Survey: Rate of blacks in local broadcast newsrooms rising faster than other groups
 
(July 21, 2007) The percentage of minorities working in local television news slid by less than a percentage point in 2006, although the percentage of African Americans in the newsroom is on the rise, according to a survey released today by the Radio-Television News Directors Association.

The 2007 RTNDA/Ball State University Annual Survey shows that minorities comprised 21.5 percent of local television news staffs in 2006, compared to 22.2 percent in 2005. Asian Americans, Native Americans and Hispanic journalists decreased by a fraction of a percentage point, while African Americans increased from 9.5 percent to 10.1 percent of the workforce.

At non-Hispanic stations, the minority workforce was 19.4 percent, a decrease of 1 percent from the previous year.

In local radio, the minority workforce was 6.2 percent, down from 6.4 percent in 2005. The percentage of African Americans rose from 2.5 percent to 3.3 percent, and the percentage of Native Americans climbed from 0.2 percent to 1.1 percent.

The number of minority television news directors also fell, from 13.2 percent to 10.9 percent. The percentage of minority radio news directors registered 12 percent, nearly three times as many as the previous year. Measurement of minority news directors in radio fluctuates each year based on which stations complete the survey.

Women in Local News
There was no significant change in the percentage of women in the television news workforce in 2006; that number has hovered around 40 percent for much of the past decade, and is 39.9 percent this year. Likewise, the number of women in radio news was also largely unchanged in 2006, sliding from 24.8 percent to 24.4 percent.

However, the number of women news directors in both television and radio is on the rise. In television, 26.3 percent of news directors are women (which is the second-highest number ever recorded, slightly below the 26.5 percent recorded in 2003). In radio, 23.5 percent are women, up from 20.4 percent the year before.

"Newsrooms can better serve their communities when their staffs and their coverage reflect their communities," said Barbara Cochran, RTNDA president. "RTNDA provides resources and shares best practices to expand diversity in newsroom staffing and coverage."

RTNDA published the survey in the July/August issue of Communicator, RTNDA’s monthly magazine. Survey results cover local radio and television stations, not networks.

The RTNDA/Ball State University Survey was conducted in the fourth quarter of 2006 among all 1,596 operating, non-satellite television stations and 11,942 radio stations for which we could gather complete data. Valid responses came from 974 television stations (50.9 percent) and 225 radio news directors and general managers representing 740 radio stations. Data for women TV news directors is a complete census and is not projected from a smaller sample.

RTNDA is the world’s largest professional organization devoted exclusively to electronic journalism. RTNDA represents local and network journalists 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.

Read the complete survey results go to http://www.rtnda.org/default.asp

Go to Target Market News homepage

 

 Order the Workbook_



Get the Summit Workbook
with presentation decks from: Arbitron
Burrell Communications
E. Morris Communications
Ethnic Print Media
GlobalHue
Hunter-Miller Group
Nia Enterprises
Nsights Worldwide LLC
R. L. Polk
Results Inc.
Target Market News
The Media Audit
U.S. Census Bureau
UniWorld Group
Click here for info
on how to order


Sponsored by




    
_________________________________________________________________________________________

 13th Edition Now Available 
New Buying Power report shows more spending by black consumers on 'necessities'

Thanks to economic gains in the past two years, black households across the U.S., especially middle-class families, are increasing their purchases of lifestyle and leisure items.

According to the newest edition of “The Buying Power of Black America,” there are indications that black households are feeling more confident about making purchases that...
Story continued...

_________________________________________________________________________________________

ATTENTION BOOK CLUBS
AND BOOK LOVERS!
    
Black Issues Book Review presents the National Book Club Conference - Chicago to be held on Friday and Saturday, August 24 and 25, 2007, in downtown Chicago at the InterContinental Hotel .

Hundreds of book club members will be engaged in dialogue with some of the nation's leading African American authors, including Tina McElroy Ansa, Mary Morrison, Virginia DeBerry and Donna Grant.

Click here for more information and to register

________________________

The African-American
Book Publishing Authority

Now in its eighth year of publication, Black Issues Book Review is the only nationally distributed magazine devoted exclusively to covering the latest news and reviews on black books. BIBR also provides up-to-date news on forthcoming author signings, book fairs and book clubs.
Want this issue? Get it with your new subscription.
Click Here

A TARGET MARKET NEWS PUBLICATION
_________________________



Click here to read more

________________________

  SUBSCRIBE TODAY! 


The trade publication for
in-depth coverage of Black
Consumer Marketing
and Media news