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Diverse Perspectives on Dow Jones Sale

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Journalists of Color Weigh In on Deal with Murdoch

The deal to sell the Dow Jones Co., owner of the Wall Street Journal, to Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp. was greeted on Wednesday by emotions ranging from bitterness to hope by a sampling of journalists of color who have worked for the Journal. For them, the sale resonated in a slightly different way than it did for others.

 

 

 

“Dow Jones and its Wall Street Journal have no deep record of successfully developing journalists of color — and that’s especially true for black journalists,” said one former Journal reporter who did not want to be identified.

“Why would any talented, ambitious black journalist ever risk working at the WSJ, given its record? Same with News Corp. So I don’t expect Murdoch’s purchase to improve the outlook for DJ’s journalists of color.”

Gary Fields, a Journal Washington correspondent who covers criminal justice, said, “As a journalist of color I probably have a slightly different perspective. I have never been under the illusion that I control much of anything so there is little in this current situation that is different than the last three decades of my career.

 

 

“I have worked at a number of journalism establishments and I have never run them, made policy, controlled the overall tenor of debate within those establishments or for that matter, worked for a journalist of color who was in much of a position to do any of those things.

“If I had ever been in control of a paper’s direction I would have focused the resources on poverty and highlighting the lives of those who society tries to forget, either purposely or through benign neglect. The best I’ve been able to do is to occasionally write about subjects that allow me to keep the faith with my meager beginnings. That’s always been a bit of a struggle.”

The Wall Street Journal reported 19.7 percent journalists of color in the 2007 survey of the American Society of Newspaper Editors: 8.4 percent Asian American; 6.7 percent African American; 4.5 percent Hispanic and 0.2 percent Native American.

The New York Post, owned by Murdoch’s News Corp., does not participate in the ASNE survey. Murdoch-owned Fox News has scheduled a Sept. 23 Democratic presidential candidates debate but is without the top-tier candidates, including Sen. Barack Obama, because of the network’s right-wing reputation, sponsorship by the Congressional Black Caucus notwithstanding.

In 2004, Carolyn Phillips, the Journal’s first black assistant managing editor sued the newspaper, charging she was marginalized, then laid off due to race. Since then Raju Narisetti, who is South Asian, and then Jesse Lewis, an African American, have been named editor and managing editor, respectively, of the Wall Street Journal Europe.

From his perch in India, where he is now managing editor of Mint, a business daily, Narisetti e-mailed, “Any deal that can provide The Journal’s news initiatives the resources and the global reach they deserve is worth supporting. And my personal opinion is that News Corp will bring that much more than Dow Jones has been able to in recent years for a variety of internal and external reasons.

“In Marcus Brauchli, the WSJ (and News Corp) has a managing editor who totally gets what it takes to manage and grow the Journal news franchise in an era where the internet and video content will play a larger role than they have ever done. And Marcus understands that the business side and the news side have to work together with all the right Chinese walls. So I am not overly worried about what News Corp’s ownership of the Journal will do to its news standards, values and ethos.

“Like many large papers in the US, the Journal has ways to go before people outside their newsroom —and even those inside WSJ’s news leadership—feel their staffing reflects the multi-cultural society they write about. And it is a work-in-progress. But, there is very little reason—or business sense —to believe that commitment to diversity will lessen under News Corp.

“As a WSJ well-wisher and partner — Mint, my newspaper in India, puts WSJ’s terrific content and brand in front of 95,000 Indian readers each day —I am actually looking forward to the Journal brand and its high-quality, ethical business journalism spread to many more newspapers and television channels under News Corp.”

 

 

Joe Boyce, who retired from the Journal as senior editor in 1998 after 11 years at the paper, said the Journal’s current assistant managing editor for recruiting and hiring, Cathy Panagoulias, is “absolutely committed to a diverse work staff. I hope she’ll be allowed to continue what she does so well.”

Boyce, who stayed on with the Journal as a consultant who recruits, spoke with Journal-isms as he arrived in Miami for the Asian American Journalists Association convention. His concerns were in line with those of other Journal employees quoted in news reports on Wednesday. “It’s one of the few great newspapers left in the United States,” Boyce said of the Journal. “I have serious concerns that it’s going to be allowed to stay that way. If it is able to maintain its editorial integrity and editorial independence, that’s a good thing. It can use an infusion of resources and be more of a global presence,” he said.

“But if the aim is to use it as a vehicle to use to pursue a personal, political and business philosophy, then that’s tragic.”

