The Problem Of Watching World News Through White Eyes Only

August 29, 2020 3:06 PM

Only about 0.2% of British journalists are black, compared to 3% of our country’s population. When it comes to the ethnic backgrounds of UK foreign correspondents, figures are scant – but the picture appears to be even less diverse. Marcus Ryder examines why looking at world news through only white people’s eyes is a problem for all of us.
posted by infini (3 comments total)

Thought-provoking stuff here, thanks. The link he draws with George Washington Williams, who devoted the last years of his life to exposing the brutality of King Leopold's rule in the "Congo Free State", is especially illuminating.
posted by Not A Thing at 7:59 PM on August 29, 2020 [1 favorite]

We probably need an FPP on him. *hint*
posted by infini at 12:32 AM on August 30, 2020

35 years as a UK journo, the last 22 on the nationals.

Journalism is behind only medicine and the law in being the preserve of the upper middle class. I'm white, my dad was a lorry driver, and there aren't many like me on the national press. Are black people more likely to be working class? If so that's (for me) a strong indication that the issue here is class not race.
posted by Drogue at 1:19 PM on August 30, 2020