AAJA Co-Founder's Message

"We Can Make the Next 25 Years Even Better"

Twenty-five years. What a ride.

There's so much to be proud of from our first quarter-century. So many achievements, great memories and friends too.

But as a 23-year-old reporter fresh out of college in 1981, I wasn't inspired to help start AAJA out of a preoccupation with the past. We launched AAJA to address that day's challenges and create a better future.

Today's challenges look as daunting as ever.

Our profession and media industries are at a crucial crossroads. Newspapers are cutting hundreds of jobs amid declining circulation and advertising. Print and broadcast outlets are grappling with new media and the information revolution they created.

Asian Americans are leaving journalism at a worrisome rate; only two of the six AAJA co-founders are still in the profession.

"Survivor" isn't just a reality show -- it's a reality for many Asian American journalists trying to do more with less, or bumping into glass ceilings.

Our audiences are more demanding and less loyal. Our credibility and integrity are being questioned. We are sometimes viewed as out of touch, biased or overly negative. Coverage doesn't fully reflect the changing demographics and interests of our communities. Many Asian Americans and others believe that the news media don't speak to them, failing to reflect their aspirations and their longing to connect.

To address these challenges, the need for AAJA is greater than ever. AAJA and its members and friends are part of the solutions. We can offer the vision, risk taking, leadership and dedication that launched the organization 25 years ago. We can think and act big.

Asian American journalists are uniquely qualified to help improve our profession and media industries. As people of color, we know what it's like to be on the outside looking in. Our upbringings, cultures and perspectives help us see and do things differently. Our past successes in overcoming obstacles give us the confidence to tackle the hurdles that lie ahead.

We can challenge the status quo, just as we did 25 years ago. Then, the status quo was nearly all-white newsrooms where the few journalists of color were often afraid to express themselves. The status quo was inadequate or insensitive coverage of Asian Americans and other people of color.

Today, Asian Americans aren't as hard to find in newsrooms. Coverage of our communities has improved. You can find a scattering of Asian American publishers, editors in chief and news directors, with many others waiting in the wings.

But what worked 25 years ago may not be enough now. It takes fresh thinking, innovative strategies, expanded missions.

It isn't enough to encourage young Asian Americans to pursue journalism when too many of our veteran professionals are drifting or departing. It isn't enough to provide conventional management training when newsroom leaders are grappling with ways to build readership and new media strategies. It isn't enough to develop great reporting if the subject matter doesn't move readers and viewers. It isn't enough to spotlight offensive coverage when too many compelling and inspirational stories remain untold.

We can help our employers better connect with their current audiences and reach new ones. We can help build links with emerging communities of Asian immigrants. We can help develop gifted and ethical journalists who understand the changing demographics and priorities of their communities and create coverage that reflects this. We can help develop talented professionals who appreciate their audiences instead of talking down to them.

We can help develop leaders who create distinct and compelling content in a world where the Internet has commoditized routine information. We can help create news organizations that thrive in a world of technological change.

We can learn from the creativity and cross-cultural explorations of Asian American rappers, athletes, artists or entrepreneurs who overcome stereotypes and expand their reach every day. We can hire people different from ourselves, valuing breadth and depth of life and cultural experiences as much as outstanding reporting or artistic skills. We can help rejuvenate the careers of veteran professionals longing for renewal, creating opportunities for them to learn from and inspire each other.

In doing so, we can make the next 25 years even better than the first.

Bill Sing
AAJA Co-Founder