How can black journalists break through the glass ceiling?

An aspiring journalism student from an ethnic minority background, who wants to break into the industry, will discover just how challenging that can be. Is it fair that they are going to face another issue which seems that there is also an invisible barrier that hinders progression into the senior levels of management?

A recent article written by Joseph Harker, in the media Guardian suggested that there would not be an ethnic minority journalist editing a national newspaper for a very long time. There have been a few books written about the glass ceiling being more like a cemented ceiling in which there does not seem to be a way through for BME journalists. Are passionate, driven individuals not aspiring to reach new heights, or are people really being denied access to move on up in their careers?

It has been acknowledged by the broadcasting industry that more needs to be done in the way of recruiting and allowing progression for black and minority ethnic journalists. An event last year was jointly organised by BECTU and BBC News intended to help address the under-representation of (BME) workers in news. Other media groups taking part included ITV News, Sky News, IRN, Channel 4 News, Reuters, Bloomberg, Al Jazeera English, The Daily Telegraph, Guardian, Times Online, Press Association and the commercial radio news providers. George Alagiah, who presents the Six O’Clock News on BBC1, said: “When I joined the BBC I was one of a handful of black or Asian reporters on TV. That’s changed now but we must not be tempted to assume that the job is done. We have a few more faces on screen – but the floor management, the boardrooms, and the places where budgets are allocated and schedules drawn up do not represent our diverse country.” Sir Trevor McDonald said: “There is a widespread acknowledgement that much more must be done to help BME staff in news to break through to a higher level.”

So with the industry recognising this complex issue, why are BME journalists not being able to break through in the industry? Another more recent conference which was held by the black member’s council at the Nation Union of Journalists, created a discussion around the title of ‘smashing the glass ceiling – is there a way through for black journalists?’ Deborah Gabriel, an editor at Colourful media, who also runs a media training company called Imani and is studying for a post-graduate certificate in teaching felt that education was the fundamental barrier in terms of convincing students to study journalism. Deborah said: “Apparently there is a 25 per cent increase in the number of black students registered on degree programmes around the country. However most black students attend the post 1992 universities and not many are studying journalism. Most are studying law and medicine as they see it as more secure career choices.” The media industry is extremely competitive as there are more students studying on degree courses than there are actual jobs available; with journalism being even more difficult to break into particularly. There have been special bursaries which have been set up to address the problem of training BME students at post graduate level but Deborah felt the real problem is: “The mainstream media are ignorant towards the journalistic tradition of other countries and nations. Journalism is not a European invention, the art of story telling dates back to African traditions”. She felt that more changes need to occur within the teaching of journalism in order for students to feel more connected to the subject. She used the example of Marcus Garvey to reiterate her point: “Garvey started his journalism career at 14 and was editing by the age of 21. The Negro Times and a huge circulation and raised awareness that led to the civil rights movements for black equality.”

Another dimension to consider when understanding why BME journalists are not rising through the ranks, could be down to social and cultural capital. Sunny Hundal, an editor of the online magazine Asians in Media felt that: “The bigger issue is about class.” The media is a middle class profession and there is a strong class element in relation to progression. As a vast amount of ethnic minorities are traditionally from working class backgrounds they tend to get defined according to their class positions. There is a real need for BME journalists to establish themselves within the mainstream instead of operating outside of it. Sunny stated: “Ethnic minorities get pigeon holed into ethnic stories and there is a danger of people becoming antagonistic towards the mainstream media culture. If a journalist is already inside the mainstream then they should stick it out rather than move into exclusive ethnic journalism. The mainstream does not really take ethnic media seriously”. BME journalists can be in danger of defining everything towards their race which will not enable them to move forward. Sunny made an interesting point when he stated “How important is your race in regards to your work. Also is bringing your background into stories relevant when the audience is primarily white and middle class.” Journalists need to be able to network within the industry, which could assist in allowing someone to ascend up the career ladder. Sunny suggested: “Relationships need to be established through networking and socialising, are black journalists doing enough? Being anti-establishment does not hold any relevance within the mainstream”.

Lionel Morrison OBE, the chair of the meeting, and the current chair of the black member’s council. He has had a career lasting over 40 years and was the first black journalist to work in Fleet Street. He was also the first black general secretary for the NUJ. Lionel described the urgency of trying to find a solution to the issue of representation. His thoughts were: “People must have thicker skins than everyone else and strive to be better.”

The main issue could be down to self defining – focussing solely on being a minority instead of working hard as a member of a team in which people get to value the contribution that a person can bring to the organisation. People need to make an effort in relation to socialising and understanding the people who we are working with. It should cut both ways but then again it is BME journalists who are trying to progress into a predominately homogeneous industry. Another thought is that the industry is based upon personal relationships and people need to know where you are coming from, so networking is really important and people should work within the system. Ethnic minority journalists should never loose sight of their cultural background but should understand how to balance professional life and cultural life. Race and religion are important but should not be the sole definer and in order to get ahead within the mainstream then people need to demonstrate that they are not just about race.