EEOC Files Lawsuit Against New York Times Alleging Discrimination Against White Male Employee

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission filed a lawsuit against The New York Times in New York federal court on Tuesday, alleging the newspaper discriminated against a white male employee by passing him over for a promotion. S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, claims the Times implemented race and sex-based hiring goals that favor minorities and women, violating Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

The government seeks a court order barring the Times from carrying out diversity, equity and inclusion policies, along with unspecified damages for the unnamed employee. The employee, an 11-year veteran of the Times who worked primarily as a senior staff editor on the international desk, sought a promotion to deputy real estate editor in early 2025. The position was listed in January 2025.

According to the EEOC, the employee is a longtime editor with extensive experience covering the real estate sector, but he lost the job to a multiracial woman who allegedly did not have experience in that area. None of the final four candidates for the position were white men, with the finalists including a multiracial female, a white female, a Black male, and an Asian female.

The EEOC claims the selected candidate’s race (multiracial) and/or her sex (female) factored into the Times’s decision to advance her to the final interview panel.

The person hired was an external candidate described as a white female with little to no experience in real estate journalism, though other details identify her as multiracial. The complaint seeks back pay with interest, compensation for emotional pain and mental anguish, and punitive damages for alleged malicious and/or reckless conduct.

It also requests either a promotion to deputy editor or front pay for the employee.

The lawsuit points to the Times's diversity reports, noting that in a 2021 report, the newspaper said 48 percent of new hires in the previous year were people of color, and the makeup of minorities at the company increased from 27 percent to 34 percent since 2015.

Rhoades Ha added that the allegation centers on a single personnel decision for one of over 100 deputy positions across the newsroom. 'Neither race nor gender played a role in this decision – we hired the most qualified candidate, and she is an excellent editor,' Rhoades Ha said.

The Times has described its employment practices as merit-based and focused on recruiting and promoting the best talent. The company vowed to defend itself vigorously against the claims. The lawsuit accuses the Times of violating civil rights laws by making employment decisions based on race and sex to achieve demographic goals.

The EEOC brought the case on behalf of the white male employee, who claims he was denied the promotion because of his race and gender. As a white male, he did not match the race and/or sex characteristics the Times sought to increase through its diversity actions, according to the suit.