From business tariffs to regulatory overhauls and anti-immigration policies, the cloud of Donald Trump's second presidency looms large over U.S. and global businesses. One department has already been weathering a public storm under atmospheric pressure from conservative activists: corporate diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). At Adcolor's annual conference in Los Angeles last month, members of...

The latest diversity, equity, and inclusion domino to fall is also the largest, as retail colossus Walmart confirmed that it is scaling back or eliminating related initiatives, including no longer using the term DEI in official communications, reviewing grants to Pride events, and not renewing the racial equity center commitments. Anti-DEI activist Robby Starbuck claimed...

For years--especially in the last four--we've watched brands expand marketing efforts holistically and prioritize voices of color through organic and paid media placements. However, a continuously overlooked medium for major brands and advertisers is Black culture-focused tentpole events. As a regular attendee at such events as Essence Festival, CurlyCon, or CultureCon, to name a few,...

In 2023, NHL policy around sanctioned Pride jerseys was reconsidered because seven players--less than 1% of NHL players--publicly refused wearing them. Circumstances like these aren't representative of public sentiment, which is that more people (more than double) say their perception of a brand is positively influenced (39%) by Pride participation than negatively (17%). Colin Kaepernick...