ASNE establishes new diversity awards

• By: ASNE staff
• On: 03/28/2007 16:22:00
• In: Pacesetter award

WASHINGTON -- Newspapers from Arkansas, New Jersey and Texas were recognized by ASNE today for their success in building ethnic diversity in their newsrooms.

The newspapers were honored by ASNE which inaugurated the Diversity Pacesetter awards to recognize the top performers in three categories - Laredo Morning Times in Texas for top percentage of minorities on staff, The Trentonian, Trenton, N.J. for top percentage increase of minority staffing and The Baxter Bulletin, Mountain Home, Ark., for the top diversity index. Awards were made in seven circulation categories yielding 21 winners in all. A website about the awards and the winners is available here. 

"We wanted to recognize strong performers in the diversity area," said Phil Currie, 2006-07 ASNE Diversity Committee chair who created the awards this year. "Often, the focus seems to be on who isn't doing the job. Of course, we do need to keep attentive to that, because more progress needs to be made. But for this award, we wanted a focus on who IS doing the job."

The top three winners will receive $3,000 in cash at a recognition ceremony Wednesday during ASNE's convention. The Gannett Foundation donated the cash awards. The Diversity Committee also has published a book in which the winners explain how they diversified their staffs and the impact that diversity has had on their news coverage. The information will also be posted on ASNE's Web site.

"The sensitivity to issues, the understanding of nuances, the awareness of changes and the identification of significant stories all are improved by a diverse workforce," said ASNE president David Zeeck. "Accuracy is more certain with an attention and alertness to diversity."

Currie added, "We wanted recognition to be broad enough to touch many newspapers of various
sizes, so there would be lessons for all-size newspapers."

The results are based on the ASNE newsroom census released in April 2006. ASNE has conducted this annual newsroom census since 1978 as part of its parity goal to have the same percentage of minorities working in newsrooms as daily newspapers as there are minorities in the U.S. population.

Currently 13.62 percent of the nation's full-time journalists are minorities while minorities are 32 percent of the U.S. population. Editors have set 2025 for newsrooms to reach the parity goal.

Here is the list of the 21 newspapers and their editors:

TOP PACESETTER: DIVERSITY INDEX
All Circulation Categories

The Baxter-Bulletin, Mountain Home, Ark.
Kandra Branam, managing editor

TOP PACESETTER: PERCENTAGE OF MINORITIES ON STAFF
All Circulation Categories

Laredo (Texas) Morning Times
Diana Fuentes, editor

TOP PACESETTER: PERCENTAGE INCREASE IN MINORITY STAFFING
All Circulation Categories

The Trentonian, Trenton, N.J.
Bill Murray, publisher
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PACESETTERS: DIVERSITY INDEX

Star-Tribune, Minneapolis
Nancy Barnes, editor

Akron (Ohio) Beacon-Journal,
Mizell Stewart, managing editor

Portland Press Herald/Maine Sunday Telegram
Jeannine Guttman, editor

Press & Sun-Bulletin, Binghamton, N.Y.
Calvin Stovall, executive editor

The Post-Star, Glens Falls, N.Y.
Ken Tingley, managing editor

The Baxter Bulletin, Mountain Home, Ark.
Kandra Branam, managing editor

Nebraska City (Neb.) News-Press
Tammy Pearson, executive editor

PACESETTERS: PERCENTAGE OF MINORITIES ON STAFF

The Miami Herald
Anders Gyllenhaal, executive editor

The Honolulu Advertiser
Mark Platte, editor

The Clarion-Ledger, Jackson, Miss.
Ronnie Agnew, executive editor

El Paso (Texas) Times
Don Flores, editor

Tulare Advance-Register and Times-Delta, Visalia, Calif.
Linda Green, executive editor

Laredo (Texas) Morning News
Diana Fuentes, editor

Hugo (Okla.) Daily News
Stan Stampler, publisher

PACESETTERS: PERCENTAGE INCREASE IN MINORITY STAFFING

The Dallas Morning News
Bob Mong, editor

The Daytona Beach (Fla.) News-Journal
Don Lindley, executive editor

The Roanoke (Va.) Times
Carole Tarrant, managing editor

Republican-American, Waterbury, Conn.
Jonathan Kellogg, executive editor

The Trentonian, Trenton, N.J.
Bill Murray, publisher

The Spectrum, St. George, Utah
Todd Seifert, editor

Pasadena (Texas) Citizen
David Taylor, regional editor, Southeast Group
Houston Community Newspapers