Thursday, July 08, 2004
Things that make you go Hmmmmmm!
This is from www.cablenewser.com
**************************************************
CNN's 'Roller Coaster' Diversity Woes
All this week, I am posting excerpts from News Flash,
the new book by former CNN VP Bonnie Anderson. Please
note that Anderson filed a lawsuit against CNN last
year, alleging that the network discriminated against
her.
Pages 60-63: Diversity: "CNN As A Case Study"
Anderson served as a vice president in charge of
hiring and talent development, and describes her
experiences during that time period:
From CNN's birth in 1980, it has been primarily a
network of white people putting together news for
white viewers. With some brief exceptions, it can also
be said that people in nearly all top news executive
positions have been men. In 1999, then-CNN chairman
Tom Johnson made it clear he wanted minorities hired
for virtually every on-camera opening. One example of
his not-too-subtle pressure was an e-mail to
then-Headline News head Bob Furnad, strongly
suggesting that an anchor opening at that network be
filled by a male or female African American, or a
female Hispanic. (The first question that came to mind
when I read the e-mail was "And do you want fries with
that?" This was the hiring equivalent of going through
a fast-food drive-through.) Between Headline News and
CNN/USA there were a handful of minority anchors,
including journalists such as Bernard Shaw, Sachi
Koto, Joie Chen, and Leon Harris. But their numbers
were small. And neither network had ever had a
Hispanic anchor.
While diversifying the CNN News Group was clearly the
moral, ethical, and sound business thing to do, when
applied in this
fill-as-many-openings-as-possible-with-minorities
manner it was also illegal. I was copied on Johnson's
e-mail to Furnad, and later during a private
conversation with Johnson I told him that while his
intent was no doubt to do good, I believed this was a
dangerous way to implement diversity...
...Over the next two years, however, the CNN News
Group practiced obvious quota-filling based, in part,
on Johnson's orders and what was considered to be
smart programming. There had never been an Asian or
Hispanic correspondent at CNN's Los Angeles bureau, so
only Asians and Hispanics were considered for the two
openings there and one of each was hired...
Anderson cites several other examples, and points out
that at CNN International, only non-Americans were
considered for anchor positions. And she sas that Jim
Walton created a new vice president position
"specificially for an African American." And then:
…. In 2001 CNN did a complete turnaround. The top
positions at Turner Broadcasting had been handed over
to men whose entire careers were in the world of
entertainment..And they made it clear they intended to
instill the values of the entertainment world -- in
terms of programming and hiring (or "casting" as
[Garth] Ancier called it) -- into the news networks at
CNN. If it works for the entertainment divisions at
other networks, they said, they believed it would work
with news too. At my first meeting with Ancier, when I
was showing him tapes of anchor candidates chosen by
Headline News and CNN/USA chiefs out of the pool of
candidates I'd shown them, he said, "Why are all these
tapes you're showing me of minorities? We don't need
any more of these people! We have enough! Bring me
others!"
We wrote this for TV Barn a year ago:
TV Barn.com Commentary
www.tvbarn.com
Feb., 2003
The Unbearable “Whiteness” of Television News
Like most Americans, I watched a lot of television
news the past few days. First there was the
President's State of the Union address. With the
nation on the brink of war, the speech was a very
different kind of "must-see TV." Then the tragedy of
Columbia reminded us that the exploration of space is
still a very dangerous business.
However as I watched, I was continually struck by the
"whiteness" of those reporting, analyzing and
commenting. For me to notice this is nothing new
since I frequently write about the lack of diversity
in television news. But interestingly enough, others
are beginning to take notice.
Richard Prince's Journalism's column on the Maynard
Institute's web site had this quote from the Rev.
Jesse Jackson,
"Political pundits are now talking about George Bush's
State of the Union message from the angles of their
viewpoints and experiences. Plenty of words are
pouring forth, but something is missing. The
viewpoints and experiences of the analysts are too
limited: they are almost exclusively white and
middle-class.
All the major networks -- CNN, CBS, NBC, ABC, and FOX
-- presented the same picture. There were virtually no
Black or Brown analysts, interviewers or interviewees
presented by any of the networks. The viewpoints and
experiences missing are those who will most adversely
be impacted by President Bush's policies. For news
organizations to present all-white analysts or
appraisers of the state of the union is a distortion
of a truly inclusive American view."
