Diversity in Republicans’ Press Box?

Local News Staffs Will Add to GOP Coverage

For next week’s Republican convention, “A glance at the coveted list of credentialed news organizations listed publications as varied as Defense Week and Asia Week, along with the expected top 20 newspapers and broadcast outlets,” Joe Strupp reports in Editor & Publisher, outlining the perks the Republicans are providing for the media.

Racially speaking, the delegations being sent by many news organizations might not be so varied, considering the thousands of journalists who will be there, and an informal survey by Journal-isms. But one difference between coverage of the Republicans and that of the Democrats is that the local staffs of the New York media will be involved — particularly in reporting on the planned protests — and those outlets have more journalists of color than their Boston counterparts.

As for viewers, “The basic playbook hasn’t changed,” writes the Hollywood Reporter. “The broadcast networks will carry three hours of primetime coverage at the Aug. 30-Sept. 2 convention, including the nomination speeches of Vice President Dick Cheney and President Bush. And the cable news outlets will cover the proceedings with their own blend of personalities and programing.

“The coverage will be similar to that offered in last month’s Democratic National Convention in Boston.”

As with the Democratic convention, Journal-isms asked news organizations which journalists of color would be part of their convention teams.

Responses:

• ABC: Reporters Tamala Edwards, Ron Claiborne and Gloria Rivera (for “World News Now”), and commentator Fareed Zakaria, replied Paul S. Mason, senior vice president of ABC News. As at the Democratic convention, Pierre Thomas will be in Washington and reporting on security issues, Hari Sreenivasin will be anchoring the new 24-hour digital venture from New York, and producer Wonbo Woo will make recurring appearances from various locations around the city using new technology, he said.

 

• Associated Press: From the Washington Bureau, reporters Jesse Holland, Darlene Superville, Deepti Hajela, Hope Yen and Genaro Armas, and world services editor Sonya Ross, said bureau chief Sandy Johnson.

 

• Boston Globe: Kenneth J. Cooper, national editor, is editing; reporters include Tatsha Robertson, New York bureau chief, covering protests, security, traffic and disruption of daily life, along with Raja Mishra, health-science reporter. Keith Reed, business reporter, is to cover the economic impact of convention; and photographer Jonathan Wiggs will be part of the team, reports Cooper.

 

• CBS: No journalists of color, said spokeswoman Leigh Farris.

 

• Chicago Tribune: “Ofelia Casillas, a reporter from our metropolitan staff in Chicago; Michael Martinez, a national correspondent in our Los Angeles bureau; Dawn Trice, a columnist and reporter from our metro staff [and 1994 graduate of the Maynard Institute’s Management Training Center]; Clarence Page, a columnist in our Washington bureau; and myself, George de Lama, deputy managing editor/news,” will be there, de Lama reported.

 

• CNN: Political analyst Carlos Watson; contributor and Democratic Party strategist Donna Brazile; correspondent Alina Cho; Boston bureau chief and correspondent Dan Lothian; White House correspondent Suzanne Malveaux; correspondent Adaora Udoji; CNN en Español senior anchor Patricia Janiot; and Headline News political analyst Terry Neal are on the list, reported spokeswoman Alissa Rooney. Neal said he would be doing analysis every night for “CNN Headline News” and “NewsNight with Aaron Brown.”

 

• Detroit News: Alison Bethel, Washington bureau chief, said she would be covering.

 

• Fox News: Wendell Goler, Fox News Channel White House reporter, plans to report live, as does Juan Williams. “Juan will be there in the same capacity as he was at the DNC, as the a regular panelist on FOX News Sunday and as a political contributor during the event,” said spokesman Paul Schur.

 

• Gannett News Service: “GNS, of course, is led by editor Caesar Andrews [a 1985 graduate of the Maynard Institute’s Management Training Center], who will be in New York for the convention,” said Washington editor Catalina Camia.

