The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has filed a lawsuit against The New York Times, alleging that the news outlet violated civil rights law by giving a promotion to a non-white female who was less qualified than a white male employee.
The suit claims that while hiring for a vacant deputy real estate editor position in 2025, the outlet passed over a male Times editor with experience in real estate journalism and instead prioritized candidates who were neither white nor male to the final interview round. The woman who obtained the job reportedly had little to no experience in real estate journalism and was brought into the final interview by the hiring manager without first passing through the preliminary interview process.
The EEOC also says that the final interview panel rated the woman less favorably than the other two candidates. Despite that feedback, the company gave her the job.
The suit backs up its claims by citing the Times’ stated commitment to increasing non-white and female representation in its leadership. In a May 5 press release, the EEOC added that the Times has a “well-documented commitment to enacting race and sex conscious decision making in the workforce through its diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies.”
“No one is above the law — including “elite” institutions,” EEOC Chair Andrea Lucas stated in the release. “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.”
The EEOC argues that the alleged conduct against the male employee violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, which bans discrimination on the basis of race or sex.
In a May 5 statement, the Times rejected the EEOC’s claims and called them “politically motivated.”
“Our employment practices are merit-based and focused on recruiting and promoting the best talent in the world. We will defend ourselves vigorously,” the Times stated.
The outlet further claimed that the EEOC “deviated from standard practices in highly unusual ways” throughout the process of bringing the suit.
“The allegation centers on a single personnel decision for one of over 100 deputy positions across the newsroom, yet the EEOC’s filing makes sweeping claims that ignore the facts to fit a predetermined narrative,” the Times stated. “Neither race nor gender played a role in this decision – we hired the most qualified candidate, and she is an excellent editor.”