Diversity Within the News Industry

 Danielle Smith

ds006019@ohio.edu

Photo Courtesy of the British Council  

Over the past century, media has played a vital role in advocating for diversity and inclusiveness in life. Still, while they focus on equal representation, they fail to focus on the lack of diversity within their industry. When looking at the demographics that represent members of the news industry, we can find that an overwhelming majority of the industry consists of white individuals. For example, a study conducted by the Pew Research Center showed that non-Hispanic white men could account for 48% of the news industry, which has resulted in the media being one of the least diverse industries in the United States. While this is an issue on its own, it is truly detrimental to the representation of minorities throughout America, as they are heavily outweighed within the media. 

Representation of minorities throughout the news is vital concerning the accuracy and validity of the media. When pursuing a story, it must be analyzed from different perspectives to prevent bias and accurately represent the subject it reflects upon. Without different demographics compromising the news industry, there is no way that it could realistically represent the many different demographics that make up the United States. For this reason, is it crucial that the media focuses on diversity within their industry, or else the lack of equal representation will continue to misrepresent the struggles and sentiments of minorities?

To better represent the sentiments of all Americans, the news industry must analyze all demographics to create a team of diverse individuals that can represent the many different groups that make up America. While race and gender are often the factors that contribute the most to bias within the news, many other demographics, such as age, sexuality, religion, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and gender identity, can misrepresent minorities' struggles.

Over the past year, newsrooms have worked to create teams that include a wide range of demographics to represent better the people they are reporting on. For example, an article published by Poynter regarding the recent increase in diversity reveals that, of the many newsrooms surveyed, four out of five employees believe that the more diverse their team has become, the more reflective their stories are. Greater diversity within the news industry allows the sentiments of all demographics throughout America to be represented without bias or ignorance, which is why it is vital to the integrity of journalism.

Diversity in staffing and content are interrelated

Molly Wilson 

mw542219@ohio.edu 

                                                       Photo Courtesy of DNV

Diversity within journalism is a topic that has become increasingly prevalent in recent years. More and more newsrooms have developed diversity teams to diversify content and staffing. Unfortunately, diversity in sourcing, content, and coverage is often separated from staffing concerns, despite the interconnectivity of it all. 

How does the newsroom influence various coverage? 

Newsrooms need to reflect the population they serve. A majority white newsroom may not write or pitch stories that reflect its audience accurately. Seeking out various coverage is a large part of writing inclusive move stories and featuring diverse experiences. However, in a Washington Post article regarding Dove's racist campaign, it was mentioned that a lack of diversity in its staff may have resulted in the campaign running in the first place. Similar things can happen in news coverage when diversity is not prioritized. Journalists can not target diverse content or sources with various backgrounds if they do not reflect their audience. 

Why diversify content? 

Beats are a fundamental part of journalism. However, in covering a beat, reporters may contact the same sources frequently and may fall into a pattern of sourcing that does not accurately represent the population they cover. 

Covering stories without speaking to people with various backgrounds, ethnicities, and experiences does not allow fair or balanced reporting. Additionally, journalists fail to serve their readers when they do not account for a range of experiences in their stories, according to the American Press Institute. Journalists are supposed to produce content and write stories that benefit everyone, not just a particular population. 

Balanced reporting requires journalists to take the time necessary to interview individuals who will provide an additional or different viewpoint to a story. According to the American Press Institute, doing so is essential in reaching new audiences and staying relevant in coverage. 

Ways to diversify content: 

Taking action to keep from falling into sourcing routines is difficult. When journalists talk with frequent sources and are responsive, it is easy to reach out to them. However, journalists need to be active in reaching out to different and more diverse sources with various lived experiences. 

According to the Society of Professional Journalists' website, asking existing sources for other contacts is one way to cast a wider sourcing net. However, speaking with the same people for multiple stories does not allow other people with different experiences or backgrounds to add another angle. Journalists should also go to groups, restaurants, schools, or community events to seek new coverage and sourcing. 

Reporters also need to be aware of and research their publication's coverage history. Journalists need to know what coverage and sources have not been a priority for their publication in the past and actively seek out those stories or people. Reporters should also cover groups and individuals whose publication has been underrepresented. 

No publication is perfect, but our job as journalists is to seek out new coverage, actively diversify newsrooms, and ensure that no groups are ignored.  

Diversity Continues to be an On-Going Issue in the News

 Madeline Thomas

mt688819@ohio.edu

Photo courtesy of Anjali Nair

I never had to think about diversity in journalism because I look like a white girl. In reality, I am Mexican, Lebanese, and German, but nobody would know that if I did not tell them. I can easily pass as white, so I have always felt adequately represented in the media. I never worry about being attacked because of my race or ethnicity.