“Reporters: (5 out of 17 covering the GOP convention): Larry Bivins, who will cover Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist and the Tennessee GOP delegation, and Illinois Senate candidate Alan Keyes and the Illinois GOP delegation; Sergio Bustos, who will cover the Colorado, Minnesota, Arizona and New Mexico delegations; Ellyn Ferguson, who will cover the Oregon, Oklahoma and Arkansas delegations; Raju Chebium, who will cover the North Carolina and South Carolina delegations; Ana Radelat, who will cover Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour and the Mississippi and Alabama delegations. [Bivins is a 1979 alumnus of the Summer Program for Minority Journalists.]

“Editors: Catalina Camia, Washington editor, who will edit the daily analyses, . . . Michelle Washington, copy editor; Jeanette Barrett-Stokes, managing editor for features/copy desk/graphics and photo, who will serve as a copy editor at the convention,” wrote Camia, a 2001 graduate of the Maynard Institute’s Management Training Center.

 

• Knight Ridder: Crystal Davis, newsdesk slot; Lori Aratani, politics writer, on loan from the San Jose Mercury News; Bill Douglas, White House correspondent; Jim Kuhnhenn, congressional correspondent; Stephanie Arnold, reporter, on loan from The Philadelphia Inquirer; Nikki Kahn, photo editor. “FYI, we’re also providing a credential to Maxine Moffett, the nation/world editor of the Howard University newspaper, so she’s able to cover the convention,” said John Walcott, Washington bureau chief.

 

• Los Angeles Times: White House reporter Edwin Chen and Barbara Serrano, deputy political editor, according to national political editor Don Frederick. He also listed Phil Ruiz, the Washington-based information technology manager who will be “setting up the convention hall” for the paper. He is a black Cuban, Frederick said.

 

• National Public Radio: “‘Morning Edition’ will send senior correspondent Juan Williams to provide political commentary and writer John Ridley to do humorous features/commentaries. Tavis Smiley will host ‘The Tavis Smiley Show’ . . . from Madison Square Garden during convention week,” said spokeswoman Jenny Lawhorn.

 

• NBC: No response.

 

• New York Times: No response from Rick Berke, who is leading the coverage, or from a corporate spokeswoman. However, since the convention is in New York, a large number of metro staffers are expected to be drafted into service.

 

• Newhouse News Service: “Toren Beasley, our photo director, and his daughter, Adya, will be our messenger. Vince Barrett, our technical specialist will run the computer system. All are black,” said bureau chief Deborah Howell.

 

• Newsday: Lonnie Isabel, assistant managing editor for national and foreign news, said he would be there, along with Washington news editor Monica Norton and Washington reporter Deborah Barfield Berry. “The New York Desk is having just about everyone cover things outside the convention,” said Isabel, a 1977 graduate of the Maynard Institute’s Summer Program for Minority Journalists.

 

• PBS: “NewsHour With Jim Lehrer” senior correspondents Gwen Ifill and Ray Suarez are to join Margaret Warner, Terry Smith and Lehrer, reporting from the convention floor as well as the NewsHour skybox, a news release says. “PBS is only network to provide complete, live, broadcast coverage of proceedings.”

 

• Telemundo: “Pedro Sevcec, who has also anchored the network’s Democratic Convention coverage from Boston, will lead Telemundo News’ team coverage LIVE on site . . . Joining Sevcec will be Washington News Bureau Correspondent Lori Montenegro, and NYC Correspondents, María Araiz Pérez (Hoy en el Mundo) and Isolda Peguero (Noticiero Telemundo),” responded spokesman Gerardo Oyola via e-mail.

 

• Univision: “Noticiero Univision” (Univision News) will anchor its 6:30pm and 11:30pm newscasts live from . . . the Republican National Convention in New York City. Anchors Jorge Ramos, Maria Elena Salinas and Enrique Gratas will lead the news team in its coverage of an election in which the Hispanic vote will undeniably play a decisive role in determining the next President,” reads a news release.

 

• Wall Street Journal: No people of color on a partial list from spokesman Robert Christie.

 

• Washington Post: Michel duCille, photo editor; Style section writer Robin Givhan; Metro reporter Spencer Hsu; Colbert I. King, deputy editorial page editor; national news reporter Evelyn Nieves; and Terry M. Neal of washingtonpost.com, according to Milton Coleman, deputy managing editor, who added that the list was subject to change. Neal said he would be writing a blog for the Web site.

