03.27.07
Asian American journalists call for newsroom diversity
The Asian American Journalists Association (AAJA) has urged the nation’s newspaper editors not to forgot the importance of diversity and coverage of America’s minority communities.
AAJA President and Honolulu Advertiser op-ed editor Jeanne Mariani-Belding, speaking at the convention of the American Society of Newspaper Editors (ASNE) in Washington D.C., said, “Diversity is fundamental to fair and accurate coverage of communities of color, which are growing exponentially nationwide.”
The ASNE’s annual newsroom census, released today, showed that minority employees have decreased overall amid widespread consolidation and downsizing. It also showed that Asian Americans, at about 3% of the total newsroom work force, still lag the Asian American and Pacific Islander demographic’s 5% share of the U.S. population.