Unfortunately, many people do not share my experience. As a result, their representation in the media may be offensive or misleading. Even worse, they might suffer from assaults that stem from unwarranted prejudice. As an up-and-coming journalist, it is my job to understand the importance of diversity. The United States is called a melting pot for a reason, and so it is only fair that journalists and other media agencies are as diverse as their audiences.

As well as working to become more diverse, companies should also properly acknowledge when they have made mistakes regarding diversity. For example, when Dove released an insensitive commercial in 2017, there was immediate backlash from the black community- one of the target audiences of the commercial. As a result, Dove issued a statement clarifying their intended goal, which was undoubtedly a step in the right direction. However, that was not the first time a company made a mistake with its marketing strategies.

There is a simple way to avoid these mistakes, though; companies need to hire a more diverse group of people to represent their audiences accurately. As a white-passing person who grew up in a predominantly white town, I know that I cannot accurately represent all of the people I will provide news for. Instead, I can help create safe spaces for BIPOC and people within the LGBTQ+ community. I want to help prevent situations like the one that happened to the family of Edmund Lee. The more people see minorities in the news, the more they will hopefully stop being so afraid and hateful towards people who do not present as straight or white.

Diversity is an essential part of journalism, and without diversity, journalists cannot accurately provide information for their audiences. Therefore, no matter what nationality or race people are, we should strive for a diverse and informed newsroom. The goal is to create inclusive media and keep people informed, not making them feel separated and divided.

Why Diversity Really Matters

 Dylan Westmeyer

dw330019@ohio.edu

Courtesy Elsevier

As a minority, what does it mean to be an American? For the most part, it means the same as for everyone being proud of their heritage and where they live, but also having roots in another culture and being incredibly proud of that. Being proud of multiple roots should not be a reason to be attacked but should be celebrated. 

That matters because the media, whether written journalism or even broadcast media, comprises the majority of white men. That matters so greatly because a white man can rarely truly understand the plight of an African American woman or even a Latin American man. 

That can lead to misrepresentation or even completely ignoring what happened to minority populations throughout the United States. Unfortunately, that was put into the limelight when 22 people were killed in El Paso, Texas. Now, this is a big deal but what makes it worse is that the media coverage of the event focused on what President Donald Trump and to say while not acknowledging the fact that the people who were killed were of Latin origin. 

It's not just that Latin community but also with Asian Americans, as told by Edmund Lee where his Asian American family was mistreated at a restaurant just for being Asian. That matters because his family stood up to the management. They may not have gone to the media to get their story out, but that rarely happens with minority families since they are afraid. 

That also shows that the media needs to feel more open to minorities, and the best way to do that is to show that everyone is represented in the media. People usually feel more comfortable talking to someone who understands them, looks like them, and has lived through similar life experiences. 

With proper representation from the media, the change we would see in our everyday lives would be immense. People would be held accountable for their wrongs. Those in the minority would no longer need to be afraid of the media targeting them as bad guys or generalizing a minority.  

This change cannot be made overnight and will take time. Still, with the proper steps being taken and plans already being put into motion by many large media organizations, the media will improve for the better. With this improvement, the trust could grow as people feel appropriately represented and understood.  

Diversity in Communication Industries

 By LINDSAY WIELONSKI

lw293117@ohio.edu

In many different areas of communications – advertising, news, public relations, and marketing – content produced has consistently fallen behind where it should be in terms of diversity and representation. According to a Pew Research Center analysis of the U.S. Census Bureau, newsroom employees are less diverse than U.S. workers overall. Newsroom employees are more likely to be white and male than all U.S. workers. This disproportion isn't just an issue in strictly the news field. In the public relations area, 82.6% of those working in PR and advertising in 2020 were white, according to Statista. Because so many companies are run mainly by white employees, marginalized voices often don't deserve the attention they deserve. In terms of diversity and inclusion, representation in staffing and content go hand in hand. They must work together to promote inclusion. 

Photo courtesy of Shutterstock 

In her article for The Atlantic, Lulu Garcia-Navarro noted that although the 2019 mass shooting in El Paso, Texas, targeted Latino people, many news outlets did not address this in their articles. Garcia-Navarro also mentioned that when she wrote the article, there was only one Latino on the New York Times' editorial board. Garcia-Navarro wrote about how it's unacceptable for a massacre to be needed for change to occur. 

"In the days since the El Paso shooting, we have seen more Latino journalists writing and appearing on television," Garcia-Navarro said in her article. "That's progress. But it took a massacre."