Likewise, Ben Holden, who worked in the Journal’s Los Angeles bureau from 1993 to 1997, said, “I’ve never met Mr. Murdoch, but I understand he is a fine businessman. My knee-jerk reaction upon hearing the news was deep concern. Mr. Murdoch appears from all reports to be an activist publisher who likes to win. That cannot be good for editors, or for the newspapers they edit.”

“On the other hand— and more pertinent to reporters and editors at the Journal,” said Holden, who is now vice president and executive editor of the Ledger-Enquirer, a McClatchy paper in Columbus, Ga., “I also understand the Bancroft family has negotiated a tightly drafted agreement that restricts editorial meddling. I hope so. The Journal is one of the shining lights of American journalism, and the divergence between its newsgathering processes on the one hand, and its editorial positions on the other, are what makes the paper so great. It would be tragic to see that separation erode.”

While most of the stories about the takeover have focused on the Journal, it was noted in the Middletown (N.Y.) Times Herald-Record that, “The $5 billion sale of Dow Jones & Co. to Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp. means that not only does the venerable Wall Street Journal pass into his hands, but so do we.”

That’s because “The Times Herald-Record is part of Ottaway Newspapers Inc. of Campbell Hall, the community media arm of Dow Jones.”

Jim Moss, an African American who was publisher of the Record from 1995 to 2005, was quoted as saying, “given the way the company’s been managed for the past half-dozen years, it’s hard to believe the paper could fare any worse under any other company.”

“The newspaper, Moss said, has been run ‘for profitability and not for any long-term protection of the franchise of community newspapers,'” the story said.

Perspectives appeared to vary with one’s position. Speaking as a reporter, Fields continued:

“So now I am at the Journal — which I don’t control, but which has allowed me a great deal of latitude in recent years to pursue subjects that are important to me, from disparate sentencing policies and their impact on minorities, to the influx of the mentally ill into the criminal justice system, to the world of prisons and inmates, to criminal justice issues in tribal lands.

“I don’t presume to know whether a Rupert Murdoch ownership means I can no longer try to focus attention on those issues, but until someone says we don’t want that drivel you care about, I intend to stay here and push to practice the journalism that matters to me.

“When someone says ‘we don’t want you writing the things you write,’ then my decision will be simple — leave. That’s an individual decision I have made before for the same reason. Leaving this time probably means leaving journalism, but so be it if it comes to that.”

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Paralyzed in Shooting; Helpless in Bridge Collapse

One of the many stories to emerge from Wednesday night’s collapse of the Interstate Highway 35W bridge over the Mississippi River between the Twin Cities involved a man who had been paralyzed in a shooting years ago in South Carolina.

“Marcelo Cruz, 26, of Crystal was on the bridge, headed to a wheelchair-racing class downtown. Cruz said, ‘The bridge started shaking like an earthquake. I saw the bridge going up and down a little bit,'” Curt Brown, Kevin Duchschere and Kevin Giles reported on the Star Tribune Web site.

“He realized he had to stop or he would plunge into the water. He saw bridge workers clinging to the side of the bridge, so he waited until he was past them and yanked the wheel to the right to stop himself against the outside barrier.

“He was on a section of the roadway that fell onto a freight car.

“But Cruz’s problems weren’t over. He couldn’t get out because he can’t move from his waist down. He was paralyzed by a shooting years ago. He heard a woman screaming for help and he figured she was hanging from the bridge. ‘She was yelling, “Help me, help me.” I couldn’t do anything.’ Then he didn’t hear her anymore.

“Two men helped him out of his car and carried him and his wheelchair from the car. About 7:55 p.m., he got in his wheelchair and headed to his van, plainly visible on the steep slope of the broken bridge. ‘God saved my life a second time,’ he said.”

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NABJ Candidates Oppose Media Consolidation

For some, the issue in the takeover of Dow Jones is one of media consolidation. “This takeover is bad news for anyone who cares about quality journalism and a healthy democracy. Giving any single company —let alone one controlled by Rupert Murdoch — this much media power is unconscionable,” Robert W. McChesney, president of the media activist group Free Press, said on Monday.

“Media consolidation has replaced investigative journalism with infotainment, foreign affairs reporting with fluff, and local coverage with cookie-cutter content. Contrary to industry spin, emerging Internet outlets fail to offset consolidation’s affect on journalism. Now Murdoch will control a broadcast network, a cable news channel and a national newspaper — three of the small handful of outlets that set our national news agenda.”

Manuel De La Rosa, vice president of broadcast for the National Association of Hispanic Journalists, urged Journal-isms to ask the two candidates for president of the National Association of Black Journalists their positions on media consolidation and broadcast ownership, saying he was disappointed that “we have been the lone minority journalism organization willing to stand up and fight for this.”

