by Daniel J. Gansle

Created on: May 08, 2009

In our day and age of racial sensitivity, the ability of journalists to respectfully reference race and ethnicity in news stories is paramount. The last thing the journalist wants is to be accused of racism, and the last thing minorities want is to be demeaned in the media. So exactly how do journalists avoid the appearance of racial or ethnic bias?

Understanding Racial and Ethnic Terminology

Race is primarily determined by the person's skin color, with hair type and facial features as secondary racial identifiers. Caucasian and African American are two examples of racial groups. Ethnicity categorizes groups of people according to heritage which includes traditions, beliefs, behaviors, biological traits, and most notably, language. Examples of ethnic groups include Asians and Hispanics.

Properly Approaching Race and Ethnicity in News Stories

The journalist should approach references to race and ethnicity in their articles a bit differently. For example, the more respectful African American is preferred over "black." However, when referring to Caucasians the term "white" is perfectly appropriate.

The most effective way to approach the issue of ethnicity when writing a news story is to generalize ethnic references rather than cite specifics. For example:

* Chinese should be referred to as Asian
* Spanish or Mexican should be referred to as Hispanic
* Angolan should be referred to as African

The only instance in which the journalist may consider citing a specific ethnicity is when the news story is dependent on the geolocation of the individual.

Avoiding Racial and Ethnic Stereotypes

Learning how to avoid common minority stereotypes is very important in news writing. Careful attention should be paid to recognizing stereotypes and eliminating wording that could be construed as offensive. Common stereotypes include

* Hispanics as mere laborers
* Whites as wealthy elitists
* African Americans as having a higher crime rate
* Asians as having slanted eyes

Examples of Offensive Racial and Ethnic Descriptions in News Stories

"Anti-immigrant whites are are protesting Mexican laborers who they feel are stealing American jobs" (replace whites with "Americans," Mexican with "Hispanic," and change stealing American jobs to "adding to the unemployment problem").

"For a second night, blacks are rioting in the downtown area" (replace blacks with "African Americans" and rioting with "protesting").

"The influx of lower income blacks has upset some whites who believe their home values will decline" (change blacks to "residents," whites to "neighbors," and change their to "neighborhood").

Examples of Tasteful Racial and Ethnic Descriptions in News Stories

"Barack Obama is America's first African American president."

"John Yoo, controversial Office of Legal Counsel attorney under the G.W. Bush administration, is of Asian descent."

"Hispanics are the fastest growing minority group in the United States."

Race is an extremely sensitive issue, and journalists should make every effort to approach descriptions of race and ethnicity with great care. When improperly handled, the journalist could potentially be accused of racism or xenophobia. But when approached from the standpoint of respect while avoiding common stereotypes, readers will acknowledge the journalist's effort and will appreciate a well written article.

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