National Association of Hispanic Journalists Concerned About Newsroom Diversity Survey.

The American Society of Newspaper Editors released its annual newsroom survey showing that the percentage of Latino journalists working at English-language daily newspapers increased slightly in 2001. But NAHJ remains concerned about the overall hiring and retention of journalists of color.

ASNE’s survey, released April 9, found that Latinos made up 3.86 percent of all newsroom employees in 2001. In 2000, Latinos made up 3.66 percent of all newsroom employees. The number of Hispanic journalists increased from 2,064 to 2,098.

However, the percentage of Hispanic journalists working in the nation’s newsrooms has increased only 2.66 percent between 1982 and 2001. Meanwhile, Census figures show the U.S. Hispanic population, excluding Puerto Rico, has increased from 6.4 percent in 1982 (14.6 million) to 13.0 percent (35.3 million) in 2000. By 2025, Hispanics are projected to make up 18.2 percent of the U.S. population.

“It is difficult to properly assess these figures which reflect turbulent times in the industry,” said NAHJ President Cecilia Alvear. “Despite the small increases for Hispanic and Native American journalists, the decreases for our African American and Asian American colleagues is a matter of concern. We at NAHJ will continue to work with ASNE and with individual newspapers to make sure that journalists of color are properly represented at all levels.”

Overall, the survey found that the percentage of journalists of color working at daily newspapers increased from 11.64 percent in 2000 to 12.07 percent last year. The survey found that the increase was mainly the result of buyouts and layoffs of white staffers. The nation’s newsrooms had a net loss of 1,983 white staff members in 2001.

The survey also revealed some mixed trends:

1) The number of papers that do not employ a single journalist of color increased from 44 percent to 45 percent.

2) While the number and percentage of Asian American and African American journalists declined, the number and percentage of Native American and Hispanic journalists increased.

3) The number of journalists of color leaving the industry dropped from 698 to 443 but the number of new journalists of color hired also declined from 596 to 447.

4) While the overall percentage of interns of color increased from 29 percent to 31 percent, the number of interns of color declined from 923 to 870.

NAHJ urges ASNE to make diversity a top priority for all of its members and newsrooms nationwide. “As the economy improves and newspapers once again start hiring, it is imperative that qualified people of color are effectively recruited, hired and retained,” said Marilyn Garateix, NAHJ’s vice president of print. “There are plenty of them out there.”