Cultural Stereotypes a Factor in Low Numbers of Asian Americans in Newsroom Management

For Immediate Release:

August 4, 2004

Contact:
Keith Kamisugi (for AAJA)
(415) 876-0589, keith@keithpr.com

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Cultural stereotypes, non-participation in informal industry networks and low numbers in the job pool are some of the reasons why Asian Americans are under-represented in newspaper and television management positions, according to a study conducted by Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism and the Asian American Journalists Association (AAJA), and funded by the World Journal.

Although Asian Americans make up 4.2 percent of the country's population, only 1.3 percent of television news directors and only two percent of newspaper newsroom supervisors are Asian American.

The Medill-AAJA study, "Asian Americans in Newsroom Management: A Survey of TV and Newspaper Managers," was conducted by Medill researchers Larry Stuelpnagel and Cynthia Linton and attempted to shed light on why Asian Americans are so under-represented in TV and newspaper management ranks, and to provide recommendations on how to correct the problem.

The study looked at 30 media markets - 10 large, 10 mid-sized and 10 small. The researchers contacted 51 newspapers and 141 TV stations in those markets. Among the study's findings:

• None of the newspapers responding to the survey had Asian Americans in the top three newsroom jobs, while two TV stations had Asians in one of the two top positions;
• Newspaper editors and television news managers said the shortage of Asian Americans in management is due primarily to the few Asian Americans in the job pool and the few Asian Americans living in their market;
• Other reasons cited for their scarcity were that Asians are not part of the informal "network" and that other minorities have higher numbers and need representation.
• Asian Americans at two California newspapers, which employed the majority of print managers found in the study, talked extensively about the cultural stereotype of the quiet, unassertive Asian and how that can be a detriment in the "hard-charging" newspaper culture.

The study suggested solutions to both newsroom managers and to Asian American journalists. Newsroom management should:

• Recruit more aggressively and include minorities in the candidate pool when selecting managers;
• Provide mentors and more training, including leadership skills; and
• Re-examine the newsroom culture and leadership styles with a sensitivity to cultural differences.

The study recommended that Asian American journalists:

• Express their intentions for management positions and apply for challenging jobs;
• Ask for a mentor if one is not provided; and
• Request training opportunities such as AAJA's Executive Leadership Program.

"AAJA has consistently challenged the industry to develop more aggressive strategies for improving Asian American representation in newsrooms," said Mae Cheng, AAJA national president and assistant city editor at Newsday. "With this study, and our acknowledgement that Asian American journalists must also be proactive, we're giving newsroom managers yet another opportunity to walk the talk on diversity."

"I'm hopeful this study will be a springboard for positive change in our industry," said Randall Yip, AAJA's national vice president for broadcast. "Many Asian Americans have the desire, determination and ability to lead our newsrooms. All they need is the opportunity."

The study findings were announced during UNITY 2004, the world's largest gathering of journalists of color, held August 4-8 at the Washington Convention Center. The convention is the signature event of UNITY: Journalists of Color, Inc. - an alliance representing the combined 7,000 members of AAJA, National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ), National Association of Hispanic Journalists (NAHJ) and the Native American Journalists Association (NAJA).

The World Journal, the study's funder, is one of the largest daily newspapers in the United States, published in New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, Houston, Toronto and Vancouver. The World Journal's mission is to serve all overseas Chinese by helping immigrants bridge the gap to mainstream America, keep in touch with their homeland and local Chinese community news, and improve their quality of life. The newspaper is part of the United Daily News Group, one of the leading global media conglomerates.

Download (PDF) a complete report on the study.

About AAJA

The Asian American Journalists Association is a national, non-profit educational association based in San Francisco that has more than 2,100 members. It was founded to encourage young Asian Pacific Americans to enter the ranks of journalism, to work for fair and accurate coverage of Asian Pacific Americans, to increase the number of Asian Pacific Americans and news managers in the industry.