In timing with the 100th anniversary of the NAACP and the 200th anniversary of Abraham Lincoln this week, I wrote an article for Poynter’s diversity blog about The Root. An online magazine, The Root features content from leading black writers, as well as information about genealogy. I found the site to be particularly interesting because it provides what most main stream organizations don’t — a place for voices of African Americans to flourish.
In doing research for the article, I found that news organizations are not giving diversity much play. I interviewed Mark Jurkowitz, associate director of the Pew Research Center’s Project for Excellence in Journalism, who said stories about “race, gender and gay issues” only accounted for an estimated 1 percent of the coverage the center tracked between 2007 and 2008.
The low percentage, Jurkowitz said, is likely due to the fact that the center only tracks stories that appear on the front pages of newspapers or in the first half of newscasts.
Click here to learn how The Root is trying to make up for that scarcity of diversity news.
Do you know of any other news organizations that have created niche publications, online magazines, etc., to help provide a space for diverse voices?
Word on the Street 