Activists Plan “March on the Media” in N.Y.

“Whether the issue is the Iraq war, the 2000 Florida recount, the Patriot Act or post- 9/11 detentions, the mainstream media have behaved more like lapdogs than watchdogs. We come to challenge their domination of the public discourse and to celebrate what the people of the world are achieving through new independent media based on responsibility and a commitment to justice,” says a notice announcing a “NYC March on the Media” for Wednesday, Sept. 1.

“Organized by FAIR, Paper Tiger TV and other media activists, the march will be simulcast on WBAI 99.5 FM, New York’s Pacifica station. Bring a radio so you can be sure to hear the lineup of great speakers, emceed by FAIR’s Peter Hart,” a reference to Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting.

The marchers plan to converge across from CBS, and to rally at both Time Life/CNN plaza and at Fox headquarters.

A statement of “Why We Protest” adds:

“The network newscasts are still the most popular source of news for Americans. But what kind of news are we getting? A study of all the sources appearing on the newscasts in 2001 by the group Media Tenor found that the networks tilted heavily in favor of white, male Republican sources. Women and people of color were scarce; women made up between 14 and 18 percent of those appearing on the newscasts, while Arab-Americans and Latinos each were less than one percent of the sources on the network newscasts.

“The media giants are granted licenses to broadcast on the public airwaves; in return, the public has the right to hold these companies accountable for their collective failure to present a wide range of viewpoint and perspectives.”

Gene Robinson Said to Be on ME List at D.C.’s Post

When Robert C. Maynard left the Washington Post in 1977, after being an editorial writer, ombudsman and national reporter, one of the reasons, he told colleagues, was that he knew he could never become the editor. He went on, of course, to edit and publish the Oakland Tribune.

Nearly 30 years later, another black journalist is reportedly on the short list to become the Post’s managing editor — a position viewed as a springboard to the editorship. Eugene Robinson, the Post’s assistant managing editor for Style, is one of three AMEs asked to submit memos outlining their views of the job, according to “newsroom sources” quoted by Post media writer Howard Kurtz. The sources “declined to be named while discussing personnel matters.”

The managing editor’s slot opens up with the announcement by Managing Editor Steve Coll that he plans to leave the job at the end of the year to concentrate on writing. “Coll, 45, who will continue with The Post as a part-time editor and writer, reached the decision after finishing his book on terrorism, ‘Ghost Wars,'” Kurtz reported.

“With the assistance of Milton Coleman, I will begin the selection process immediately and hope to have a successor ready to work with Steve before the end of the year,” Executive Editor Leonard Downie Jr. said in a memo to the Post staff, referring to the black journalist who is the third-ranking news person on the Post masthead, and who is a 1974 graduate of the Maynard Institute’s Summer Program for Minority Journalists.

The other two AMEs listed by the “newsroom sources” are Liz Spayd of the national desk and Philip Bennett of the foreign desk.

“Style editor Gene Robinson would be a newsroom favorite. He?s a big man with a mellifluous voice and a gentle demeanor,” wrote Harry Jaffe of the Washingtonian magazine.

?’He?s a great guy,’ says a columnist on the news side. Everybody back there loves him. He delegates.’

“Robinson, 50, also loves Latin America — Cuba, in particular. He travels often to that part of the world and just published Last Dance in Havana: The Last Days of Fidel and the Start of the New Cuban Revolution.”

Robinson joined the Post in 1980 and has been city hall reporter, city editor, South American bureau chief, London bureau chief and foreign editor, the number 2 foreign job. And in 1986, he taught in the Maynard Institute’s Summer Program for Minority Journalists.

Meanwhile, Jaffe’s PostWatch column lists “Posties considered by their peers to be on the fast track,” and five are journalists of color: photographer Marvin Joseph, Federal Page reporter Christopher Lee; Baghdad bureau chief Rajiv Chandrasekaran, and financial reporters Renae Merle and Sara Kehaulani Goo.

