Change On The Horizon

News Watch goes one-on-one with chief executive for UNITY: Journalists of Color, Inc.

Benfred Clement Smith is chief executive of UNITY: Journalists of Color, Inc. He is charged with overseeing UNITY's day-to-day operations and transition from a convention-planning organization to an ongoing strategic national coalition representing nearly 7,000 news media professionals of color. UNITY is devoted to ensuring diversity in newsroom hiring as well as fair and accurate news coverage for communities of color. What do you think is the biggest problem in news coverage today?
For me personally, the biggest problem in news coverage today is that attracting an audience at times seems to take precedence over conducting heavily researched, unbiased news reporting. Even many of the stories that involve in-depth research and reporting tend to delve into detail not so much to improve our understanding of a given topic or situation, but to find yet another piece of that hyperbole that has a heavy sensationalist and hence strong sales appeal. What are your ideas on how to diversify news coverage and/or newsrooms?
I am a strong believer in taking a multi-pronged approach to problem solving. Back in the early 1930s, when the United States was floundering in the Great Depression, Franklin Delano Roosevelt didn't rely on one strategy; nor did he attempt to solve every problem in one day, or one presidential term, for that matter. Rather, he pursued a range of strategies over a period of years in an effort to find and focus on those polices that were most effective. Today, looking at the issue of diversity and the media, one might say that we too face a depression of different sorts ó one that involves inadequate coverage of people of color and a dearth of Black, Latino, Asian American and Native American faces in the newsroom. There are many avenues that we not only can but should take to overcome this dilemma. This includes, but is not limited to: recruiting and training more young people of color, ensuring that information in regard to employment opportunities is widely dispersed among our communities, and extending a helping hand to editors and publishers who need assistance in locating qualified professionals. We've got to reach out as much as we can to let the leaders of this industry know that we are willing to work with them. And that's just for starters. In your opinion, which news story was overplayed in the past year?
No question about it. The Eli·n Gonzalez story was not only the most overplayed news story of 2000, but it was played to the detriment of any and all who were involved, including Eli·n Gonzalez himself. In your opinion, which news story was underreported in the past year?
During the past year, U.S. economic growth was widely reported to have benefited all Americans. However, the most underreported story of not only this past year, but of the past eight years is that a large portion of the populace still finds themselves relatively untouched by economic prosperity. Indeed, more than a few people are actually worse off despite what many economists have referred to as the Goldilocks Economic Era. The fact of the matter is that if this so-called broad-based economic prosperity continues, many, many Americans will continue to prosper, but many others ó especially, those who a leading scholar once referred to as being in "the other America" ó will soon find themselves so far behind the rest of the populace in terms of economic status and education, that unlike Goldilocks, they'll be quite happy just to get a bowl of cold porridge. Would you encourage your child to become a journalist?
Absolutely. There are many professions where one can make a contribution to society, but very few where one's actions can potentially benefit so many people, locally, nationally, and even on a global level. What is your favorite source of news and why?
I enjoy news from a wide array of sources, especially, television, radio, print and the Internet. Quite frankly, I wouldn't consider any single source as my favorite, for during a normal news week, something unique can be gleaned from each. And, anyway, in order to truly keep pace with news from all corners of the country and indeed the world, you really need to rely on them all. How has UNITY contributed to encourage persons of color to seek journalism professions?
Thus far our greatest contribution in this area has been made through our mentoring program. Through the UNITY Mentor Program, which has been funded by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, we have teamed seasoned journalism professionals with Black, Latino, Native American and Asian American college journalism students. In addition to bi-monthly contact between a mentor and his/her assigned mentee, we provide training conducted via the Internet, and bring all of our students and mentors together at least twice each year to create a large multicultural community. During these gatherings, students are introduced to other media professionals, attend workshops, and provided tours of media facilities. What happens is that the students build up a base of knowledge not only across different areas within the media but also across cultures. Perhaps, what makes this program most unique is that once a student starts, he remains in the program for five years. So, as you can see, we don't just love 'em and leave 'em. We've made a substantial commitment to encouraging young people of color to enter the field, and we're in it for the long haul. Discuss the importance of veteran journalists mentoring with young journalists of color.
At a most basic level, mentors in journalism are important in helping their younger colleagues get established in the profession. I mean this on both an intellectual and a practical level. Veteran journalists, for instance, not only provide critical information regarding the substance and skills necessary to excel in this profession, but they can also help to establish a network of contacts that a younger journalist can use to build his or her career. Clearly, having greater or fewer of any of the above ó skills, knowledge or contacts ó can make a huge difference in one's career. But there's another very critical, but often unspoken fact about the importance of having a mentor in this field: It is not unusual for a person of color in any occupation or field to feel isolated at times. Now take that same individual and place her in the position of working the sometimes thankless and often grueling hours of a journalist, and you can only imagine how bad things can get. And so, even if you forget about everything that I just said in regard to knowledge, skills and contacts, I want you to think of what it's like to have one of your worst days, when it seems like the whole world is against you or could care less as to whether you exist ó and your hours are so long and arduous that you've lost touch with even your closest friends and relatives. It is especially on days like this that having a mentor can make all the difference in the world. The UNITY convention is every five years. What is your vision for the organization during the intervening years?
Until very recently, of course, UNITY's primary charge essentially revolved around coordinating the well-known convention of which you speak. We are now in the very early stages of turning our attention to the tasks of year-round journalism advocacy and education. Among our goals are to use a variety of forums and technologies, old and new, to increase the flow of information among not only our four member associations ó Asian American Journalists Association, National Association of Black Journalists, National Association of Hispanic Journalists, and Native American Journalists Association ó but within the broader field of journalism. We plan to strengthen relationships with our covenant partners (ASNE, NAA, and RTNDA) as well as conduct outreach to and collaborate with other institutions, both within and outside of the media, in an effort to broaden and deepen the news industry's focus on fairness, accuracy, and balanced news coverage for communities of color. And, of course, through the above activities, we intend to continue our mission to stem the exodus of people of color from the industry by encouraging fairer promotion practices. What are your feelings on the new leadership at UNITY and where you hope to take the organization?
I am quite honored to have the opportunity to work with such a distinguished board of directors. I also continue to be excited about the leadership, support, and vision provided by UNITY President Jackie Greene as well as executive officers Ernest Sotomayor, Vice President; Beth Hege Piatote, Secretary; and Victor Panichkul, Treasurer (all of whom assumed office in January). With such a dedicated group of directors working to advance the UNITY collective agenda and the individual agendas of the four member associations, UNITY shall continue to serve as a powerful alliance. My objective is to work with the board to take this young institution and grow it into a multi-faceted organization at the cutting edge of change. If every day, we can have an effect on at least one additional organization or institution in our field, then I know that we can go a long way in infusing greater diversity into the newsroom and making news coverage more fair, accurate and balanced for our communities of color. Change may not come easy and it certainly may take some time. But I can tell you one thing. Change is definitely on the horizon. More information on UNITY: Journalists of Color, Inc., can be found on the organization's Web site located at www.unityjournalists.org.