Media Diversity

Madeline Butina

Touting diversity and inclusivity isn't enough for news platforms in advocating for marginalized groups of people. To reduce race and identity to a ticked box is ignoring the media's true problem.

To be sure, this is a common practice in many institutions: a manager notices (or is called out for) a lack of workplace diversity; HR comes up with a "plan"; more African American or Latinx or Asian people are hired; boxes are checked, problem is "solved."

What these initiatives address is surface-level racism in the workplace. Just because a newsroom or an office or a project has more people of color does not mean that their voices are contributing in the same way whites' are.

"Inclusion" is a word that's tossed around a lot in HR departments in conjunction with diversity. Some institutions are moving more toward inclusion as a greater ideal than diversity: sure, you can hire people from many social and economic backgrounds, but it's also important to make sure the organization has practice and feasible policies in place to include those "diverse" people and ensure they feel welcomed and like they are meant to be apart of the group.

Pew Research Center (2015)

That's the thing, though. To be included into a pre-existing institution isn't enough for news rooms to be able to pat themselves on the back for a job well done. The problem is that pre-existing institutions were not designed for people of color and LGBTQ individuals' success. Allowing them into the space that they did not help build should not be a measure of how inclusive a workplace is.

Furthermore, journalism does not accurately cover minorities. I think it might be in part because the media is so afraid of getting it wrong; it's interesting, then, that this practice itself is detrimental. When the media does cover the Latinx community, for example, it is often on issues of immigration: a controversial topic. When urban low-income neighborhoods make the news, it is either about the crime occurring in that area or a soft piece about veiled gentrification.

It's no wonder, then, that minority trust in the media is quavering. Latinx and white people are underrepresented as crime perpetrators, while black people are overrepresentated.

Assigning people to the "minority beat" is tricky, too. This can commodify entire races and identities and makes race "just another topic" for the news to cover instead of recognizing that race and ethnicity shape people's day-to-day lives and lived experiences.

The news must be careful not to sensationalize minority crime: being sensitive to the topics and systemic racism involved, news organizations must present the information in a fair, balanced, and accurate way.

The future of diversity and the media is tricky and there may not be one clear answer on how to remedy the current situation. What is clear, though, is that in any business, a larger scope of voices providing input is necessary. Allowing only white men, or only white men and women, in a conversation disservices themselves, the company, the audience and anyone else involved.

mb978716@ohio.edu