“Marvin Joseph grew up in Southeast DC and came to the Post as a news aide in 1996 soon after McKinley Tech High. He was 19 and green. The photo department ‘adopted him,’ says photo editor Joe Elbert. It sent him to Florida to learn to shoot pictures,” Jaffe writes.

L.A. Broadcaster Larry McCormick Dies at 71

“Longtime KTLA newsman Larry McCormick has died at 71,” the station reports. “Larry was a KTLA fixture having joined the station in 1971 as a weathercaster. A viewer favorite, Larry soon became an anchor and news reporter for KTLA’s ‘News @ Ten: Weekend Edition.’

“Larry was co-anchor of ‘Making It: Minority Success Stories,’ the weekly public affairs series airing on Sunday mornings.

“Through the years Larry was honored by his peers with Emmy Awards and Golden Mike nominations. In 2001, KTLA named one of its stages The Larry McCormick Stage for his devotion to the station and the community.

“In 2002 Larry received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame where viewers got the chance to applaud his work. Larry also made a difference off-the-air through his strong affiliations with several community organizations, especially those serving the African American community.”

An obituary posted tonight on the Los Angeles Times Web site said he died after a lengthy illness. The obituary added:

“‘Your responsibility will be triple those of your non-African American counterparts,’ McCormick said in 1997 when he won the [Mal] Goode Lifetime Achievement Award, an award named for the nation’s first African American [network] television journalist. ‘You will find yourself reporting about your people, to your people, and explaining about your people. And you will have to do it while upholding your objectivity. It’s not easy to be on-camera and deliver a very negative story about your culture.'”

Magazine Leaders Launch Diversity Campaign

“Magazine publishers and editors are supporting a multifaceted, industry-wide campaign to promote diversity, spearheaded by Magazine Publishers of America (MPA) and American Society of Magazine Editors (ASME), it was announced today by Shaunice Hawkins, Director of Diversity Development, MPA,” the organizations said Thursday in a news release.

“The long-term promotion commences with today?s launch of the redesigned diversity website (www.magazine.org/diversity), followed by a members-only Town Hall meeting in September.”

Emmy Award Sponsors Designate Day for Diversity

The Academy of Television Arts & Sciences, the group that sponsors the Emmy awards, has designated Oct. 23 for “a historic, day-long initiative exploring television and cultural diversity.”

At the Leonard H. Goldenson Theatre in North Hollywood, “Dr. Charles Ogletree of Harvard University will lead a lively discussion on the challenges of producing and programming television for a multi-cultural audience. Hear top executives from broadcasting, cable and advertising as well as industry government officials on this important issue.”

Trotter Group Swims “Against the Prevailing Tide”

“Trotter Group members swim against the prevailing tide toward ‘career-ism’ ?- the push for better and higher paying jobs ?- especially among younger journalists and students,” writes Askia Muhammad in the Nation of Islam’s Final Call, describing the group of African American columnists that came together in 1992.

?The cynic among us would say that the younger journalists don?t understand,? explained Les Payne of Newsday during an interview at the Unity convention, Muhammad writes.

?That they only want to work on one track. They simply want the job. ?Will do anything for the job.? Once getting in the job, will say whatever the system wants them to say.

?I think that they have to war against that. And the reason why they have to war against that is because authenticity demands it. Because you cannot live that lie without out really betraying everything that came before you. . . . the people who got you the job.?

White Writer Mentors Young Journalists of Color

Rick Dunham, a White House correspondent for BusinessWeek and vice president of the National Press Club, is a mentor to young journalists of color, explains Kansas City Star writer Mary Sanchez in a piece on the Poynter Institute Web site.

As the now-defunct Unity mentoring program was being organized, fellow BusinessWeek reporter Cathy Yang asked Dunham whether he would be interested in volunteering. He became the sole white male mentor in the program.

“I was looking for a way to give back to the profession.

“It was not my whiteness, but my experiences that I had to contribute,” said Dunham, a 25-year veteran, in the story. “I thought that being a White House correspondent, I could help a young person get ahead.”

