Newsman: For papers to succeed, diversity must be part of beliefs, practices

Commentary

03.26.02

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Gregory Favre

Editor's note: Gregory Favre, distinguished fellow at the Poynter Institute and a long-time newsroom editor, news-company executive and news-industry leader, is a long-time champion of newsroom diversity. His closing remarks to a Poynter seminar on “Recruiting and Retaining the Best and the Brightest” in February — a session attended by three vice presidents/news for media companies and a dozen top editors — urged those in positions to effect change to incorporate diversity into daily practices and programs and policies.

… Our conference was devoted to attracting and retaining our best and brightest across the board, but I wanted to close this session with a few more words about recruiting and retaining the best and brightest journalists of color.

I realize I am essentially speaking to the choir, but even the choir occasionally needs to listen to the lyrics again.

You have all seen the figures: Minorities make up about 11.4 percent of our newsrooms, while the minority population in this country is at about 30 percent. In 25 years or less, that 30 percent will become 38 or 40 percent. And someday there will no majority in this country, just as has happened in California and will happen in state after state in the future.

We are so far behind that the goal to reach parity seems an impossible task. But we can’t stop trying. We can’t stop being persistent and passionate and proactive in our efforts if we are going to come anywhere close to reaching our goal.

We also need to remember that, as Aly (Colon, of the Poynter ethics faculty) likes to say, the goal is not the goal. It is the fuel that keeps us driving in the right direction. As I look at the benchmarks that have been set, and they are all extremely admirable and necessary, we can meet every one of them and still fall farther behind as we strive for parity. We probably will not reach parity in the lifetime of anyone in this room. I pray my 3-year-old granddaughter sees it.

In the here and now, we need to find out what works and we need to learn from our failures of the past. What are the messages we are sending to potential candidates, to young people who may not trust us? What kind of role models do we offer, and what mentoring programs do we have in place? Are we providing the career opportunities needed to attract and hold onto men and women who can fulfill their dreams in other endeavors?

As we look at our own organizations, are we confident that they are being inclusive, that they have a culture and environment that fosters and supports a diverse workplace? Do we look inside our towns and cities and grow our own talent, people who care about the place where they live and are more likely to stick around for a while?

How do we get where we need to be? There are no magic wands to wave over our newsrooms. No easy paths to travel. No star to wish upon. It will take strong and determined leadership, from the owners and publishers. It will take strong leadership from you. You have to be the champions for diversity. You have to be evangelical in your pursuit of what’s right, of what’s best for the future of our business, of what’s best for our communities.

You have to provide the moral compass, the heart and soul and the passion. You have to make sure that the field is level for all those with unfulfilled ambitions and dreams. You have to foster the spirit of inclusion.

We have talked some about diversity fatigue. I know there are those who walk away at the mere mention of diversity. “Oh, not again,” they say. How cynical. How shortsighted. I watched editors leave by the dozens when John Hope Franklin came to speak at an ASNE (American Society of Newspaper Editors) convention, and I have never been more embarrassed at our conventions.

If we are to succeed, diversity has to be part of our company policies, part of our mission statements, part of our basic beliefs.

We need to work harder to create welcoming environments in our newsrooms, to create mentoring programs that have teeth in them, and we need to provide training and not slash that budget when the first advertising goblin shows up at our door.

We can’t justify our past performances, and we can’t simply wash away the harm we have caused for so many by our not understanding the experiences of those unlike us.

Nothing should be off the table.

We need bold initiatives.

There simply can be no softening of our commitment.

Those are my lyrics. I have said them many times before, and I know most of you sing the same kinds of songs day after day. I just ask that you keep those voices loud and clear so others can hear you, and perhaps someday we all will be singing from the same song sheet.

So my benediction is simple: Go forth and recruit and retain our best and brightest, and do it from a broad spectrum of candidates, men and women who look like the face of our communities and the country.

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