 

 

Cheryl Smith, executive editor of the Dallas Weekly, responded:

“I am glad that Manuel asked this question. Media consolidation is an issue that NABJ should be expressing concern about.

“Not a tough question at all.

“Media consolidation does not further NABJ’s mission. And I will say that while Manuel has not seen the response he would like, there have been NABJ members who have been speaking out on the issue of media consolidation.

“Over the past 15 years we have seen the FCC acquiesce to big business, much to my chagrin. Regulations have relaxed significantly resulting in fewer demands for larger media companies to be good corporate citizens. This impacts hiring, firing, coverage, procurement, community involvement and more.

“Media consolidation is resulting in the same situation in our industry that you see with the retail industry and WalMart. Smaller companies are shutting down. The same is happening with media companies.

“NABJ must fight to increase ethnic media ownership and employment. We must aggressively pursue this issue and we must join with others, like NAHJ, to address disparities in the industry.

“I understand Manuel’s disappointment. I wonder if he has posed the question to the current administration.

“His question is not a tough one. NABJ’s mission says it all. We do a disservice to our founders, our members and those who fought the good fight in a continuing struggle.

“I have been working and will continue to work to ensure that gains made following the Kerner Commission Report, and others since that focused on the media, will not totally disappear. We’re in a never-ending battle for parity.

“I am not making empty campaign promises. Under my leadership NABJ will join in speaking out

 

 

against media consolidation and other issues of justice and equality. I believe that NABJ should be in the forefront addressing this and other issues.”

Barbara Ciara, managing editor and evening anchor at WTKR-TV in Norfolk, Va., and NABJ’s vice president/broadcast, was busy last night with the Twin Cities bridge collapse, and said she did not have time to reply in detail.

But she said, “to my knowledge NAHJ never approached us (NABJ) to ask that we join with them in this effort. That said, we are of like mind regarding this issue. We share the concern and I would absolutely join forces to stem the tide of fewer opportunities for minority ownership.”

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In National Poll, Most Say Others Are Prejudiced

Most Americans believe their fellow citizens hold strong biases against minorities, according to a poll of 10,387 American adults conducted by Zogby International.

The “Report Card on American Prejudice” is described as part of a wide-ranging effort by the Game Show Network, sponsors of the poll and of a new television show, “Without Prejudice,” to spur a national dialogue on intolerance and bigotry.

The poll showed: While 67 percent of respondents claimed to have no preference themselves between a white, black or Arab clerk in a convenience store, 71 percent said, “most Americans” would seek out the white clerk. Just 1 percent said Americans’ first choice would be to approach a black clerk, while less than 0.5 percent said the same for an Arab clerk.

And yet, 55 percent of respondents said race relations have improved over the past 10 years.

Other results on race (where respondents picked from among several races):

In other findings, African Americans (56 percent) were more likely than whites (39 percent), Hispanics (37 percent), or Asians (32 percent) to think Americans believe that sexual orientation is a voluntary choice.

Whites (44 percent) thought Americans believe Muslims are responsible for wars more than Hispanics (37 percent), Asians (34 percent), or African Americans (30 percent) do.

Pollster John Zogby said in a July 23 news release, “Over my years of polling, I’ve learned that Americans tend to offer socially acceptable responses when questioned on their own views about race and prejudice. That’s why in this poll we predominantly asked people about “most Americans'” views on race and prejudice. We believe this provides a far more accurate window into how people really think about these issues. Americans are more forthcoming when discussing the problem in the context of their neighbors’ lives than in the context of their own lives.”

In another recent study from Ohio State University at Mansfield, white participants were asked variations of the question: How much should you be paid to continue to live the remainder of your life as a Black person?

“Participants generally required low median amounts, less than $10,000, to make the race change, whereas they requested high amounts, $1,000,000, to give up television. To the extent that larger amounts were requested, support for reparations also increased. . . . Together, these results suggest that White resistance to reparations for Black Americans stems from fundamental biases in estimating the true cost of being Black,” it said.

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Vibe “Juice Issue” Using Two Obama Covers

Vibe magazine is featuring two different covers with Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., for its “14th Anniversary Juice issue, starring Barack Obama and 40 more who will change the world.”

For the first time in the history of the magazine, a politician graces the cover, the magazine says on its Web site. Inside is its annual “Juiced list” and Q&As with the Rev. Al Sharpton; Obama’s sister, Maya Soetoro-Ng; Bill Gates; Louis Farrakhan and others, as well as an interview with Obama.

