The State Press Highlights AIM’s Undercover DEI Investigation at ASU
February 16, 2026
A conservative media watchdog organization secretly recorded two ASU faculty members discussing ASU’s diversity, equity and inclusion policies by posing as prospective students.
Accuracy in Media is a nonprofit organization that uses “investigative journalism and cultural activism to expose corruption and hold bad public policy actors accountable,” according to their website. Staff members from the organization recorded and released two undercover videos of faculty members from the Watts College of Public Service and Community Solutions that purported to demonstrate University DEI policies.
On Jan. 5, AIM published a video, obtained with a hidden camera, of Rebecca Loftus, a professor and an associate director of the School of Criminology and Criminal Justice, describing ways the school has shifted its language to follow policies against DEI while maintaining practices that promote inclusivity.
In a video published Jan. 29, Chandra Crudup, a professor and an associate dean of the Watts College, spoke to an undercover AIM staff member about the Inclusive Design for Equity and Access Office and ways the University has changed its language to avoid scrutiny.
In both videos, the AIM staff members posed as prospective University students to meet with the faculty members, according to articles published alongside the videos.
Adam Guillette, the president of AIM, is seen at the end of each video confronting Crudup and Loftus about their statements, claiming the University is violating state and federal policies. According to AIM, Crudup declined to comment when approached by Guillette, while Loftus said to “talk to our Director.”
The Arizona Board of Regents policy manual prohibits “unlawful discrimination, harassment, and retaliation” on the basis of a protected class. The state constitution also prohibits preferential treatment or discrimination using a similar standard.
Executive Order 14173, which President Donald Trump signed on Jan. 21, 2025, includes provisions against the use of DEI or affirmative action policies in institutions of higher education.
A University spokesperson said in a written statement that the University fully complies with federal law and does not discriminate in admission or scholarship decisions.
“Not only would doing so violate Arizona Board of Regents and ASU policy, but ASU has since 2010 operated under a state constitutional provision that prohibits preferential treatment or discrimination on the basis of race, sex, color, ethnicity, or national origin in public education,” the spokesperson said in a statement.
The spokesperson said in a statement that “ASU does not comment on secret video recordings of its employees who are not authorized to speak on behalf of the university” and thus had no comment on the videos.
Loftus and Crudup both declined to comment on the videos.
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