Friday, November 30, 2007
Does Dallas Morning News unfairly represent black people?
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On Thursday I opened the Dallas Morning News and flipped through the front of each section. I started looking at the color images on the front of the main pages.
Then I began to think about my claims, and others, on how African-Americans are portrayed in this paper and media outlets across the country. I did an informal survey of the Thursday paper, and extended it to Wednesday and Friday to get more data.
What's listed below are the images on the Front Page of the major sections of the Dallas Morning News: Front Page, Metro, Sports, Business and Guide Live. I wouldn't consider HS Gametime major but I did include it from Thursday. Here are some observations from this rudimentary survey:
* The images of African-Americans for the three days all had to do with Sports with the exception of Norma Adams Wade - Metro columnist, bank robbers, an accused principal, and homeless veterans.
* There are a lot of White columnists writing for the Dallas Morning News
* Zero images of African-Americans on front of Business section
What does this speak to? Does it speak to the way The News chooses to portray blacks and others? Are African-Americans just not present in the fields of acting, business, music, education, government and other vocations? Is this more an American problem than a media problem? I'd like some feedback on this one.
WEDNESDAY
Front Page
Terrell Owens and Ray Sherman, Cowboys receiver and receivers coach, both Black
Helio Castroneves, and Dancing w/the Stars partner Julianne Hough (Helio is from Brazil, partner is Anglo)
Santiago Morales, Mexico - immigration story
Dr. J Robert Cade, Anglo - Gatorade inventor
Metro
Alphonso Warfield - Black Asst. Principal accused in fake badge case
Tom Leppert, White Dallas Mayor
7 Bank Robbery Suspects - 3 Black, 3 White, 1 undistinguishable
Norma Adams Wade - Black Columnist (article on page 7B)
Amber Twiss, White, and other nameless Black Homeless Veterans
Sports
Tim Cowlishaw - Anglo Columnist
Owens and Sherman again
Sean Taylor - Black football player killed earlier this week
Jeremy Maclin - Black U of Missouri football player
Business
Cheryl Hall - White business columnist
Guy Kerr - Belo Corp (Co that owns the Morning News) Executive
Guide Live
Emily Gray, Davide Fluitt, Sara Lovett - White actors
Trisha Miller Smith, Justin Flowers, Dana Schultes - White Actors
Castoneves and Hough
Michael Jackson - uhhhh, take your pick
THURSDAY
Front Page
Shannon Hawari - White (I think) volleyball player at Plano West
Greg Gunderson and John O'Neill - White Green Bay Packer Fans
Tony Romo - Anglo/Hispanic quarterback Dallas Cowboys
Metro
Legs of White skater at Katy Trail
Steve Blow&- White Columnist
Rick Walden and sons Jay and Trey - White complainants over school paddling
Hector Montenegro - Hispanic candidate for Arlington Superintendent
4 white females - Duncanville Women's Club
Sports
Dirk Nowitzki - White Dallas Maverick
Tim Cowlishaw - White Columnist
Tony Romo
Bret Favre - White Green Bay QB
Bob Knight - Texas Tech B-Ball coach in verbal dispute
Art Briles - New Baylor football coach
Business
Pat Snuffer -owner of burger franchise
White male on Wall Street holding up peace signs
Karen Harvey - White flight attendant unloading bags
Scott Burns - Business Columnist
James Moroney III and Skip Cass - Belo Corp. executives
Guide Live
Jeff Griffith - White country music singer
Lynn Alvarez - Hispanic playwright
Elena Hurst - Actress, not sure by maybe Hispanic
High School Game Time
Cousins Tim and Garry Jefferson - Black South Oak Cliff Football Players
Shannon Hawari, White Plano VBall
FRIDAY
Front Page
Terrell Owens getting his popcorn ready (Black, Cowboys)
Ben Bernanke - Federal Reserve Chairman, Jewish
Metro
Jacquelyn Floyd, White Columnist
Amber Terrace, White elementary teacher in DeSoto
Laura Burks, White Stepmother of soldier slain in Iraq
Sports
Tony Romo
Curtis Lofton, Black Oklahoma Football Player
LaDonna Fuston, Loftin's mom in prison from 1992-2004
Delora Terrell, Loftin's grandmother who raised him
Vincent McNeil, Jarvis Phillips, Troy Soudermire, Garry Jefferson - Black DISD QB's
Jerry Stackhouse, Black Dallas Mav
SportsDay II
Tony Romo and Anthony Fassano, White Cowboys Tight End
Jean-Jacques Taylor, Black Columnist
Tim Cowlishaw, White Columnist
Rick Gosselin, NFL Beat Reporter (understatement)
Brett Favre
Guide Live
John Gorka, White Director/Producer
Carson Daly, White Television Host
Business
Caricature of Larry King, Jewish TV Broadcaster
Steve Brown, White Columnist (Real Estate)&
Pegasus News content partner - Dallas South Blog
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Comments
littlekinder Anonymous
I think this is way to little data to form a real opinion. For instance, there is not one mention of any Asians. If you want to use this data, African Americans should feel great compared to those in the Asian and Indian communities...
