July 31, 2003

CONTACT: Stacey Staniak
202.467.5214
staceys@rtnda.org

Percentage of Minorities Drops in Local Radio and TV Newsrooms

WASHINGTON -The latest figures from the 2003 RTNDA/Ball State University Annual Survey of women and minorities show that although the number of minorities working in local radio and television news rose slightly last year, the percentage of minorities dropped.

At the same time, the number of women news directors and the percentage of women in the workforce has grown in television newsrooms.

According to the survey, minorities now comprise 18.1 percent of local television news staffs, down from 20.6 percent last year. In local radio, minorities hold 6.5 percent of the jobs, down from 8 percent. Because the overall number of employees is up this year, the number of minorities in TV newsrooms actually rose, but did not keep up percentage-wise. Bob Papper of Ball State University, who conducted the study for the Radio-Television News Directors Association, reports that the number of minorities working in local broadcast newsrooms rose by about 60 jobs overall.

"We are very disappointed that the percentage of minorities fell this year in the nation's local broadcast newsrooms," says Barbara Cochran, RTNDA president. "We take this news very seriously and, in partnership with the UNITY organizations, will redouble our efforts to increase diversity in the workforce. We will also continue to produce programs and projects to achieve that goal."

"We can only hope these numbers represent a temporary setback," said Bob Salsberg, RTNDA chairman. "Achieving diversity in our newsrooms makes sense for so many business, cultural and journalistic reasons. If we can put the right strategies in place, I am confident that we will soon begin to see steady increases in the percentage of minority employees in TV and radio newsrooms."

RTNDA Diversity Committee Chair Janice Gin said, "These new figures are a call to action. As an industry, it's obvious we need to do better at attracting minorities to broadcast journalism and improve retention. RTNDA has been long time promoter of diversity in newsrooms and must continue to develop programs and projects to help address this deficiency in the industry."

Other survey highlights:

* Women continue to make great strides in TV news management, holding a record 26.5 percent of the news director jobs; they hold 14.4 percent of the news director slots in radio.
* Women hold 39.3 percent of all television news jobs, and comprise 24 percent of the radio workforce.
* Minority news directors in local TV fell from 9.2 percent to 6.6 percent. Minorities make up 5 percent of the news director slots in radio, same as last year.
* Minorities make up 18.1 percent of the local television workforce and 6.5 percent of the radio workforce.

RTNDA published the RTNDA/Ball State University Women & Minorities Survey in the July/August issue of Communicator. Survey results cover only local radio and television stations. Contact Stacey Staniak at staceys@rtnda.org for a PDF version of the survey.

The Radio-Television News Directors Association is the world's largest professional organization devoted exclusively to electronic journalism, and represents local and network news executives in broadcasting, cable and other electronic media in more than 30 countries. Along with the Radio and Television News Directors Foundation, RTNDA sponsors scholarships, fellowships, training seminars, mentoring programs and more as part of its diversity efforts.

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About UNITY: Journalists of Color
UNITY: Journalists of Color, Inc. is a strategic alliance advocating news coverage about people of color, and aggressively challenging its organizations at all levels to reflect the nation’s diversity. UNITY, representing more than 10,000 journalists of color, is comprised of four national associations: Asian American Journalists Association, National Association of Black Journalists, National Association of Hispanic Journalists, and the Native American Journalists Association.

In addition to planning the largest regular gathering of journalists in the nation, UNITY develops programs and institutional relationships that promote its mission. For more information on UNITY, visit www.unityjournalists.org, email info@unityjournalists.org or call (703) 854-3585.