Diversity in the media

Gregory E. Favre recently wrote an article on Poynter Online titled The Disappearance of Diversity. He argues that diversity in the media is becoming less prevalent in a society that is becoming more and more diverse every day. He provides statistics like the population of 100 million minorities in our country today, and how it is predicted that by sometime in the middle of this century our nation will be without a majority.

"My beliefs, as I have expressed before, are that diversity is about inclusiveness, about tolerance, about giving people a chance, about helping to build a community and discovering all of its dimensions, about the fundamentals of democracy," Favre wrote.

Favre attended a church meeting about getting more diversity into its masses. Members were asked what diversity meant to them and gave answers like accepting people as they are and understanding our sameness and differences. Favre left the meeting with mixed emotions, not sure whether the group was on the right track.

"It's understanding that to achieve balance we must give weight to many different perspectives and not think there are only two sides to every issue. It's caring for the hopes and needs and dreams of others and embracing new ideas and new initiatives."

I agree with Favre's position on diversity. This is a key point in journalism. As members of the media, we can't get lazy and forget to include all aspects and opinions when covering news. We must include all of our citizens and audiences to make them feel like they are an important part of our society, because they are. We must especially pay more attention to diversity now, as our nation is going through such rapid and dramatic changes. Favre fears that groups will isolate themselves if the media doesn't focus on diversity better. He believes the goal of diversifying the media is to connect people and communities.

"Diversity is recognizing all of our backgrounds and lifestyles, all of our physical and psychological contrasts, recognizing that we become better when we exchange ideas and experiences and build a bridge across our differences."