The chairman of the Federal Communications Commission said on Friday that he had opened an investigation into Disney’s diversity, equity and inclusion programs in the latest attempt under the Trump administration to halt such efforts.
In a letter to Robert A. Iger, the chief executive of Disney, Brendan Carr, the chairman, said the company’s programs to increase diversity in hiring and to promote race-based affinity groups appeared to violate equal employment opportunity regulations.
“I want to ensure that Disney ends any and all discriminatory initiatives in substance, not just name,” Mr. Carr said in the letter, which was sent on Thursday. “For another, I want to determine whether Disney’s actions — whether ongoing or recently ended — complied at all times with applicable F.C.C. regulations.”
A Disney spokesman said the company was reviewing the F.C.C.’s letter. “We look forward to engaging with the commission to answer its questions.”
Mr. Carr, a veteran Republican regulator, began his tenure as chairman of the F.C.C. in January by starting a sweeping campaign to scrutinize the media, attempting to root out allegations of left-leaning bias and policies scorned by the president.
Last month, he began a similar diversity and inclusion inquiry into Comcast, the parent company of NBCUniversal. Mr. Carr has also said merger reviews undertaken by the agency will now include investigations of companies’ D.E.I. programs.
The investigations follow an executive order by President Trump on his first day in office banning “illegal and immoral” D.E.I. programs in the federal government. One day later, Mr. Carr announced that he would end any promotion of diversity and equity in the F.C.C.’s strategic plan, budget and economic reports.
It is unclear whether the F.C.C., which usually hands out 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 “public interest” standard in scrutinizing companies like Disney, which owns ABC and ESPN, as well as television stations across the nation.
Mr. Carr’s investigations could be challenged in court, F.C.C. experts said.
“This is all about bullying and intimidation,” said Andrew Schwartzman, senior counsel at 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.
Mr. Carr, who was nominated by Mr. Trump, has started inquiries since he took over as chairman into multiple news organizations, including PBS and NPR, accusing them of left-leaning political bias. He examined an interview that CBS’s “60 Minutes” conducted with former Vice President Kamala Harris, and he announced an investigation into KCBS, a San Francisco radio station, for its coverage of immigration enforcement actions.
Mr. Carr has publicly agreed with the administration’s promises to slash regulation, go after Big Tech and punish TV networks for political bias. Mr. Carr is reshaping the independent agency, expanding its mandate and wielding it as a political weapon for the right, telecommunications attorneys and analysts have said.
Brooks Barnes contributed reporting from Los Angeles.
