MediaWise has taken a keen interest in promoting diversity within the media, not least because minorities are the most vulnerable to misrepresentation and abuse.
We contributed to the UK Roundtable Against Racism and Xenophobia, an initiative linked to the European Observatory on Racism and Xenophobia; we supported the IFJ-backed website Diversity Online; built links with the Pan-European UNITED for Intercultural Action; and supported the Creative Collective project to improve opportunities for ethnic minorities media workers, backed by The Chronicle and the now defunct European Centre of the Freedom Forum.
After our 1997 Forum, the Broadcasting Standards Commission researched the representation of young black and Asian people on television; the Commission for Racial Equality issued guidelines on coverage of Gypsies and Travellers, an issue in which we have taken particular interest; and we developed the RAM Project.
Articles, reports and guidelines for best practice on:
- Ethnic minorities
- Gender
- Islam
- Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Trans
- People with disabilities
- Roma, Gypsies and Travellers
MediaWise/PressWise articles and reports
- Diversity Calendar (2015)
List of events and dates for journalists seeking to be more inclusive in their reporting. - Access to the Information Society (1998)
An international conference and exhibition organised by PressWise on behalf of the EC Information Society Forum to examine the democratic issues raised when people with disabilities, older people, ethnic minorities and others are denied access to communications technology. - The Bristol Declaration (1998)
Statement devised for the Access to the Information Society event.
Other articles, reports and useful links
- Women and Minorities Survey
RTNDA/Hofstra University Annual Survey. - Reporting Poverty in the UK: A practical guide for journalists
Produced by Media Trust, Society of Editors & Joseph Rowntree Foundation, September 2008. - Reporting poverty: an online resource for journalism educators and students
From the Joseph Rowntree Foundation. - Report on media literacy amongst older people
Media Literacy Audit by Ofcom, published on 4 April 2006. - Quarterly access service reports for television
Ofcom monitoring of signing, subtitling and audio description. - Equal Opportunities: A Toolkit for Broadcasters
Published by Ofcom, 12 July 2005. - Ofcom’s Advisory Committee on Older and Disabled People
Includes details of members, the role of the committee, and annual reports. - Reporting Diversity manual
From the Media Diversity Institute, October 2002.