Have you ever heard anyone say, “Let’s wait until we get all the facts and then we will know?”
Well, we have the facts, and they ain’t pretty in regard to racial diversity in many of Oklahoma’s newsrooms.
The fact of the matter is Oklahoma newsrooms are white. One can easily argue our state’s newsrooms fail to represent minority populations.
According to The American Society of News Editors, “people of color make up about 17 percent of newsrooms staffs” in the United States. In Oklahoma, 14.5 percent of newsroom staffs are comprised of minorities.
Coverage from NonDoc.com, an Oklahoma City-based online news publication, reported that key Oklahoma newspapers — Oklahoma Gazette, Norman Transcript and Tulsa World — were not included in the study.
NonDoc.com summed it up nicely when managing editor Josh McBee wrote, “If you are a minority with any interest at all in pursuing a career in journalism, I strongly urge you to go for it. Your communities need you, and companies in this industry want you, perhaps more blatantly than in any other industry.”
Print headline: Help wanted!
