At a time when companies such as Meta and McDonalds are rolling back their diversity, equity & inclusion (DEI) efforts, voices within the business journalism community say it’s more important than ever for their colleagues to continue pushing for diversity in their newsroom, sources, and the stories they cover.
The National Association of Hispanic Journalists (NAHJ) recently partnered with the Society for Advancing Business Editing and Writing (SABEW) to host a virtual panel discussion on practical strategies to bring diverse perspectives to business stories. The panel was moderated by Jeff Kauflin, a co-chair of the NAHJ Business Journalism Task Force and a senior editor at Forbes. Panelists included Maria Curi, tech policy reporter at Axios, Ana Teresa Solá, personal finance reporter at CNBC, and Laura Zelenko, global head of editorial standards at Bloomberg News.
When asked why having diverse perspectives and sources in stories is important, Curi replied: “It’s a basic tenet of good journalism.” Curi believes that you aren’t fulfilling the mission of journalism “if you’re giving a one-sided story that is constantly representing just one group of people.” Zelenko agreed, noting that reflecting reality and telling the full picture is essentially Journalism 101.
Covering changing company policies and initiatives
When it comes to covering companies changing course on their diversity initiatives and programs, Zelenko said that it can be easy to summarize what the companies are pulling back, but there is more to the story than regurgitating the latest policy changes. It was only a few short years ago that companies were making headlines for announcing benchmarks and goals to diversify their employees, supply chain, and way of working.
“Five years ago, these were the same people saying [DEI] is really important to our business, it’s going to help, it’s going to help us be more innovative and be smarter,” said Zelenko. She emphasized that journalists need to have their facts and prior statements ready so that they can ask, “To what extent has that changed?” and “Do you regret saying that now?”
Axios’ Curi added: “We can’t take our foot off the gas in covering these stories just because companies are de-prioritizing DEI.” In particular, she said covering the impact of not having these policies is going to be crucial for her team on the technology beat. Curi acknowledged that covering DEI at companies could also become more difficult.
“We are kind of in a different moment now where [companies] could get their messaging out there just as well, and without really any fact-checking, through podcasters or social media,” she said. She noted that even though there are other ways to hold companies accountable if they won’t speak to you directly, that reality is constantly on her mind. However, she hopes it doesn’t deter reporters from asking the questions that need to be asked.
Setting targets and tracking the data
When you’re covering DEI initiatives it’s helpful to have your newsroom in your corner and that starts with leadership and company-wide initiatives. Some newsrooms have set targets and goals to diversify their sourcing and stories, while tracking the data to meet those goals. The panelists explained that target setting and data tracking has its pros and cons.
On the positive side, it can help tell an organization if they are actually making progress and meaningful change. “Can you actually say that you’re at a better place? I think if you don’t have some of that data, it’s hard to reflect that,” said Zelenko. She explained that Bloomberg TV has been tracking its own data on female representation since 2018 and has been able to show that they have almost quadrupled that representation.
“I think at the company level, tracking the metrics is really important, because we got here in a systemic way where groups are underrepresented, and I think the only way to get out of it is in a systemic way, where there are metrics and evidence,” added Curi.
Although having data is important, all three panelists noted that newsrooms need to be careful about falling into the trap of box-checking.
“You’re not going to get the buy-in if it’s seen as a checkbox exercise,” said Zelenko. Reporters have to know why it’s important in their daily work.
“It’s good to have set goals because, at the end of the day, that’s how you get things done. That’s how your January resolutions actually materialize throughout the year, you set yourself tangible targets,” said CNBC’s Solá. However, a reporter’s goal is “to make your story stronger, more holistic.”
Curi agreed saying, “It’s not simply because you’re checking the box and you quoted five people of color. It’s because you have told a better story, a more informative story…by getting a diverse set of viewpoints.”
No more excuses
When it comes to finding diverse sources for stories, the panelists emphasized that it needs to become a regular habit rather than falling back on excuses, but creating habits takes time and effort.
“Make the effort to reach out to economists, financial planners, industry experts from different walks of life,” said Solá. “We are running against the clock often to produce these stories and make sure they’re 200% ready. If that process of diversifying the Rolodex or your source list looks a little slower, don’t worry, as long as you talk to at least one other person that looks different from the rest of your source list, I think that’s a good step forward.”
Curi added that she, like a lot of reporters, has a set of experts and sources with whom she has built strong relationships over the years that she can rely on during tight deadlines. However, she has made sure to build relationships with people from a range of diverse backgrounds and perspectives which has helped her reporting.
To start building a network of diverse sources, the panelists said that there aren’t any excuses for not trying and that it’s a crucial aspect of journalism.
“If you’re writing about the drag scene in L.A., go visit the drag bars,” said Zelenko. It’s just kind of basic reporting too. You have to put yourself into the community.”
Nonprofit organizations can also be a great resource to find experts and input, Solá said. “I’ve found it very effective to reach out to organizations,” she said. “There are associations, nonprofit groups of different cultures and backgrounds under the sun. And so I found that reaching out to those groups is very helpful.”
According to Curi, diversity isn’t just about the people you speak to while covering a story, it’s about the story itself. “What stories are you choosing to tell?” she said. “I think we sometimes forget the power we have as journalists to make editorial decisions. We may not tell people what to think, but we do tell people what to think about.”
