AAJA Governing Board Urges UNITY to Take Proactive Approach to Media Cutbacks and Layoffs

AAJA Governing Board Urges UNITY to Take Proactive Approach to Media Cutbacks and Layoffs

SAN FRANCISCO--(U.S. ASIAN WIRE)-- July 2, 2007-- The AAJA Governing Board recently passed a resolution urging UNITY: Journalists of Color to take a proactive approach to the cutbacks in newsrooms all over the country. "Significant numbers of AAJA members as well as members of the other UNITY alliance partners have been seriously affected by the continued 'bleeding' in our industry," said AAJA executive director Rene Astudillo. "We are starting to see the impact of this situation in our membership rolls, convention attendance, and more significantly in the diversity of our newsrooms. UNITY '08 is just around the corner and this situation will definitely impact our goals and expectations of the Chicago convention," he added.

The AAJA Governing Board Resolution reads:

WHEREAS continued cutbacks and layoffs at media companies throughout the country are impacting AAJA's membership as well as those of our UNITY partners;

WHEREAS the goals of UNITY and its member organizations include increasing diversity in the newsroom and in news coverage, and advocating for its members; and

WHEREAS UNITY, as the collective voice of all four member organizations speaks with a stronger voice than any one individual member organization; therefore

BE IT RESOLVED that the AAJA Governing Board urges UNITY to take a proactive approach to industry cutbacks, including contacting media owners and industry leaders and their respective national professional organizations, writing op-ed pieces and issuing statements about the importance of preserving diversity and the crucial role diversity plays in ensuring fair and accurate news coverage. Email Print Talk about it!

About AAJA
The Asian American Journalists Association is a non- profit professional and educational organization with approximately 2,000 members across the United States and in Asia. Founded in 1981, AAJA has been at the forefront of change in the journalism industry. AAJA's mission is to encourage Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPIs) to enter the ranks of journalism, to work for fair and accurate coverage of AAPIs, and to increase the number of AAPI journalists and news managers in the industry. AAJA is an alliance partner in UNITY Journalists of Color, along with the Native American Journalists Association, National Association of Hispanic Journalists, and National Association of Black Journalists. For more information, visit www.aaja.org