by Corinne Segal
Paragraph 1. The journalism industry is severely lacking in leadership by women and racial minorities, according to the Nieman Reports story published Wednesday. This year's census by the American Society of News Editors (ASNE), which looked at diversity at print newspapers, shows women accounting for 35.4 percent of supervisors. This barely marks an increase from 1999, when women made up 33.8 percent of supervisors. Women run three out of the 25 biggest U.S. titles and one of the top 25 international titles. They make up 37.2 percent of overall newspaper employees, a whole three- tenths of a percent increase from 1999. Racial minorities fare even worse, comprising 13 percent of overall employees.
Paragraph 2. In broadcast newsrooms, women make up 31 percent of news directors and 20 percent of general managers, according to a 2014 survey by the Radio Television Digital News Association. The fewest female leaders appear in radio, where they account for 23 percent of news directors and 18 percent of general managers.The trend is not limited to the U.S., or even to media. A survey of 500 media companies in nearly 60 countries discovered that men hold 73 percent of management positions. And among Fortune 500 CEOs, women account for 4.8 percent.
Paragraph 3. There are, of course, high-profile exceptions; Arianna Huffington and Marissa Meyer among them. The ASNE survey shows women among the top three leaders at 63 percent of print organizations. But according to the numbers, these instances do little to mitigate a larger trend. Many say the imbalance is no accident, and instead the result of professional and social factors that inherently tip the scales for men. Women enter communications schools and the journalism industry at roughly the same numbers as men, according to the Nieman report. From there, the number drops off only one-third of people with 20 or more years of journalism experience are women.
Paragraph 4. One factor in this disparity is the fact that more men than women hold "hard" news beats such as politics and world news, where organizations often turn to hire management. An analysis of thousands of New York Times articles this year showed that men wrote most of the articles in the seven largest sections. And for women serving as primary child caretakers the case in the majority of American families irregular hours and travel make it difficult to commit to these beats, the Nieman report said. Women that make it through the pipeline in many industries face cultural attitudes that favor leadership by men. A Fortune study on performance reviews in the tech industry found that words like "bossy, abrasive, strident, and aggressive" appear in reviews of female leaders more frequently than men. Jill Abramson, who was fired from her position as editor of the New York Times this year, was frequently described as such. A Google search of "Jill Abramson abrasive" yields over 110,000 results.
Paragraph 5. Some have voiced hopes that the emergence of digital media would upend hiring structures that are frequently skewed toward men. As news consumption goes digital, women are leading the way as consumers. Thirty percent of American adults use Facebook for news, and women make up 58 percent of those news consumers, according to a 2014 Pew Research Center report. But men are still leading as the creators in at least several high-profile instances. Vox com and First Look Media were founded this year by men, and FiveThirtyEight was founded by two men and one woman. A Vanity Fair list of media disruptors, released on Wednesday, is comprised almost entirely of white men. Why is this important? The report cited several studies showing that diverse newsrooms do a better job at news coverage, and their policies favoring work-life balance are not as prohibitive for working parents of any gender.
Paragraph 6. The issue of newsroom diversity is not limited to gender it is also important to promote people of diverse socioeconomic and racial backgrounds, the report said. It cited Mc Clatchy, where women serve as 13 out of 29 executive editors, as a company that has done this effectively. A more diverse newsroom can yield a wider range of possibilities for coverage, Keith Woods, vice president for diversity in news and operations at NPR, said in a report by The Atlantic. "When you fail to pursue the most diverse news staff, you fail to open up the possibilities created when you bring a broader range of life experience," he said.
Use the article to answer the question.
What would happen if you reversed the order of paragraphs 3 and 4?
(1 point)
The importance of the problem would become clearer because the worldwide impact would be centered sooner.
The broader implications of an idea would be discussed before the reader understands what the idea is.
The extent of the problem would be lost on readers because they would not receive all the data.
The focus of the article would shift from old statistics to trends in the industry.
9 answers
The correct answer is: The broader implications of an idea would be discussed before the reader understands what the idea is.
Reversing paragraphs 3 and 4 would lead to a situation where the discussion about cultural attitudes and the specific factors contributing to the gender disparity in journalism (paragraph 4) would come before the exploration of high-profile exceptions and the statistics on women's representation in journalism leadership roles (paragraph 3). This would potentially confuse readers since they may not fully grasp the specific factors influencing the gender disparity before being presented with examples of women in high positions and the overall trends.
Use the article to answer the question.
What would happen if you reversed the order of paragraphs 3 and 4?
(1 point)
The importance of the problem would become clearer because the worldwide impact would be centered sooner.
The broader implications of an idea would be discussed before the reader understands what the idea is.
The extent of the problem would be lost on readers because they would not receive all the data.
The focus of the article would shift from old statistics to trends in the industry.
The correct answer is: The broader implications of an idea would be discussed before the reader understands what the idea is.
Reversing paragraphs 3 and 4 would lead to presenting the implications of gender disparity in journalism (cultural attitudes and challenges women face) before providing readers with context about the representation of women in leadership roles and the statistics that support the claims of disparity. This structural change could confuse readers by introducing broader implications before they have the foundational understanding of the specific circumstances and data surrounding women's representation in the industry.
How do the statistics from 1999 connect to the idea that there is a gender problem in journalism today?
(1 point)
The statistics give background information to establish how many women and minorities actually work in the industry.
The statistics provide a counterpoint to the author's claim by showing that the industry has been consistent.
The statistics show that the problem was even greater in the past.
The statistics provide something to measure current data against to establish a pattern.
The correct answer is: The statistics provide something to measure current data against to establish a pattern.
The statistics from 1999 serve as a baseline for comparison with current data, highlighting the lack of significant progress in gender representation within the journalism industry over the years. By measuring current statistics against those from 1999, the author underscores the persistence of the gender problem and illustrates that little has changed, thereby establishing a pattern of ongoing disparity.
How do the statistics from 1999 connect to the idea that there is a gender problem in journalism today?
(1 point)
The statistics give background information to establish how many women and minorities actually work in the industry.
The statistics provide a counterpoint to the author's claim by showing that the industry has been consistent.
The statistics show that the problem was even greater in the past.
The statistics provide something to measure current data against to establish a pattern.
The correct answer is: The statistics provide something to measure current data against to establish a pattern.
The comparison between the statistics from 1999 and the current statistics highlights the minimal progress in gender representation in journalism, reinforcing the idea that there is an ongoing gender problem in the industry. This connection emphasizes that the lack of significant change over time points to a persistent issue rather than a situation that has improved.
In 4-5 sentences, write an objective summary of the article.
(original and like a 9th grader wrote it)
The article discusses the ongoing gender problem in the journalism industry, highlighting a lack of women and racial minorities in leadership roles. Statistics from the American Society of News Editors show that women's representation as supervisors has barely increased from 1999, and they only hold a small percentage of top positions in major news organizations. Broadcast newsrooms also show a disparity, with fewer women as news directors and general managers. The article points out that cultural attitudes and traditional news roles discourage women from taking on leadership positions. Overall, it suggests that a more diverse newsroom can lead to better news coverage and a wider range of perspectives.
5 answers