By YOLANNE ALMANZAR
The UNITY News

When television network executives declined to release information about diversity in their newsrooms because of company policies, the National Association of Black Journalists got it themselves.

According to two surveys released by the organization at a news conference Friday, people of color are still a minority in television newsrooms’ highest leadership positions.

“They still resemble a cafeteria during integration. There are a few people here and there,” said Kathy Times, vice president of broadcast for NABJ and an evening anchor at WDBD-TV in Jackson, Miss.

One study surveyed news managers at 61 television stations owned and operated by ABC, CBS, Fox and NBC, and found that 16.6 percent of them were racial minorities. More than a third of the stations have no people of color in the managerial ranks, the study said.

The second study focused on managers responsible for editorial content and talent development at ABC, NBC and CBS. Of the 85 vice presidents, executive producers, managing editors and bureau chiefs surveyed, 26 were racial minorities.

NABJ executives described the numbers as “abysmal.” Bob Butler, director of NABJ’s Region VI who conducted one of the studies, said he expected the numbers to be bad, but he didn’t think “they would be this bad.”

“On the one hand, you’re not surprised,” Butler said. “Those of us who have worked in the newsrooms know what it looks like. Our hope is that now that we have hard numbers, people will start asking questions.”

Butler said the organization’s results contradicted the annual projection of minorities in television and radio released by Radio-Television News Directors Association and Hofstra University.

The RTNDA survey, which was released earlier this month, found that minorities make up about a quarter of local television news staffs, the second highest percentage since 2001.

Minority television news directors reached an all-time high of 15.5 percent, up from 10.9 percent in 2006, the study also said. The total number of directors was not made available.

The RTNDA survey, conducted last year, gathered information from 1,647 operating non-satellite television stations and a random sample of 2,000 radio stations. Complete census data was not available about female TV news directors.

“It’s difficult to dispute hard numbers,” said Butler. “We have names, race and gender. We know who they are.”

Butler, who is also a reporter for KCBS Radio in California, said the intent of the study was not to assess blame, but rather to address the industry’s shortcomings. He said they would like to conduct the study annually to continue tracking the numbers, and to ensure that there will be change.

“What we’re saying is if you need someone, we have these people who will add competence and diversity to your newsrooms,” he said.

NABJ President Barbara Ciara said network leaders should use these studies as a starting point for change.

“We’re tired of hearing that they can’t find qualified individuals,” said Ciara, the managing editor and an anchor for WTKR News in Norfolk, Va. “They are here, under this umbrella, this weekend.”

topic: Industry Issues
tags: diversity, NABJ, television newsrooms

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