“Dunham said his race did not matter 99 percent of his time in the mentor program. ‘But I was the minority,’ he adds. ‘And, sometimes I realized that this must be what it is like often for everyone else who is a minority,'” Sanchez writes.

More on Unity:

• Black College Wire: Coverage by Black College Wire reporters

 

• Editorial, Indian Country Today: Indian country journalism grows

 

• Freedom Forum: Coverage by Diversity Institute reporters

 

• Freedom Forum: Freedom Forum at UNITY 2004

 

• San Jose Mercury News: MN Reporters Win Top Posts in National Association of Hispanic Journalists

 

• Abbey Thompson, Indian Country Today: Minority journalists network in Washington

A Vote for Racial Awareness in Sportswriting

“Wherever two or more sports fans gather together, as often as not the issue of race is in the room also–like a big pink elephant,” public editor Don Wycliff writes in the Chicago Tribune. “The only question is whether the elephant will be acknowledged and talked about, or whether it will be ignored.

“Tribune sports columnist Mike Downey elected to talk about it in his Tuesday column, which focused on 20-year-old Jeremy Wariner’s victory Monday in the 400-meter dash. He did so quite responsibly, dwelling as much on what looks to be a sprinting dynasty in the making at Baylor University as on the fact that Wariner was the first white American to win a sprint event at the Olympics since 1964. (Michael Johnson, who won the 400 in the previous two Olympic games, also went to Baylor and, in fact, helped coach Wariner.)

“Sports editor Dan McGrath felt good enough about Downey’s column that he offered it for the front page at Monday afternoon’s Page 1 news meeting. I felt comfortable enough with it that I voted to put it on Page 1. In the end, it didn’t make the front page, but ended up in Sports.

“That opened the way for a refer headline on the front of the section, and that led to the ‘white tornado’ wording. McGrath said he winced when he saw that head Tuesday morning. ‘If we did anything badly in this,’ he said, ‘that was it.’ I agree.

The victory lap (Mike Penner, Los Angeles Times)

Wariner leads U.S. 400 sweep, declines to view race in color (Paul McMullen, Baltimore Sun)

Book Critic Michiko Kakutani Staying in N.Y.

“Michiko Kakutani, The New York Times’ influential book critic, won’t be the paper’s big loss and the Los Angeles Times’ bigger gain,” reports Paul D. Colford in the New York Daily News.

“Sources said Kakutani recently decided to stick with The New York Times, her home for the past 25 years, after a serious flirtation with its L.A. rival.”

El Paso Group Honors 10 Chicano Journalists

Ten journalists who made significant contributions to the border region by diversifying newsrooms in El Paso and exploring Chicano issues were to be honored tonight by Plaza Mayachen, a Chicano interest group, Darren Meritz reports in the El Paso Times.

They are: “Guadalupe Silva, former assistant editorial page editor at the El Paso Times; Diana Washington Valdez, El Paso Times reporter; Estela Casas, anchor at Channel 7-KVIA (cable Channel 6); Sara Pacheco, CNN photojournalist; Robbie Farley Villalobos, posthumous award for her work with the El Paso Times and the El Paso Herald-Post; Joe Olvera, the first Chicano television reporter in El Paso; Pedro Villagrana, Spanish-language television reporter; Ramón Rentería, assistant features editor at the El Paso Times; and Ray Sanchez, the El Paso Herald-Post’s first Chicano sports editor.

Detroit’s Robinson, Bennett Broke Ground

“Thank you Harold Robinson and Bob Bennett.” writes senior editor Luther Keith in the Detroit News. “You both were there before nearly all the rest of us, trailblazing African-American men who walked into virtually all-white Detroit television and newspaper newsrooms of the 1960s and began knocking down barriers so other journalists of color could follow.

“Today, it?s not unusual to see a black photographer representing a major newspaper or to have a black television reporter bring viewers the latest breaking news. The media now understands the importance of racial and ethnic diversity in presenting sensitive, balanced news reports and to reflect the diversity of the communities they serve.

“But it wasn?t always that way.”

Bob Bennett memorial service Monday (WDIV-TV, Detroit)

Bob Bennett favored grit and not glitz (Jeanne May, Detroit Free Press)