“Survivor” host Jeff Probst shared that “nothing has changed” about the show’s diversity, equity and inclusion initiative in the years since CBS announced one for all of its reality TV casting in 2020. Probst suggested that the policy has made “Survivor” even better over its recent seasons.
“Nothing has changed,” Probst told the New York Times when asked about the status of the show’s DEI initiative. “If you watch our show, you know that we’re so diverse — and it’s not just skin color or ethnicity. It goes much deeper than that. It’s one of the biggest positive changes ever. Our stories are so much more interesting now because we have people from completely different walks of life.”
In the wake of protests against racial injustice and discrimination after the murder of George Floyd in 2020, CBS was one of many companies to launch DEI policies as a way to formalize corporate accountability for increased diversity. Many of those policies have been abandoned by private companies in the years since, along with President Trump’s 2025 executive order to remove DEI programs from the federal workforce.
In November 2o20, CBS announced that it would introduce an initiative for its reality TV programming, requiring its shows to ensure that 50% of its casts are Black, Indigenous or People of Color and committing at least 25% of development budget towards BIPOC creators and producers. The network later ended those policies after David Ellison’s Skydance Entertainment ensured the Federal Communications Commission that it would end DEI initiatives at CBS’ parent company Paramount Global following its acquisition.
However, Probst suggests that the policies remain in place for “Survivor.”
“No one ever says, ‘Can you count the numbers again?’ But Jesse Tannenbaum, who runs our casting team, knows: There’s no stopping, not because we’re told to do it,” Probst continued. “This is what we need. We need diversity. It’s for narrative. All those differences matter in the story when you throw people together and force them to rely on each other while conspiring against each other. The more diverse, the more interesting.”
“Survivor” debuted its Season 51 premiere on Wednesday.
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