#GeorgeFloyd #BreonnaTaylor deaths have started a top to bottom revolution, not a sit on your coach screaming on Reddit revolution, a real one, that has moved from the streets to the board rooms of the nation's most influential media companies. But more needs to happen. #Thread
Lack of diversity on air & in editorial news positions isn't new but the PROBLEMS it creates with coverage have never been more evident than in the past week. I wrote about this for @theGrio and @voxdotcom coverage focusing on property over lives is a direct result of this
30 Black employees stage a virtual walk-out over @PhillyInquirer racism and lack of diversity in a recent headline. They are risking their jobs during a global downturn to make a point about how their magazine covers #GeorgeFloydProtests thebiglead.com/posts/philadel…
A colleague of mine said that he and the ONLY other black person at his news site were called into a virtual meeting to discuss #protests despite it not being the expertise of either reporter. This is not only inherently racist but it reflects the lack of newsroom diversity
@alexisjreports was suspended by the @PittsburghPG for criticizing the coverage of #GeorgeFloydProtests and comparing it to coverage of the damage after a Kenny Chesney concert
Worse black and Latino reporters are being sent into the field to cover #GeorgeFloydProtests during #COVIDー19 that disproportionately kills black and brown people because it is one of the few times they're allowed to actually show their skills, highlighting a larger problem
News outlets are playing the same race/diversity games during these dual #pandemic and #protests that they always have but black journalists are getting sick of it. Lives are at stake and too many crucial voices are being silenced when they are needed most thebiglead.com/posts/philadel…
The good news? Editors and news leaders who don't get it, who are suppressing black staff and diversity efforts are getting called on it, and in some cases are stepping down.
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The bad news is that for every rare instance of this lack of diversity in newsrooms and coverage being highlighted there are many more instances where black reporters, anchors and writers are being silenced, afraid to write or speak the truth for fear of losing their jobs
I wrote a thread like this months ago and I want to thank some of my network colleagues for answering the call and opening their platforms to hearing some of the thoughts and challenges that black journalists were facing
There are voices, protesters on the street, citizen journalists, experts & analysts in every city and locality, even nationally who's voices are crucial during this time that aren't being amplified. If we're going to make it through this moment together that needs to change
