In mid-April, a panel of writers from publications across the city gathered at the Rainier Arts Center to address the elephant in the newsroom: that #JournalismSoWhite. The tiny theater was packed to the gills. People were eager to discuss why diverse voices are critical for a successful newsroom.
According to the Atlantic, 92 percent of journalists in the United States are white. And Seattle isn’t exempt. Seattle Times columnist Jerry Large told the audience that people of color made up 20.8 percent of the Times newsroom in 2015—nearly a 2 percent drop from 2004. Things are pretty white around the offices of The Stranger, too.
Podcasts aren’t necessarily journalism—and they’re not hosted exclusively by journalists—but white voices seem to dominate the podcast scene here. There’s The Stranger‘s own Savage Lovecast and Blabbermouth, KPLU’s Sound Effect, Too Beautiful to Live, and The Fire You Can’t Put Out…
