News Through Another Set of Eyes

Hallie Kile
hk649314@ohio.edu

I see news through the eyes of a young white female. Generally, the news I read is viewed through the eyes of a journalist with a background similar. I have become accustomed to the expectation that the news I read and watch was likely written or filmed by someone similar to myself, sharing the same skin color, beliefs and economic class. There is something incredibly wrong with that assumption, though.

According to a 2016 estimate by the U.S. Census Bureau, nearly 77 percent of the United States population is white, and just under 51 percent is female. These statistics indicate the great number of people who read and view the news with eyes very different from my own, and these people are often greatly underrepresented within the media.


Underrepresentation in the Newsroom

image via pixabay

In a report by the Radio Television Digital News Association, less than a quarter of the television news workforce is composed of minority individuals.

In an article for Nieman Reports, Wesley Lowery, a Pulitzer Prize winning journalist and member of the black community writes, "The problem is, if all of the journalists on a particular story have the same backgrounds, the same upbringings, or the same amount of pigment in their skin, what we know for a fact is that they're not going to be best equipped to ask the depth and detail of questions that are needed."

Lowery's argument draws attention to the evident lack of newsroom diversity, and though minority numbers in the workplace are increasing, there is still room for improvement. How can newsrooms effectively welcome increased diversity in the workplace, though?

Transparency in Numbers

By openly sharing workplace statistics, brands can provide transparency to readers and viewers. Well-known companies like Apple and Google have released diversity statistics to the public, and the accessibility of these numbers allows users to catch a glimpse of what these big names look like up close.

On its diversity commitments page, Google even shares its shortcomings, stating, "In 2016, we made some progress but not enough."

This sense of vulnerability shows the intentions of the company to grow as a whole and share its goals with the consumer. Media outlets can learn from this strategy, as well. By acknowledging the need for improvement, companies and their viewers or readers can all participate in the fight for more diverse media.

Increased Diversity Introduces New Perspectives

In opening up about diversity concerns, media companies can welcome the potential for growth in the newsroom.

Increased workplace diversity allows outlets to tackle racial and minority topics that beg to be explained by those who truly understand the breadth of underrepresentation in society and in the media. This will provide the community with voices who are best equipped to ask the right questions, as Lowery suggests, and to accurately address the topics at hand.

By accurately representing minority groups in the news, the public can gain a greater understanding of society's big picture. Diversity in the media presents readers and viewers with a new lens to the world at large. This lens is one of color, inclusivity and equality.