FCC Defends Most of Demographic Data Ask After Trump DEI Action

A Federal Communications Commission attorney told an appeals court that the agency is still largely defending an order on collecting demographic data about broadcasters’ employees, after President Donald Trump’s executive actions against diversity equity and inclusion efforts.

William Scher told the US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit on Tuesday that the independent agency would no longer defend parts of the order that allowed employees to identify as non-binary. However, he said, the FCC was standing by the rest of the order as the commission hadn’t had the opportunity to reconsider or alter it.

The FCC in 2024 said ...