The Association of Independent Commercial Producers (AICP) has updated its Demographic Reporting Initiative to reflect an expanded range of gender identity options and the inclusion of veteran status, responding to increasing client and agency requests for detailed demographic information.
Originally launched in 2021, this initiative allows production companies to offer advertisers and agencies insights into the demographic makeup of their commercial and brand content crews.
With the release of version 2.0, the AICP has significantly broadened the gender identity classifications, adding categories like pangender, transgender, gender fluid, and gender neutral. This is in addition to the previous options of male, female, and non-binary. Furthermore, production staff now have the option to identify their veteran status, allowing for a more comprehensive understanding of the workforce’s diversity.
Sheila R. Brown, AICP’s Vice President of Equity & Inclusion, emphasized the importance of this update, stating that as communities become more diverse, the demand for such demographic data continues to grow. “The yearning to know the make-up of the production crews increases,” said Brown. She highlighted the need for the industry to evolve and provide individuals with more inclusive ways to self-identify.
The updated reporting initiative, developed in cooperation with industry payroll companies, ensures that demographic data remains anonymous and voluntarily provided by employees. AICP member companies can request aggregated data to share with clients upon request, but AICP itself remains uninvolved in the data collection process.
The initiative’s latest iteration is part of AICP’s broader push towards diversity, inclusion, and equity within the production industry, ensuring that companies of all sizes can engage in responsible and legal demographic reporting.
For more information on the Demographic Reporting Initiative and the broader work of AICP’s Equity & Inclusion Committee, visit the AICP website.
REELated:
This article was brought to you for FREE. Independent Journalism is not. Please support Reel 360 News and Reel Chicago by donating here.
