The Numbers For Diversity In Australian TV News Are ‘Sobering’, But No Surprise
A landmark study examining the inclusion and representation of culturally diverse Australians in the media has revealed the faces we see on TV news don’t come anywhere near mirroring the people who watch their programming.
The report by Media Diversity Australia and a series of academics states 75% of on-air talent on news and current affairs television are Anglo-Celtic, while only 6% are either Indigenous or from a non-European background.
These figures were based on 81 news programs and 270 reporters over two weeks in June 2019.
The report also states this is a nation where an estimated 42% of Australians are European, non-European and Indigenous.
“Despite working in this space for three years, the data makes for a sobering read,” journalist and co-founder of Media Diversity Australia, Antoinette Lattouf, told HuffPost Australia.
“It will be uncomfortable reading for many, but it’s time to get comfortable with being uncomfortable and make a commitment to strategies that will bring change, not tomorrow or even next year,” she added, saying it will take “several years”.
Media Diversity Australia partnered with former Race Discrimination Commissioner Tim Soutphommasane, a range of universities including Western Sydney, Macquarie and Deakin, and other media academics to produce the ‘Who Gets to Tell Australian Stories’ report.
A diverse background ‘a barrier to career progression’
The study based its findings on cultural backgrounds through biographical information, public statements about a person’s own background, full name and the origins of those names, birthplace and “visual observation,” according to the researchers. Names, birthplaces and appearances, however, are not reliable indications of someone’s cultural identity.
The study said its gleaning of backgrounds placed each individual into four groupings: Indigenous, Anglo-Celtic, European and non-European. The study also pointed out that official data on cultural diversity is...
