Warner Bros. Discovery is joining its competitors in scaling back its emphasis on DEI amid a larger crackdown by the Trump administration.
Going forward, the company’s overarching work in this space will now be referred to solely as inclusion, according to a memo to staff from chief inclusion officer Asif Sadiq and chief people & culture officer Jennifer Remling.
“Making this change better aligns our language with our focus throughout our company, in our industry and across our content,” the pair said. “We’re updating the language we use to ensure the intent and impact of our actions are clear; you will see this new approach being updated on Wbd.com as well as on our internal channels.”
WBD also said it would have a “uniform and consistent application process” across its talent programs, including internships, mentoring and other development programs. Additionally, it will no longer participate in third party workplace surveys, but will continue to gather internal data to understand how its employee base “reflects the audience we serve.”
“Telling stories that shape culture and engage people all over the world takes a commitment to diverse voices, perspectives and experiences,” the memo concluded. “Fully representing our audiences is critical to our business, our content and our culture. We are now, and always will be, committed to ensuring our values underpin how we operate as a company.”
In addition to WBD, Paramount said it would change several DEI policies, including no longer using “aspirational numerical goals related to the race, ethnicity, sex or gender of hires” or collecting race, ethnicity, sex or gender data for U.S. job applicants except in markets legally required to do so.
It also eliminated the DEI metric on its short-term incentive plan, which connected 5% of the program’s funding to progress on companywide DEI initiatives. Instead, 10% of the program’s fund will be based on its workforce culture and development metric, focused on building a “high-performing and inclusive culture.”
Other companies that have rolled back DEI efforts include Amazon, Disney and PBS. The FCC has also launched an investigation into Comcast over its promotion of DEI.
Read Warner Bros Discovery’s full memo below:
Team,
For more than a century, our company has had a proud history of creating stories that inspire, educate, and entertain audiences of all backgrounds, all over the world. As storytellers, to truly and deeply connect with those global audiences, it is imperative that we understand and reflect the incredible depth of their lives and experiences — at every level of our company, in front of and behind the camera, on and off the screen.
Our success absolutely depends on having a team that’s truly diverse, reflects all perspectives, and has a culture where our employees feel valued and respected.
These have always been our values and that won’t ever change.
Today, we want to provide you with an update on our review announced at the Global Town Hall in January around our diversity efforts to be true to those values and make sure we continue to comply with the evolving legal landscape in the United States and around the world.
Our Continuing Values and Commitments Include:
- Continuing to Prioritize Inclusive Storytelling: We continue to be strongly committed to telling inclusive and diverse stories across our film and television programming around the world.
- Growing an Inclusive Team: One of the ways we do this is through our best-in-class recruiting and training programs, which provide essential skills training, education, and job opportunities to build career pathways into the entertainment industry for people of all backgrounds.
- Supporting All Employees: We will ensure our Business Resource Groups, which we believe play an important role in fostering community and belonging, continue to thrive as they welcome everyone to celebrate culture and share experiences.
- Investing in Employee Development: We are proud of the range of mentorship, leadership development, and growth opportunities we offer to employees throughout their careers. These programs will continue to be supported and play a role in our employee growth and development strategy.
Things That Will Change:
- Leading with Inclusion: Our overarching work in this space will now be referred to as Inclusion, which Asif’s team will continue to oversee. Making this change better aligns our language with our focus throughout our company, in our industry, and across our content. We’re updating the language we use to ensure the intent and impact of our actions are clear; you will see this new approach being updated on wbd.com as well as on our internal channels.
- Creating Consistent Program Opportunities: We will now have a uniform and consistent application process across our talent programs, including internships, mentoring, and other development programs. All of our programs will be open and welcoming to all applicants, with the goal of cultivating an inclusive home for world-class talent. By investing in world-class talent from wherever it comes, we are not only supporting growth and opportunity in this company but also strengthening the wider industry’s future.
- Ending Participation in Third-Party Surveys: While we will no longer participate in workplace surveys conducted by third parties, we will continue to gather internal data that allows us to understand how our employee base reflects the audience we serve.
Since our commitment to inclusion is essential to our business and our mission, we are undertaking this evolution thoughtfully. We are working with corporate and creative stakeholders from across the company to develop a refreshed strategy that aligns with both our business priorities and core values. We will share more with you soon as this progresses.
Telling stories that shape culture and engage people all over the world takes a commitment to diverse voices, perspectives, and experiences. Fully representing our audiences is critical to our business, our content, and our culture. We are now, and always will be, committed to ensuring our values underpin how we operate as a company.
Jennifer and Asif
Jennifer Remling
Chief People & Culture Officer
Asif Sadiq
Chief Inclusion Officer
