Thursday, March 11, 2004

Newspapers to take ‘time out’ for diversity and accuracy in May

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Fifty-four newspapers and Associated Press bureaus are set to participate in this year's Time-Out for Diversity and Accuracy, and organizers are welcoming additional participants.

A project of the Associated Press Managing Editors and the American Society of Newspaper Editors, Time-Out supports the organizations’ belief that a newspaper must reflect its entire community to be accurate.

With the support of the Freedom Forum, the Maynard Institute and the Society for Professional Journalists, Time-Out has provided newsrooms with the tools and inspiration to renew ties with the community, improve source databases, audit their work, celebrate the diversity of their newsrooms and brainstorm story ideas.

Time-Out’s definition of diversity includes age, gender, race and ethnicity, sexual orientation, socioeconomic status, religious preference and physical ability.

For the first time, the program will be held during the month of May rather than during a single week in the Spring, APME President Stu Wilk and ASNE President Peter Bhatia said in announcing plans for Time-Out VI. They noted that activities could take place during any week in May or be stretched out during the month.

Among newspapers planning to participate this year are the Detroit Free Press and San Francisco Chronicle. The Free Press plans a bus tour of a coverage area not typically visited by its staffers, and the Chronicle is launching a newsroom mentoring program.

APME and ASNE encourage newspapers to develop Time-Out efforts that fit their needs and the needs of their communities. One possibility in this election year, they noted, could be a look at whether political coverage is serving a diversity of readers.

Newspapers that plan to participate are asked to contact Rich Ramirez of the San Jose Mercury News with the name, city and state of the newspaper and the e-mail address, phone number and title of a newsroom contact.