Black Reporters Should Report on Black Issues, Says Longtime Newscaster

Terry Heaton Takes on Diversity in the Workplace

by Vicki Cormack

Terry Heaton's career spans the broadcasting world to the web and beyond. He spent almost 30 years as a news director and producer at local television stations throughout the country. He left the broadcasting world to become CEO of ANSIR Communications, an internet-based research firm. A rare bridge between the past and future. Terry has a special; understanding about the evolution of digital media. He manages DONATA Communications, a new media-consulting firm that works to help local stations and their internet properties.

In an online article at PressThink, Terry Heaton talks about how diversity in the newsroom decreases as people move from the university to the workplace. In the article he decries, ìI've had numerous black reporters either refuse to do ëcommunityí stories or get resentful when asked to cover any story involving blacks. The same is true with many gays, Asians, and Jews.î He later said, ìIt is idiotic to have a black reporter not reporting on issues of the black community.

Heaton, a newscaster and broadcast manager for 28 years, notes that diversity as a focus has bloomed. Jay Rosen, the editor of PressTalk, approached Heaton about writing on diversity in the newsroom. ìIím an opinionated guy, it was a difficult subject for a white guy to talk about,î said Heaton.

When Heaton was growing up in Milwaukee and for the first 10 years in the urban news market, ì it was good business to blend the newsroom. I donít recall any African American anchors at the time,î reflected Heaton.

Early in the 1970s, while filling out the FCC forms on equal opportunity, race came to the foreground as an issue. ìIn TV that was the place where groups like the NAACP would get their information," said Heaton. The forms were required to substantiate the number of people of various backgrounds in the newsroom. Now that practice is standardized.

Heaton talked about his experience in the newsroom when minorities are hired. ìYou hire people in areas needing reporting, said Heaton. ìYou hire diverse people to report on content, I am a content person.î

ìI have always been mystified when I ask a black writer to write a story about black people and they look at me with the question, ëWhy are you asking me?í Do I have to spell it out?î asked Heaton.

In his article, Heaton makes reference to bringing under represented groups into the newsroom. He describes a town meeting ìwith a diverse group of citizens, meeting once a month and we talked about coverage,î said Heaton. "The faces you see (in any town) are the people you are covering. Why have diverse reporters, for a diverse point of view!î said Heaton.

One of the most powerful work experiences Heaton had was in Hawaii at KGMB. He is adamant that ìevery Caucasian should have to live in Hawaii. It is a cross over experience to live as a minority; everybody is a minority in Hawaii.î

But being in the majority race on the mainland, Heatonís views are often inflammatory.

ì I expect the person (I send out to report) to be professional, to do fact checking. My preference is to send African Americans to a black community, we will get more reporting and they will be accepted in the community, ì Heaton declared. He has sent people to do poverty stories and believes a black writer will be a better reporter in a black community.

Feedback to his article raised concerns that young reporters were being pigeon holed. Heatonís reply was black journalists are some of the best role models in any community. ìAfrican American TV anchors are serious role models,î said Heaton. ìPeople want their autograph, and they want their pictures taken. To ignore this in the name of diversity is idiotic. If everybody is the same, why do we need a diverse news staff?î