Trump EEOC sues New York Times over bias against white male staffer

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has sued the New York Times over alleged bias against a white male employee, with the employee allegedly being passed over for promotions because of his race and gender. 

The EEOC said the publisher, acting in accordance with its DEI policies that have the stated goals of increasing non-white and female representation in its leadership positions, "left a longtime New York Times editor, a white man with extensive experience in real estate journalism, out of its final panel interviews for a vacant Deputy Real Estate Editor position in early 2025."

"Every candidate who advanced through to the final interview process was not a white male. The company ultimately hired an outside candidate for the role — a non-white female with little to no experience in real estate journalism, despite such experience being a requirement for the real estate editor position," the EEOC stated, adding that the hiring manager had greenlit the external candidate for the final interview panel without her going through the standard interview process. That final interview panel had given the candidate who ultimately got the position a lower rating than the other two final candidates.

EEOC Chair Andrea Lucas said in a statement, "No one is above the law — including 'elite’ institutions. There is no such thing as 'reverse discrimination'; all race or sex discrimination is equally unlawful, according to long-established civil rights principles. The EEOC is prepared to root out discrimination anywhere it may rear its head. No matter the size or power of the employer, the EEOC under my leadership will not pull punches in ensuring evenhanded, colorblind enforcement of Title VII to protect America’s workers, including white males. Federal law is clear: making hiring or promotion decisions motivated in whole or in part by race or sex violates federal law. There is no diversity exception to this rule."

The suit accuses the New York Times of violating Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of race or sex. 

Times spokeswoman Danielle Rhoades Ha wrote in a statement Sunday, "The New York Times categorically rejects the meritless and politically motivated allegations that the Trump administration’s EEOC is pursuing against us." She wrote that "throughout this process, the EEOC deviated from standard practices in highly unusual ways, blatantly weaponizing a traditionally independent government body to serve a predetermined narrative."

Rhoades Ha said on Tuesday that "Neither race nor gender played a role in this decision. We hired the most qualified candidate, and she is an excellent editor."