It's All About the Journalism

By Al Tompkins

Don't listen to the critics of Unity who tell you that "Journalists of Color" means it is a convention that is all about race and not about journalism. That is total nonsense.

I just finished teaching a 9 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. jam-packed day to 130 broadcast journalists at Unity. It was standing room only in a big convention room.

Along with my friend Eileen Faxas (from KHOU-TV Houston), we spent an entire day working on writing, storytelling, using the Internet to enrich stories, how to make tough ethics calls and how to enterprise stories that many others miss because they seem to be "non-visual." In short, it was ALL about journalism.

We talked a lot about the role of journalism in a free society. We talked about how diversity is important to a newsroom not just so we can "check off our list -- yup got one of them," but so we can enrich our decision-making by including a wider range of people who might make our journalism stronger. To me, diversity is not a goal in itself, it is a means to a goal — to tell stronger stories with a wider range of views and truths.

Unity is a marvel to experience. In addition to being the networking event for journalists of color, it is also a huge recruiting event for TV groups and newspapers. Every major TV group is there, in force, looking at tapes, gathering names and making contacts. Unity is a place where journalists can get critiques of their work, find mentors, and explore topics (especially about race and ethnicity) that other journalism conventions don't touch in their workshops.

For those of you who have found your way into this posting, I will give you a special treat. Drop me an e-mail and I will send you my collection of 200 online resources that I handed out in CD form to the people who showed up to our Poynter day-long workshop. The file I will send you is a Word document that will come to you as an attachment.

Comments

[Storyteller]

Here! Here! As "journalists of color" the only choice we have is to make it "not about race and all about journalism." Why is UNITY necessary? Because ears and minds are turned off. Journalists of color are getting their information from the same news sources and interested in the same issues for themselves and their families as all other races; to believe we are focused solely on ethnic-related issues is a risky place for news leaders to stand and it highlights the lack of awareness about a huge part of the US population. The loss of talented, frustrated and skilled journalists seeking other opportunities is incalculable. So how to make the ascent out of the box created to confine, remaining encouraged while gaining respect as a "professional," taken seriously on all issues not just areas of ethnicity? Run as fast as possible ahead of the curve, which translates to tireless networking, additional training, being more informed, and lots of support. I was told by older and wiser mentors that to have the same opportunities as my "non-color" counterparts in America, I'd have to work harder, nothing's changed. Eyes on the prize!