Politics
CBS Forced To Settle Anti-White Discrimination Suit
CBS has reached a confidential settlement in a federal discrimination lawsuit filed by Brian Beneker, a former script coordinator on the network’s drama SEAL Team, who alleged he was repeatedly passed over for promotions because he is a white, heterosexual male.
The lawsuit, backed by America First Legal (AFL), was filed in early 2024 and accused CBS and its parent company, Paramount Global, of violating federal civil rights laws by implementing hiring practices that prioritized race, gender, and sexual orientation over merit. Beneker worked on SEAL Team since 2017 and had written freelance episodes across multiple seasons, but claimed he was blocked from being promoted to a staff writer role solely because he didn’t meet the network’s diversity criteria.
According to the suit, Beneker was told by the show runner that he didn’t “check any diversity boxes.” The comment was tied to CBS’s publicly stated goals at the time. In 2020, then-CEO George Cheeks announced that 40% of all writers’ rooms on the network’s primetime series would be staffed with BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) writers by 2021-22, with a further goal that “half of all writers” would be nonwhite by the 2022-2023 season.
Although CBS did not admit wrongdoing, the company opted to settle the suit this month rather than proceed with extended litigation. Terms of the agreement remain confidential, but Beneker has since agreed to voluntarily dismiss the case.
LOS ANGELES, CA – August 01, 2017: Seal Team Cast at CBS TV’s Summer Soiree at CBS TV Studios
“Paramount Global and CBS Studios have agreed to a settlement in a lawsuit America First Legal brought on behalf of our client Brian Beneker,” Nick Barry, America First Legal Senior Counsel, said in a statement. “America First Legal is pleased to see Paramount and CBS publicly back off their DEI requirements and return to merit-based considerations. Diversity quotas that discriminate on the basis of race are unlawful. Others in the entertainment industry should take note,” said Barry.
The lawsuit’s timing was notable, coming as Paramount seeks regulatory approval for a major merger with Skydance Media. Meanwhile, federal agencies like the FCC are reportedly reviewing demographic-based hiring goals in the media industry, raising broader questions about legality and fairness.
In response to growing legal and public scrutiny, Paramount Global has recently scaled back its DEI initiatives. The company has eliminated race-based hiring quotas, ended the collection of demographic data on job applicants, and removed financial incentives tied to DEI targets.
During his tenure, Beneker claims he watched CBS hire at least six staff writers on SEAL Team who lacked prior screenwriting credits—individuals selected, he alleged, because they fit diversity criteria. Despite having a long tenure and hands-on writing experience, he was told staffing needs were full, only to see those positions later filled by less qualified but more “diverse” candidates.
This follows the resignation of Bill Owens, who stepped down as executive producer of CBS’s 60 Minutes just two days earlier, citing a loss of journalistic independence. His exit comes as CBS faces intensifying scrutiny over a $20 billion lawsuit filed by President Donald Trump.