While I don't always agree with Rev. Jackson he's
right on target this time. Unlike the multicultural,
multiethnic population that makes up the American
television audience, too often many of those who run
television news operations continue to give the
audience anchors, reporters, analysts and commentators
who reflect their reality and that reality is white.
While network news operations are bad, nowhere is this
"white reality" more prevalent than on the three major
cable news channels. CNN, Fox and MSNBC who together
have more airtime, more on-air positions and seemingly
more opportunities to be inclusive and diverse, are
the worst.
In a review of the on-air anchors and personalities of
the three 24 hour cable channels, Monday-Friday,
6am-Midnight the scorecard reads:
White on-air anchors/personalities
CNN
Paula Zahn
Daryn Kagan
Kyra Phillips
Judy Woodruff
Wolf Blitzer
Lou Dobbs
Robert Novak
James Carville
Tucker Carlson
Paul Begala
Larry King
Aaron Brown
FOX
E.D. Hill
Steve Doocy
Brian Kilmeade
Jon Scott
Brigitte Quinn
David Asman
Linda Vester
Shepard Smith
Neil Cavuto
John Gibson
Brit Hume
Bill O'Reilly
Sean Hannity
Alan Colmes
Greta Van Susteren
MSNBC
Don Imus
Christy Musumeci
Bill Press
Pat Buchanan
Jerry Nachman
Dan Abrams
Phil Donahue
Chris Mathews
John Seigenthaler
People of Color on-air anchors/personalities
(bear with us, it’s a short list)
CNN
Leon Harris *
Arthel Neville *
Connie Chung *
FOX
Lauren Green
MSNBC
Rick Sanchez *
Lester Holt
*(Note: since this piece was written, these four have
all left. Soledad O’Brien has joined CNN. And so it
goes….)
To paraphrase James Brown, "It's a (White) Man's
World."
Of course, when asked about the disparity, news
executives, most of whom are white males, will assure
us that they recognize the need for diversity, they
are committed to diversity and they are working hard
to diversify their staffs. As evidence of their
sincerity they'll point to the people of color they
have working weekends and/or overnight.
That's what they will say.
What do we say?
"We report. You decide."
This is from www.cablenewser.com
**************************************************
CNN's 'Roller Coaster' Diversity Woes
All this week, I am posting excerpts from News Flash,
the new book by former CNN VP Bonnie Anderson. Please
note that Anderson filed a lawsuit against CNN last
year, alleging that the network discriminated against
her.
Pages 60-63: Diversity: "CNN As A Case Study"
Anderson served as a vice president in charge of
hiring and talent development, and describes her
experiences during that time period:
From CNN's birth in 1980, it has been primarily a
network of white people putting together news for
white viewers. With some brief exceptions, it can also
be said that people in nearly all top news executive
positions have been men. In 1999, then-CNN chairman
Tom Johnson made it clear he wanted minorities hired
for virtually every on-camera opening. One example of
his not-too-subtle pressure was an e-mail to
then-Headline News head Bob Furnad, strongly
suggesting that an anchor opening at that network be
filled by a male or female African American, or a
female Hispanic. (The first question that came to mind
when I read the e-mail was "And do you want fries with
that?" This was the hiring equivalent of going through
a fast-food drive-through.) Between Headline News and
CNN/USA there were a handful of minority anchors,
including journalists such as Bernard Shaw, Sachi
Koto, Joie Chen, and Leon Harris. But their numbers
were small. And neither network had ever had a
Hispanic anchor.
While diversifying the CNN News Group was clearly the
moral, ethical, and sound business thing to do, when
applied in this
fill-as-many-openings-as-possible-with-minorities
manner it was also illegal. I was copied on Johnson's
e-mail to Furnad, and later during a private
conversation with Johnson I told him that while his
intent was no doubt to do good, I believed this was a
dangerous way to implement diversity...
...Over the next two years, however, the CNN News
Group practiced obvious quota-filling based, in part,
on Johnson's orders and what was considered to be
smart programming. There had never been an Asian or
Hispanic correspondent at CNN's Los Angeles bureau, so
only Asians and Hispanics were considered for the two
openings there and one of each was hired...
