It’s no secret that the demographics of America’s journalists don’t match those of the general population. To take two prominent examples, people with left-wing political views are overrepresented and people of color are underrepresented.
But while those issues have received lots of attention over the years, another has gone somewhat unnoticed: that of social class.
Journalists, especially at national news outlets, come disproportionately from well-off families, large metropolitan areas, and top-tier universities. This is a problem because people from such similar socioeconomic backgrounds often share the same cultural outlook and the same blind spots. Their prevalence at leading news organizations also fuels the perception that journalists are haughty elitists. (Full disclosure: As someone who grew up in an affluent suburb and graduated debt-free from an Ivy League college, I’m part of the problem.)
Awareness of journalism’s class problem is growing. Two new books — an academic study and a conservative polemic — emphasize the factors that prevent many people from less privileged backgrounds from working in news, suggesting that this may be a rare area of agreement for press critics across the political spectrum. A recent Wall Street Journal article about the high cost and low return of prestigious master’s degree programs in journalism launched countless Twitter threads decrying classism in hiring at top news outlets. A similar outcry occurred a couple of years earlier in response to a New York Times editor’s tweet listing which programs’ students made the best interns (elite universities dominated the list).
With journalism jobs increasingly concentrated in expensive coastal cities and salaries in the news industry remaining stubbornly low, the problem isn’t going to fix itself. So how can the profession become more open to aspiring journalists from low-income households, first-generation college graduates, and those with degrees from universities that aren’t near the top of the U.S. News rankings?
To start, paying interns and entry-level staffers a living wage would help, so that those who can’t rely on family members for financial support can pursue a career in news without falling deeper into debt. In addition, news outlets might consider actively recruiting journalists from socioeconomic backgrounds that differ from most of their staff.
The key step, however, is simply acknowledging journalism’s class problem. Those responsible for hiring decisions at news organizations should be aware that some socioeconomic groups are underrepresented. And those responsible for coverage decisions should recognize that the newsroom’s collective wisdom on some issues may be skewed by the staff’s lack of socioeconomic diversity.
Greater awareness isn’t a solution, but it’s a start.
Matthew Pressman is an assistant professor of journalism at Seton Hall University.
It’s no secret that the demographics of America’s journalists don’t match those of the general population. To take two prominent examples, people with left-wing political views are overrepresented and people of color are underrepresented.
But while those issues have received lots of attention over the years, another has gone somewhat unnoticed: that of social class.
Journalists, especially at national news outlets, come disproportionately from well-off families, large metropolitan areas, and top-tier universities. This is a problem because people from such similar socioeconomic backgrounds often share the same cultural outlook and the same blind spots. Their prevalence at leading news organizations also fuels the perception that journalists are haughty elitists. (Full disclosure: As someone who grew up in an affluent suburb and graduated debt-free from an Ivy League college, I’m part of the problem.)
Awareness of journalism’s class problem is growing. Two new books — an academic study and a conservative polemic — emphasize the factors that prevent many people from less privileged backgrounds from working in news, suggesting that this may be a rare area of agreement for press critics across the political spectrum. A recent Wall Street Journal article about the high cost and low return of prestigious master’s degree programs in journalism launched countless Twitter threads decrying classism in hiring at top news outlets. A similar outcry occurred a couple of years earlier in response to a New York Times editor’s tweet listing which programs’ students made the best interns (elite universities dominated the list).
With journalism jobs increasingly concentrated in expensive coastal cities and salaries in the news industry remaining stubbornly low, the problem isn’t going to fix itself. So how can the profession become more open to aspiring journalists from low-income households, first-generation college graduates, and those with degrees from universities that aren’t near the top of the U.S. News rankings?
To start, paying interns and entry-level staffers a living wage would help, so that those who can’t rely on family members for financial support can pursue a career in news without falling deeper into debt. In addition, news outlets might consider actively recruiting journalists from socioeconomic backgrounds that differ from most of their staff.
The key step, however, is simply acknowledging journalism’s class problem. Those responsible for hiring decisions at news organizations should be aware that some socioeconomic groups are underrepresented. And those responsible for coverage decisions should recognize that the newsroom’s collective wisdom on some issues may be skewed by the staff’s lack of socioeconomic diversity.
Greater awareness isn’t a solution, but it’s a start.
Matthew Pressman is an assistant professor of journalism at Seton Hall University.
Mary Walter-Brown
Cristina Tardáguila
Daniel Eilemberg
Brian Moritz
Chase Davis
Juleyka Lantigua
Chicas Poderosas
Gonzalo del Peon
Sam Guzik
Zizi Papacharissi
Amy Schmitz Weiss
Whitney Phillips
Larry Ryckman
Wilson Liévano
Sarah Stonbely
Amara Aguilar
Mario García
An Xiao Mina
Anika Anand
S. Mitra Kalita
Joshua P. Darr
James Green
Julia Angwin
John Davidow
Jesse Holcomb
Rasmus Kleis Nielsen
Izabella Kaminska
Kerri Hoffman
Kathleen Searles Rebekah Trumble
Kendra Pierre-Louis
Burt Herman
Tony Baranowski
Joy Mayer
Andrew Freedman
Shalabh Upadhyay
Victor Pickard
Matthew Pressman
Stephen Fowler
Rachel Glickhouse
Matt DeRienzo
Kristen Jeffers
Anita Varma
Mike Rispoli
Simon Galperin
Cindy Royal
Shannon McGregor Carolyn Schmitt
Stefanie Murray
Candace Amos
Joanne McNeil
Janelle Salanga
Millie Tran
j. Siguru Wahutu
Kristen Muller
Jonas Kaiser
Don Day
Doris Truong
Melody Kramer
Jennifer Coogan
Alice Antheaume
Natalia Viana
David Cohn
Gabe Schneider
Tom Trewinnard
Errin Haines
Sarah Marshall
Ståle Grut
Matt Karolian
Julia Munslow
Meena Thiruvengadam
Mandy Jenkins
Megan McCarthy
Eric Nuzum
Anthony Nadler
Jim Friedlich
Parker Molloy
Christoph Mergerson
Ariel Zirulnick
David Skok
Tamar Charney
Jody Brannon
Christina Shih
Robert Hernandez
Paul Cheung
Jennifer Brandel
Moreno Cruz Osório
Simon Allison
Nikki Usher
Jesenia De Moya Correa
A.J. Bauer
Catalina Albeanu
Cherian George
Joni Deutsch
Gordon Crovitz
Raney Aronson-Rath
Jessica Clark
Richard Tofel
Michael W. Wagner
Francesco Zaffarano
Laxmi Parthasarathy
Joe Amditis