Disney Overhauls DEI Efforts Amid Trump Administration Purge

deadline.com:

Amid President Donald Trump’s frontal assault on diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, Disney has scaled back and restated its DEI efforts, aligning them more directly with “business goals and company values.” The tweaks, discussed in an internal memo, are less dramatic than DEI shifts at other major companies from Meta to Amazon to Google but meant to stem potential backlash after one of Trump’s first acts in office was to shut down federal DEI initiatives and put employees on leave.

Federal contractors and grantees are also under scrutiny. PBS, funded by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, said this week it is closing an office dedicated to diversity, equity and inclusion efforts amid Trump’s flurry of executive orders such programs.

Disney is also updating disclaimers that run before certain titles on its streaming services that currently warn viewers of “negative depictions and/or mistreatment of people or cultures.” In a forthcoming change, the tag will read, “This program is presented as originally created and may contain stereotypes or negative depictions,” and be included in the Details section.

The memo today from Disney’s HR chief Sonia Coleman aimed to provide “an update on how our values are embedded in our leader compensation programs, specifically our Other Performance Factors (OPFs), as well as share some of the work that has been underway to evolve our talent strategy consistent with these values.” The language does not mention diversity but focuses on belonging.