Anderson cites several other examples, and points out
that at CNN International, only non-Americans were
considered for anchor positions. And she sas that Jim
Walton created a new vice president position
"specificially for an African American." And then:
…. In 2001 CNN did a complete turnaround. The top
positions at Turner Broadcasting had been handed over
to men whose entire careers were in the world of
entertainment..And they made it clear they intended to
instill the values of the entertainment world -- in
terms of programming and hiring (or "casting" as
[Garth] Ancier called it) -- into the news networks at
CNN. If it works for the entertainment divisions at
other networks, they said, they believed it would work
with news too. At my first meeting with Ancier, when I
was showing him tapes of anchor candidates chosen by
Headline News and CNN/USA chiefs out of the pool of
candidates I'd shown them, he said, "Why are all these
tapes you're showing me of minorities? We don't need
any more of these people! We have enough! Bring me
others!"
We wrote this for TV Barn a year ago:
TV Barn.com Commentary
www.tvbarn.com
Feb., 2003
The Unbearable “Whiteness” of Television News
Like most Americans, I watched a lot of television
news the past few days. First there was the
President's State of the Union address. With the
nation on the brink of war, the speech was a very
different kind of "must-see TV." Then the tragedy of
Columbia reminded us that the exploration of space is
still a very dangerous business.
However as I watched, I was continually struck by the
"whiteness" of those reporting, analyzing and
commenting. For me to notice this is nothing new
since I frequently write about the lack of diversity
in television news. But interestingly enough, others
are beginning to take notice.
Richard Prince's Journalism's column on the Maynard
Institute's web site had this quote from the Rev.
Jesse Jackson,
"Political pundits are now talking about George Bush's
State of the Union message from the angles of their
viewpoints and experiences. Plenty of words are
pouring forth, but something is missing. The
viewpoints and experiences of the analysts are too
limited: they are almost exclusively white and
middle-class.
All the major networks -- CNN, CBS, NBC, ABC, and FOX
-- presented the same picture. There were virtually no
Black or Brown analysts, interviewers or interviewees
presented by any of the networks. The viewpoints and
experiences missing are those who will most adversely
be impacted by President Bush's policies. For news
organizations to present all-white analysts or
appraisers of the state of the union is a distortion
of a truly inclusive American view."
While I don't always agree with Rev. Jackson he's
right on target this time. Unlike the multicultural,
multiethnic population that makes up the American
television audience, too often many of those who run
television news operations continue to give the
audience anchors, reporters, analysts and commentators
who reflect their reality and that reality is white.
While network news operations are bad, nowhere is this
"white reality" more prevalent than on the three major
cable news channels. CNN, Fox and MSNBC who together
have more airtime, more on-air positions and seemingly
more opportunities to be inclusive and diverse, are
the worst.
In a review of the on-air anchors and personalities of
the three 24 hour cable channels, Monday-Friday,
6am-Midnight the scorecard reads:
White on-air anchors/personalities
CNN
Paula Zahn
Daryn Kagan
Kyra Phillips
Judy Woodruff
Wolf Blitzer
Lou Dobbs
Robert Novak
James Carville
Tucker Carlson
Paul Begala
Larry King
Aaron Brown
FOX
E.D. Hill
Steve Doocy
Brian Kilmeade
Jon Scott
Brigitte Quinn
David Asman
Linda Vester
Shepard Smith
Neil Cavuto
John Gibson
Brit Hume
Bill O'Reilly
Sean Hannity
Alan Colmes
Greta Van Susteren
MSNBC
Don Imus
Christy Musumeci
Bill Press
Pat Buchanan
Jerry Nachman
Dan Abrams
Phil Donahue
Chris Mathews
John Seigenthaler
People of Color on-air anchors/personalities
(bear with us, it’s a short list)
CNN
Leon Harris *
Arthel Neville *
Connie Chung *
FOX
Lauren Green
MSNBC
Rick Sanchez *
Lester Holt
*(Note: since this piece was written, these four have
all left. Soledad O’Brien has joined CNN. And so it
goes….)
To paraphrase James Brown, "It's a (White) Man's
World."
Of course, when asked about the disparity, news
executives, most of whom are white males, will assure
us that they recognize the need for diversity, they
are committed to diversity and they are working hard
to diversify their staffs. As evidence of their
sincerity they'll point to the people of color they
have working weekends and/or overnight.
That's what they will say.
What do we say?
"We report. You decide."
