardware, Target and Harley-Davidson. However, companies like Apple, Cisco, Costco, Delta Airlines, e.l.f. Beauty, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase, Microsoft, Pinterest, and Salesforce have all quietly kept their own DEI initiatives, Forbes reported.

Recent data has shown that that fewer consumers support companies that drop their DEI commitments. An estimated 75% of consumers said they feel it’s important to buy from brands that support diversity and inclusion. 

“The election [of Trump] makes it easy to assume that America is becoming more conservative on the whole, and many companies feel compelled to follow suit,” wrote Hunter Johnson, CEO of Xpedition, an entertainment and marketing agency that is a member of the National Gay & Lesbian Chamber of Commerce and has a 30% LGBTQ+ workforce.

“[But] market research about DEI paints a clear picture: Regardless of which political party wins in any given election, the American population is becoming more diverse and wants corporate America to reflect this diversity,” Johnson added.

According to recent data from the Human Rights Campaign, 80.1% of LGBTQ+ adults said that they would boycott a company that rolled back DEI measures, with 75.7% of LGBTQ+ adults having a less favorable view of such a company. Additionally, over half (52.5%) said they would try to get others to join the boycott, and similar numbers (51.7%) would remove any profile, credit card, or app they had with the company. Nearly 28% of respondents said they would join a protest or sign a petition against the company too.

Numerous consumers are participating in an “economic blackout” this Friday, refusing to do business with companies that have recently ended their DEI initiatives.

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Author: Daniel Villarreal