altDiversity

OK, you want more diversity in your paper, your readership and your newsroom, but it seems like an uphill, long-term battle. What can you do right now? My “Do It Now” posts will be immediate “fixes” that you can start doing right this very second. Today’s tip: Diversify your images.

This is one of the easiest ways to help at least the perception of your diversity. Often, the true diversity of your content is not apparent at first glance due to your images. First, take a quick inventory (perhaps while you’re flipping through all the issues deciding on what goes up for awards for the year). Take a stack of papers and look at the images with a fresh eye. How many issues have non-white faces? Better yet, notice how many don’t. What sections seem to always have images of one particular race? Does every section of your paper look diverse (not just sports and music)? Do your ads show a diversity of people?

Then, get to work. Have your designer look for stock-photo services with diverse images (this can be harder than you think, sadly). Assign a photographer to take a variety of nightlife photos, or to stock up the morgue with a wider variety of images. Send interns out to do “street talks” with a diverse variety of people and run their headshots. Have your calendar editor make a round of calls looking for images for upcoming “diverse” events. Talk to your illustrators about using more people of color in drawings where race is irrelevant (just as often as in those where it does). Talk to your photographers about seeking out diversity whenever they can. Talk to sales staff about encouraging advertisers to diversify their ads and images. Talk to ad designers about using diverse images in spec ads. Notice when TOC pages contain too many people who look alike; same for images in listings. Be deliberate about ensuring diversity and ask your staff to do the same when they seek out images. It’s quickly become second nature when you make it a priority from the top.

This inventory, of course, will also help you determine which features and sections could be more diverse, but that’s a topic for another day!

Do It Now, Ladd's Advice Advertising, content, Design, Images, Music, Sports