Changes will be coming to The New York Times after the publication unveiled a diversity report and plan, which will help transform the newspaper’s culture that makes it an “unwelcoming place for many people.”
The 7,000-word report reveals a “difficult environment” at the Times, primarily experienced by “people of color, many of whom described unsettling and sometimes painful day-to-day workplace experiences.”
When it comes to the Asian-American women working at the newspaper, the report states that they feel “invisible and unseen” and frequently referred to using the name of other Asian women.
Nonetheless, Black and Latino employees bear the brunt of the toxic work environment at The Times, the report states. They are underrepresented in leadership positions compared to other races inside the company. Furthermore, in a survey last year, Black employees, especially women, gave the newspaper the worst marks for fairness and inclusion.
The Times has listed four goals as they plan to improve its toxic working environment.
First, the newspaper wants to transform its culture “to create an environment where we all can do our best work. We will be explicit about how diversity, equity, and inclusion tie to our mission and values.”
Second, The Times wants to improve their leadership as they try and fix how they lead and manage. The newspaper seeks to bring people aboard with “clear expectations for leaders who manage people and for how they will be assessed.”
As a result of this goal, the company wants to increase Black and Latinos in management positions by 50 percent by 2025. The Times seeks to ensure that its news coverage benefits from diversity and inclusion in its newsroom.
“We will make our newsroom more diverse, our editorial practices more inclusive, and our news report one that provides a truer, richer and more textured portrayal of the world,” The Times wrote.
Eduardo Razo is the Assistant Content Editor for BNM, which includes writing daily news stories on the news media industry. He can be found on Twitter @eddierazo_ or you can reach him by email at eddie1991razo@gmail.com.
