Study Probes Diversity In NJ Newsrooms: Race, Gender, Pay, Turnover

ESSEX COUNTY, NJ — There’s some good news, a recent study says: New Jersey’s newsrooms are generally in line with the racial, gender and ethnic diversity of its population. But there are still some “disturbing” challenges that many journalists face on the job in the Garden State, researchers add.

The Center for Cooperative Media at Montclair State University launched a statewide diversity survey of New Jersey journalists and media outlets earlier this year, which gathered data from January to April. In total, 146 individual journalists and 31 news organizations responded – a number that was lower than researchers had hoped for, but which can still reveal some important insights, they said.

Learn more and see the study’s methodology here.

“The data can help us and the media industry in the state gauge how representative local newsrooms are of the communities they cover and serve,” researchers said. “Additionally, the survey results allow us to assess how newsrooms are performing in terms of fair wages, safety, upward mobility, and other hiring and retention practices.”

Here are the key findings when it comes to race, researchers said:

“Among staff reported in the organizational survey, 66 percent were white, followed by 12 percent who were Asian American, and 12 percent who were Black. Newsrooms indicated that 8 percent of their staff are of Hispanic or Latino ethnicity. None identified as Native American, Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander.”

For comparison, the latest U.S. Census data shows that 55 percent of New Jersey residents identify as white alone. About 13.1 percent identified as Black alone; 21.6 percent identified as Hispanic; 10 percent identified as Asian alone; 0.6 percent identified as American Indian and Alaska Native alone; zero percent identified as Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander alone; 11.3 percent identified as ‘Some Other Race alone’; and 9.7 percent identified as ‘Two or More Races.’

Other highlights included:

• A majority of leadership in the participating newsrooms (66 percent) is white, followed by 13 percent Asian American, and 13 percent Black, with no one in leadership being multiracial. Newsrooms indicated that nine percent of their leadership are of Hispanic or Latino ethnicity.
• More than 55 percent of the staff and leadership reported by newsrooms in the organizational survey were women, followed by men at more than 40 percent, with none identifying as non-binary.
• One out of every seven journalists reported having mental health difficulties, followed by unseen disabilities (such as asthma, diabetes and epilepsy), mobility problems, visual impairment, hearing impairment, and dyslexia.
• Half of the survey respondents reported being hired as new employees for their current positions, compared to 27 percent who were promoted to their current positions, and 23 percent who moved laterally into their current positions, which signals a high turnover in the industry.
• Journalists of color in New Jersey experienced higher turnover rates than their white counterparts. JOCs typically had around 11 years of journalism experience and had been with their current news organizations for about five years. In contrast, white respondents had a median of 20 years of experience in journalism and nine years at their current newsrooms.
• 38 percent of journalists reported they always or often felt “burnout” at work, while only about 4 percent said they never felt burnout. About 40 percent of journalists reported they “sometimes” feel burnout at work.
• 14 percent of journalists said they have been “harassed” by one of their co-workers, while 66 percent of journalists reported they have been harassed by a member of the public.
• Nearly a quarter of respondents reported earning less than $40,000, while 28 percent earned $80,000 or more. Given that the median household income in New Jersey is $97,126, most survey respondents earn less than the median.

The majority of journalists who responded to the survey said they feel respected by their peers in the workplace – and that their contributions are valued.

Researchers noted that nearly 68 percent of journalists said they strongly agreed or agreed with the following statement: “I feel my unique background and identity (i.e. differences) are strongly valued in my newsroom.” A total of 72 percent of journalists reported that they strongly agreed or agreed with the statement: “I feel a sense of belonging in my newsroom.” About 82 percent of journalists said they strongly agreed or agreed with the statement: “I feel respected by my colleagues.”

However, some respondents added that they have seen challenges due to their race or gender – from fellow staffers and the public alike.

Some female journalists reported experiencing a “boys club” atmosphere in their workplaces, unequal pay rates, the “devaluing” of older women in broadcast news, and “combative or distrusting” interactions with sources based on their gender.

Meanwhile, some journalists of color reported that they aren’t getting the proper credit for the work they produce compared to their white peers. Others said they have encountered a lack of cultural sensitivity, and a lack of diversity when it comes to which stories are told and prioritized on the news.

According to the study, there are between 300 and 350 news organizations currently operating in New Jersey, including more than 140 ethnic media organizations. That number doubles when all public access television stations and the wide variety of radio stations that produce original content at least once a month are included.

Gannett and Advance operate the largest newsrooms in the state, despite massive cutbacks by each organization that has resulted in “severe downsizing” of those newsrooms over the last 10 years, researchers noted. See Related: NJ Reporters Bash CEO Over Drop In Local News Coverage

There are about a dozen active news nonprofits in operation throughout the state. A “handful” of independent, locally-owned and print-oriented weeklies remain, the study said.

Researchers cautioned against generalizing their findings due to a small sample size. But there are still some valuable insights that can be gleaned from the data, they said.

“As disturbing as the findings are when it comes to low pay, higher turnover and burnout rates amongst journalists of color, and many female journalists thinking their newsrooms aren’t taking harassment seriously – this is part of a wider trend in local news ecosystems across the country, unfortunately,” said Kareem El Damanhoury of Denver University, which was tapped to lead the audit on behalf of the Center for Cooperative Media.

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