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.
Izabella Kaminska
Brian Moritz
Sarah Marshall
Gabe Schneider
Wilson Liévano
Candace Amos
Anika Anand
Victor Pickard
Stefanie Murray
Mike Rispoli
Joanne McNeil
Jennifer Brandel
Chicas Poderosas
Kendra Pierre-Louis
David Cohn
Gordon Crovitz
Errin Haines
Shannon McGregor Carolyn Schmitt
Sarah Stonbely
Jonas Kaiser
Matthew Pressman
Larry Ryckman
Alice Antheaume
Paul Cheung
Richard Tofel
Joe Amditis
Raney Aronson-Rath
Amara Aguilar
Chase Davis
Sam Guzik
AX Mina
Parker Molloy
Moreno Cruz Osório
Nikki Usher
Christina Shih
Rachel Glickhouse
Joy Mayer
Janelle Salanga
Zizi Papacharissi
Jesenia De Moya Correa
Daniel Eilemberg
Simon Galperin
Kathleen Searles Rebekah Trumble
A.J. Bauer
Cristina Tardáguila
Burt Herman
Tony Baranowski
Cindy Royal
Kerri Hoffman
David Skok
Don Day
Tamar Charney
Mandy Jenkins
Amy Schmitz Weiss
Matt Karolian
Laxmi Parthasarathy
Joni Deutsch
Juleyka Lantigua
Anthony Nadler
Mario García
Melody Kramer
Cherian George
Eric Nuzum
Julia Munslow
Millie Tran
Ståle Grut
Robert Hernandez
Michael W. Wagner
Rasmus Kleis Nielsen
John Davidow
Mary Walter-Brown
Kristen Jeffers
Anita Varma
James Green
Catalina Albeanu
Natalia Viana
Stephen Fowler
Joshua P. Darr
S. Mitra Kalita
Kristen Muller
Julia Angwin
Simon Allison
Francesco Zaffarano
Jennifer Coogan
Megan McCarthy
Christoph Mergerson
Shalabh Upadhyay
Jesse Holcomb
Ariel Zirulnick
Meena Thiruvengadam
Doris Truong
Jessica Clark
j. Siguru Wahutu
Jim Friedlich
Jody Brannon
Matt DeRienzo
Whitney Phillips
Gonzalo del Peon
Tom Trewinnard
Andrew Freedman