One of the nation’s largest entertainment providers announced this week that it was launching a new diversity initiative that includes LGBT representation.
Comcast Corporation/NBCUniversal created a Joint External Diversity Advisory Council, which will work to advise executives at the company on diversity issues pertaining to certain communities.
The council consists of four separate nine-person committees that will address issues pertaining to African Americans, Asian Americans, Hispanics and women. The joint council was also designed to represent the interests of veterans, Native Americans, people with disabilities and the LGBT communities. Council members will advise the company on corporate governance, employment recruitment and retention, procurement, programming and philanthropy with respect to the specific communities they represent.
In addition to the four committees, there are also four members at large, including PGN publisher Mark Segal and Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defense president Jarrett Barrios. Alba Martinez, the out principal of Vanguard and former CEO of the United Way of Southeastern Pennsylvania, will serve as vice chair of the Hispanic Advisory Council.
“One of our key goals when establishing the Council was to achieve a cross-section of viewpoints from multiple groups, including business, entertainment and media, and civil-rights organizations,” said David L. Cohen, executive vice president and chief diversity officer at Comcast Corporation. “We believe we have achieved that with the council’s members and we look forward to working together to become a model on diversity for the communications and entertainment industries.”
The Joint Diversity Council will hold its first meeting in May.
Jen Colletta can be reached at [email protected].