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D.A. Reviewing L.A. Supervisor’s Residency

“The Los Angeles County district attorney’s office said Monday it is reviewing allegations that Supervisor Yvonne B. Burke is living in a gated Brentwood home rather than in her predominantly South Los Angeles district, where she must live by law,” Jack Leonard and Matt Lait reported in the newspaper on Tuesday.

“A district attorney’s spokeswoman said the office has received at least one complaint”— from community activist Najee Ali — “after a Times report Friday that Burke has been staying overnight in a 4,000-square-foot residence with a swimming pool and tennis court, even though the supervisor said she considers a townhouse in Mar Vista, on the edge of her district, her principal residence.

“In an effort to defuse the controversy, Burke on Monday allowed The Times to review checks and other documents from a kitchen remodeling project at the 1,200-square-foot townhouse on busy Centinela Avenue in the 2nd District.

“She said the renovation — knocking down a wall and replacing cabinets and tile, among other work, prevented her from staying overnight at the townhouse.

“But the documents show the renovation began in May, and they fail to account for most of the time Burke acknowledged she has been staying in Brentwood.

Meanwhile, commentator Earl Ofari Hutchinson wrote Tuesday in the Times, “There are two issues on the table. . . . The first is, did she break the law? The second is, even if she doesn’t live 24/7 in the district, does that mean she’s an ineffectual supervisor who’s out of touch with her constituents? The second question is far more crucial.”

The headline summarized his position: “The Times’ report on the supervisor’s residency shouldn’t obscure the fact that she’s been a strong advocate for her district.”

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Houston Station Lures Vietnamese From West Coast

Over the last decade, husband-and-wife team of Duong Phuc and Vu Thanh Thuy, co-owners of Radio Saigon Houston KREH-AM in Houston, “have taken a strong foothold in the Houston Vietnamese media market with programming that mixes talk shows with news and music. The station’s presence is also credited with helping spur Vietnamese migration from the West Coast to the Houston area,” Cynthia Leonor Garza reported Tuesday in the Houston Chronicle.

Radio Saigon Houston broadcasts mostly in Vietnamese, but includes some bilingual programs. The station encourages Vietnamese people to take an active role in American society and to keep cultural traditions alive. Its staff has grown from five to 35 employees, plus more than 80 contributing hosts, the story said.

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2 Black Journalists Took Hartford Courant Buyout

Two more black journalists are out in the job market, having accepted buyouts from the Hartford (Conn.) Courant, the two told Journal-isms.

Kent A. Miles had been an assistant state editor for seven years. “I was one of eight, including two journalists of color, to walk away,” he told Journal-isms on Friday. “I can tell you that I was apprehensive but excited. I was the only editor of that group of eight to accept voluntary severance. I was a reporter and award-winning copy editor at the Courant. Before that, I worked for the News Times in

 

 

 

Danbury, Conn. This is something entirely new for me . . . the first time I walked away from a job without having a new job waiting for me.”

Gregory Seay, a staff writer and former assistant business editor who is president of the Connecticut Association of Black Communicators, also left on June 22. Seay, 49, said he was seeking a job preferably as a business-metro writer for an East Coast newspaper or magazine.

The Courant launched a buyout offer in May, seeking to eliminate 10 of the paper’s 252 newsroom positions.

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Hundreds Gather in La. Town to Support “Jena Six”

“Hundreds of people gathered in this little central Louisiana town on Tuesday to protest the conviction on one black student and the indictments of five others in an attack on a white schoolmate,” the Associated Press reported on Tuesday from Jena, La., in a case that is gaining increased national attention.

“About 300 people spent an hour Monday morning listening to speakers from a number of organizations, then marched around town in support of the group that has become known as the ‘Jena Six.’

“Six young black men were charged with attempted second-degree murder and conspiracy to commit attempted second-degree murder after a white student, Justin Barker, was beaten and knocked unconscious at school.

“Last month, Mychal Bell was found guilty of second-degree aggravated battery and conspiracy to commit second-degree aggravated battery after the charges were reduced. Bell is scheduled to be sentenced Sept. 20 and could get up to 22 years in prison. A group of Monroe, La., lawyers have taken on his appeal, however.

“The other five defendants are Theo Shaw, Robert Bailey Jr., Carwin Jones, Bryant Purvis and an unnamed juvenile. They are still facing the more serious charges.

“Members of Tuesday’s protest also presented an almost two-foot high stack of signatures on petitions asking Gov. Kathleen Blanco to intervene in the case and accusing district attorney Reed Walters of not pursuing the case impartially.

“Five or six family members and members of the community presented the petitions to an assistant district attorney,” said James Rucker, executive director of colorofchange.org, which spearheaded the petition drive. Rucker said more than 45,000 signatures were collected.”

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Short Takes

 

 
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