According to The Hollywood Reporter, script coordinator for the show SEAL Team, Brian Beneker, is working with a conservative group to sue CBS. The group is founded by Stephen Miller, a Trump administration alum. Beneker is suing on the basis that CBS as well as its parent company Paramount allegedly discriminate against straight white men.
Beneker claims that in order to be hired, “heterosexual, white men need ‘extra’ qualifications” said The Hollywood Reporter. The lawsuit was filed in a California federal court this past Wednesday. In the lawsuit, Beneker said that due to “illegal policy of race and sex balancing” which then prompted “less qualified applicants who were members of more preferred groups,” to be hired, he was allegedly pushed aside for the job of staff writer. Beneker is asking for $500,000, as well as a court order that would make him a full-time producer on the series. He claimed that this court order would bar further discriminatory practices from the company.
The group representing Beneker is America First Legal Foundation, which serves as a conservative group founded by Stephen Miller. The Hollywood Reporter revealed that the group has been filing complaints with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission against major companies. However, CBS is the first entertainment brand that has been filed against by the group. CBS has declined to comment on the situation.
The Hollywood Reporter detailed parts oof the complaint, which said, “During Season 6, (in approximately May of 2022), two female writer’s assistants, without any writing credits, were hired as staff writers, the first of these two hires was black. The second identified as lesbian.” It then continued that CBS’ hiring practices has “created a situation where heterosexual, white men need ‘extra’ qualifications (including military experience or previous writing credits) to be hired as staff writers when compared to their nonwhite, LGBTQ, or female peers.”
This Lawsuit comes directly after Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard, a case from last year which struck down race-conscious admissions in colleges and universities. A source told The Hollywood Reporter to expect more lawsuits that challenge diversity and inclusion programs.