Representation is essential to customers. According to Marketing Charts, 62% of respondents say that a brand's diversity, or lack of it, impacts their perception of their products or services. For a customer to trust a company, a company needs to represent the voices of all of its customers. If ads only show a specific type of race, gender, sexuality, ability, etc., that can send the message that a company does not care about, including those not portrayed in its ads. 

Promises to implement more diversity and inclusion are meaningless if they are not accompanied by action. As we have discussed in class, some central ethical values in the communications field are truth, serving the public, and minimizing harm. If a company truly has a mission to serve the public and implement ethical standards, it needs to commit to portraying all voices accurately and fairly. Anything less would be a disservice to its customer base and the public as a whole.  

Diversity Representation in Advertisements

Sam Spinale

ss730219@ohio.edu

Now more than ever, advertisers must include more diversity within their advertisements. Today, many consumers only align with brands that include diversity representation in their advertisements and promotions. It's something that matters to consumers. Many only want to spend their money with a company with similar views that align with their own. While we see a lot of diversity in advertisements today, it still isn't perfect. Even now, some brands struggle to include diverse representation in their advertisements.

Photo by Clear Voice

What is diversity?:

While race may be the first thing that comes to mind when you hear diversity, it doesn't just represent the race. According to Aspire, "diversity mandates the inclusion of people of all races, ages, sizes, genders, sexual orientations, social classes, religions, and other differences." Therefore, it's important to represent all types of people who fall under these different and diverse categories. Consumers want to see themselves in advertisements, and if they can't make that connection, companies will lose out on a whole demographic of potential consumers.

Why is representation in advertisements important?:

It's evident that including diversity within advertisements is a morally responsive decision for any company, but representing all races, ages, and genders can boost revenue. Aspire explains that "a Google study found that 64% of those surveyed said they took some sort of action, including purchase after seeing an ad that they considered to be diverse or inclusive."

Not only does diversity in advertisements increase revenue, but it also affects the consumer's overall perception of a brand. A study from Adobe published on Marketing Charts shows that consumers feel diversity and inclusion within advertising is essential that it has a direct relationship to customer trust with brands. Out of 1,000 adults surveyed, 4 in 10 felt that diversity in advertising could lead to trust. About 34% of those adults even said they stopped using a brand entirely if the "brand didn't represent their identity in its advertising." That number increases when you look specifically at different communities, like the LGBTQ+ (58%), African Americans (53%), and Hispanics (40%). It's important to note that the respondents of this study said that they had seen more diversity and inclusion within advertisements over the past three years.

Photo by Marketing Charts

Which companies have made an impact?:

Diversity and inclusion are essential in all facets of the workplace and companies' material. To cater to your audience, your company has to have employees with a wide variety of mindsets that meet all categories of the audience. Some companies have made severe mistakes with their marketing, like a black woman turning herself into a white woman in a Dove advertisement, while others have set an extremely high standard to follow. 

According to Falcon.io, these brands got inclusive marketing and advertising rights. For example, Procter and Gamble made "learning about their customers a priority through proper market research" with their "The Talk" campaign. In addition, Bumble "celebrated various great and inspiring users" through their "Find Me On Bumble" campaign. Another company that celebrated variety and embraced inclusivity was ThirdLove to launch half-cup sizes. Finally, Microsoft showed that they "treat inclusion and diversity as a journey that requires constant self-assessment" through their "We All Win" campaign.

Colorism in Communications & Advertising

Tre Spencer

ts582119@ohio.edu

Courtesy of ABC News 

Diversity and inclusion have been a driving force within present-day advertising with numerous major companies and advertising firms. However, despite this rise of adversity with inclusion, advertising, in particular, has struggled with colorism in overseas markets. 

Colorism is a form of discrimination that refers to the preference for lighter skin tones compared to darker skin tones. The Paper Bag Test, which employers once used in the Jim Crow era, was also created as a form of employment racism where potential employers would only hire black people if they were the same color or lighter than a light brown paper bag. 

Colorism in communications in specific advertisements is harmful and undermines the diversity and inclusion initiatives set forth by several companies. For example, in Indian markets where most audiences are darker-skinned, multiple products are being marketed from Bollywood stars to endorse lighter skin tones and the skin bleaching industry.  

                        

                                                     Courtesy of The Epitaph 

Fair & Lovely, which sells skincare products in India to a predominantly darker-skinned market, is a strong example of a company in colorism. The brand advertises skin-lightening products to promote lighter skin tones for a darker-skinned market.

Surprisingly, companies have reached historical milestones with their advertising and promoting diversity in America. For example, in the 1940s, the major fountain-drink brand Pepsi was first to market to African-American families. That was unheard of as the Civil Rights Movement was not in effect, and several barriers were still in effect that limited people of color. In another form of representation, Scandinavian furniture manufacturer IKEA, ran an ad that depicted a gay couple in 1994, which was virtually unheard of because sexuality was deemed taboo. In 2012, major retailer Target introduced an ad featuring a child with down-syndrome. A lot of these are examples of proper representation in American advertisements. 