You may be right or wrong, but three days isn't enough data collection.
11 months, 3 weeks ago ( Link to this comment | Suggest removal )
Clay213 Anonymous
"* There are a lot of White columnists writing for the Dallas Morning News"
I guess I don't really see where you are going with this.. Why wouldn't a major newspaper in the united states have 'a lot of White columnists?'
11 months, 3 weeks ago ( Link to this comment | Suggest removal )
Rawlins Gilliland Verified
Being black does not automatically mean one can speak to readers about this city. I have highly educated native Dallas black friends who work in Dallas and, for instance, live in Flower Mound. What possible connect can I expect when they speak to rubber-meets-the-road reality(ies) here in ‘southern Dallas’… including West Dallas and certainly Southeast Dallas where I live?
On the other hand, I'm a native white Dallasite, son of a jazz musician whose Godfathers were bi-racial; raised by flaming liberal activist artists who is starting his 25th year living on a diverse white/black/brown/old/young/gay/straight/ middle class street/'working' class neighborhood about which I have written extensively; including for the DMN. I volunteer in Aids awareness and at-risk teen programs that are primarily brown/black targeted. Now I ask you; which qualifies them to speak about Dallas multi-racial disparate diversity issues? Skin color or actual walk-the-walk vs. talking a blue streak?
It has been my conversational experience that many times, those who grew up in South Dallas or South Oak Cliff or Pemberton Hills (southern most of the 7 Southeast Dallas neighborhoods, north of I-20 and just south of Pleasant Grove) and now make high 5 or 6 figures and never looked back; black professionals who now live in, say, State-Thomas Uptown which was totally a black neighborhood I played in growing up....have perspectives far ‘whiter’ than I who might daily be on South Hampton, Metropolitan or Hatcher. You know as well as I; their disconnect if it exists is intentional rather than cultural no less than mine is the reverse.
11 months, 3 weeks ago ( Link to this comment | Suggest removal )
Scott Miller Verified
Nitpicking, but... John Gorka is a folk singer. Kind of like Tracy Chapman -just not nearly as successful.
I also saw that pic of Shannon Hawari in a co-workers paper. I would have pegged her for middle eastern descent. Not that it's important or relevant to her skills as an athlete.
11 months, 3 weeks ago ( Link to this comment | Suggest removal )
littlekinder Anonymous
Yeah! Folk singers are underrepresented in Pegasus! They need more positive coverage - especially if they are folk AND black like Tracy Chapman. The positive coverage is always for the jazz musicians...
11 months, 3 weeks ago ( Link to this comment | Suggest removal )
Scott Doyle Verified
Isn't Shawn Williams the dude who always plays the race card?
11 months, 3 weeks ago ( Link to this comment | Suggest removal )
littlekinder Anonymous
Yes...I think these things might be best taken up with the DMN and not in this forum - at least not repeatedly.
Meanwhile, I'm still playing the folk card.
11 months, 3 weeks ago ( Link to this comment | Suggest removal )
David Goodspeed Verified
In the interest of fairness and journalism (as this was listed under business news and not a column or commentary) what was DMNs side of the story? How does their content relate to their subscriber/advertiser demographics?
11 months, 3 weeks ago ( Link to this comment | Suggest removal )
Mike Orren Staff
Fairness and journalism? You looking for that here? ;-)
We allow and encourage voice in all our "news." And this is a piece taken verbatime from the site of one of our content partners. Anyone, including the DMN is free to respond in the comments.
11 months, 3 weeks ago ( Link to this comment | Suggest removal )
DC Anonymous
"Pat Snuffer - owner of burger franchise"
Sooo, what race does that equate to??
11 months, 3 weeks ago ( Link to this comment | Suggest removal )
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