Where is the diversity among sports editors?

There's a difference in the coaching fields and sports journalism. For a long time, the leagues in question have had a plethora of black players, but few were given an opportunity to become head coaches. Finally, they were given the chance as assistant coaches, and they've moved up and we're seeing progress.

The key is that there has always been a pool of talent there to turn to. That's not the case in journalism. In my time at my current gig, we've had several openings (mostly on the copy desk), and I can count on one hand the number of minorities that have applied for jobs. There's just not a lot of minorities out there looking to go into our field, and it's been that way for a while. When I was in college, we went to several groups on campus to reach out to recruit minority writers. We got zero response. I wish I knew how to change it, but this isn't like the NFL or college football, where there are plenty of players that can see themselves as coaches after their playing days are done. It's just not a fair analogy.

 

So then what would it hurt to have diverse points in your newsroom to reflect a growing diverse population? Maybe just maybe you could attract more readers who otherwise would just skip past your publication.

Or we should not just reflect the society we cover unless we see proof that hiring a diverse staff would bring revenue into the building.

In my 17 years in the biz, most newsrooms lack a proportionate amount of diversity in every department. Is it too idealistic? Yes. I know it's not realistic. But what is realistic is making a commitment and attempt at trying to execute that.

But making excuses for not trying is really a tired argument. I also recruit for my shop and many, many editors come to me to identify talented diverse talent. The candidates are there. Managers need to give those people a chance.

 

This identifying and bringing in diverse talent: What is the endgame? What does it do for your publication? I suppose you are buying the idea that has been propagated for the past 30 years that boosting minority faces and bylines will increase circulation. To me, that idea is played out and proven irrelevant.

 

Sometimes The Godfather can find you a job.

 

"Not trying" has nothing to do with it. It's a dubious, unproven goal, that somehow the final product and the bottom line will benefit from altering the demographics of a newsroom.

Since when do newsrooms feel any obligation to populate themselves with 50 percent or more of journalists who are "center-right" in their political leanings, since that's how America leans?

You're also mixing up "society" and "audience" and the entities we cover. Anyone who thinks that a mostly black basketball team should be covered by a black reporter is as racist as anyone who wants no blacks in either the NBA or the newsroom. We always say that a person doesn't have to have been a great athlete to cover great athletes -- why would a person have to be the same race or gender? Or a different race or gender?

It's an intellectual pursuit, not a biological pursuit, and good journalists can get inside anyone's skin to tell their tales, regardless of color.

Having a private college-educated minority person in news meetings might make the folks who hire them feel good, but it doesn't, for instance, reflect what's going on out in the streets of inner-city neighborhoods. You might be better off with a white high-school dropout from an impoverished family.

And what if the audience you're trying to mirror in demographic makeup doesn't want to buy your product regardless of the race/gender of those who produce it?

 

If the business had more Scott Newman's this decline would not have happened.

 

OK, let's list all of the minority SE's at a major daily ever.

 

I am not going to argue about this anymore because some of you have your beliefs and I have mine. My last statement is this: If the case we should not strive for diversity in our newsrooms, then we in the industry should stop throwing stones when we publish stories such as:

1) the lack of minority coaches in college football
2) the lack of diversity in corporate america
3) the lack of diversity in politics
4) the lack of diversity in athletic directors arena
5) the lack of tolerance for others struggles.

We as an industry have a hard time looking at ourselves in the mirror and rather put the mirror on others.

If you truly believe that diversity is not an important issue, then God-Bless you.

 

this is recent memory
Garry D. Howard
Ruben Luna
Leon Carter
Lynn Hoppes
Bill Bradley
Patricia Mays
Neal Scarborough
Ruben Luna
Larry Starks
Julie Englebrecht (sp)
Terri Thompson
Collen McDaniel
KC Star name escapes me
Celeste Williams
Kathy Henkel
Tracy Dodds
Jorge Rojas

 

Diversity is typically a virtue.

Pursuing diversity over any other quality, or looking to use it as an overriding factor and/or a trump card in hiring . . . is not.

 

I worked for Gannett, who constantly touted diversity and their minority hirings. The paper I worked for hired minorities, some of whom were great, some who were OK, and a couple of incompetents. I'd suspect that would be the case if they were white, too.

But I'll tell you, every time a minority got hired, the rest of the newsroom figured that they were hired because of the diversity initiative, not because they were the best qualified journalists who applied. By calling out for more diverse hiring, you're not helping the minority journalists.

By all means, a newsroom is better with a diverse staff. But doing it for the sake of, "Look at us, we have a black sports editor!" does the paper and the readers no favors.

 

My thoughts on diversity in the newsroom/sports department.

Many of the top minorities in the biz have bolted for ESPN, the web, TV, whatever seems more lucrative or stable.

Many of their jobs were filled from within because of layoffs, budget cuts, etc.

Sports editors who remain are holding onto their jobs like they are the seats on the last lifeboat on the Titanic.

So the best ones left and few top jobs are being filled from outside. How is the diversity supposed to happen?