I think it's harmful, and with strategic communications, we should consider how we market companies and products to individuals in terms of respect and diversity. Even with producing stories, as journalists we should develop strategies to include underrepresented voices and underrepresented communities in our content. It's also essential that we build safe spaces in our newsrooms that allow minorities to feel heard and respected and their ideas emerge. 

As journalists, we should also continue to respect other communities that are not represented, such as people with disabilities, people apart of the LGBTQIA community, poverty-stricken people, and under privileged people who have intersectionality of class, race other identities. 

Tokenism vs. Genuine Diversity

 Zoe Touris

zt700218@ohio.edu 

Courtesy of Cleverism

While equal representation and diversity in the media are crucial, there is a right and wrong way to represent various groups within advertising. There comes a fine line between genuine diversity and tokenism within advertising when companies lack critical thinking and instead want to show the public that they include people other than the stereotypical straight white male.

During pride month, it is straightforward for brands to strategically place rainbows across their branding and profit off marginalized groups, but this is as far as some brands will extend their support. For example, although transgender people appear more in advertising, the New York Times states that most stock photographs are close-ups of their hands holding the symbol for transgender pride, without their faces or other defining features visible. 

Even though more transgender people are being represented in mainstream media, these stereotypical stock photos place this group within a box distanced from society. These photos state that brands may be happy to include transgender people, but only as long as these individuals are not fully participating in social life.

Courtesy of The New York Times

Additionally, in a Dove advertisement, a black woman used Dove's body wash and then transformed into a white woman. This blatantly racist advertisement lacked full respect and critical thinking, causing an uproar on Twitter and the trending hashtag #BoycottDove. Unfortunately, that racist advertisement is not Dove's only mark they have missed for their ads. Dove has also been criticized for tokening and profiting from feminism and female empowerment. On the one hand, I stand for women's empowerment and building women up, but as the Washington Post puts it, I also do not think this should be used as a marketing tool to persuade people to buy shower foam. 

Tokenizing marginalized groups such as the LGBTQ+ community, POCs, and movements such as feminism not only distances brands from the root of the problem but also creates a disconnect with their audience. Equal representation and diversity is crucial in the media, as it reflects the world that we live in, but advertisement should genuinely shows the brand's care for these issues and truly stands with the people that they are featuring within their advertisements. 

Diversity for the right reasons

Malaya Tindongan mt839718@ohio.edu When I was a kid, I didn't know I wanted to go into media or become a journalist. I did, however, watch the NBC Nightly news with my mother. I saw Brian Williams on the screen almost every day; however, it was not always him. I would see Lestor Holt reporting the news every once instead and asking my mother why it was not the usual guy. Later I would ask myself why the person of color was the substitute anchor. However, in 2015, Lester Holt became the first African American person to solo anchor a weekday nightly newscast. As a young person of color, I did not see many people who looked like me on the screen but seeing Lester Holt every night was a huge change.

Source: NBC News. The diversity in the United States is not reflected in the media or the news and public relations workforce. If our newsrooms are not diverse, we can not expect our news to be diverse. The experience and skills that different groups can bring to the table should be welcomed. Media can not accurately report on different communities without having diverse representation themselves. Inclusion in journalism can also lead to more trust from sources with different backgrounds to hear their voices. People of color need to be represented in the industry to meet inclusion standards and challenge the way we report our news. According to the Pew Research Center, ethnic and racial minorities make up 40% of the population in the U.S., but half of the newsroom staff are white men. In a research study by Marian Meyers and Lynne Gayle, they interviewed 10 Black female journalists with varying years of experience. Meyers and Gayle wanted to find out if the women actively tried to improve diversity and if their presence as Black women changed coverage or the culture of newsrooms. They found that the journalists corrected colleagues in stereotypical or negative portrayals of Black sources and tried to strengthen the presence of Black images and voices. The journalists also actively fight stereotypes in their work, like paraphrasing a grammatically incorrect quote to focus on their words rather than execution. Some journalists also made an effort to represent White voices and stories to show that issues commonly associated with people of color affect all groups. In an Ad Age article, Rochelle Newman-Carrasco brings the perspective of public relations. Newman-Carrasco offers a lot of things to think about when it comes to race in the industry. Inclusion means inclusion in a system with pre-existing structures and rules not written by diverse groups. Change is necessary for a system that did not build to allow for it. Like news, advertising needs content with diversity and content creators with diverse backgrounds and experience.