A rule proposed by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) would require broadcasters to disclose the ethnicity and gender of their employees in the public domain.
This development has raised concerns regarding potential pressure on companies to make hiring decisions predicated on employee identity.
The suggested regulation will mandate that broadcasters maintain records of the ethnic and gender distribution of their personnel and disclose such information to the public.
Earlier this month, the rule was approved by a vote of 3-2 and was published on Thursday for comment in the Federal Register.
Former President Donald Trump appointed Brendan Carr to the commission.
According to Carr, the regulation would allow activists to exert pressure on broadcast companies to base hiring decisions on demographics rather than merit.
The Civil Rights Act of 1964 requires that the government keep this type of data confidential when it is collected by the Equal Opportunity Employment Commission.
But the FCC goes another way—one that violates the Constitution, as courts already found in two prior FCC cases.
— Brendan Carr (@BrendanCarrFCC) February 23, 2024
Supported by the commission members appointed by Biden, the regulation will require radio and television broadcasters to annually submit Form 395-B, which requests information regarding the demographic makeup of their staff.
Carr asserted that the FCC’s endeavor to compel broadcasters to disclose the data was in contravention of the Constitution, citing prior judicial rulings in which the FCC was unsuccessful in its attempt to compel the comparison of employee demographic data with that of the general populace.
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