The Trials and Tribulations of Engaging Diverse Communities as a Journalist

By Nathan Hyun

USC Annenberg’s Engaging Diverse Communities class was one of my favorite classes this semester. Through lectures and practical steps, I have been able to learn so much on engaging various communities.

I learned reporting on foreign communities is not as easy as people might think. Compared to a previous video lecture, using resources like censusreporter.org helps give a better idea of a particular community. I learned that it all starts with prior research. In one of the LA Times articles, it talked about how Latinos in low-income communities felt as though their participation was not wanted in the census. As a journalist, it is our duty to prioritize these voices and tell the stories of those who don’t have a voice.

Likewise, diverse sourcing makes an impact in any story. In the Washington Post article by Robert Samuels, he wrote about a Milwaukee neighborhood’s fight against COVID-19. By seeing first-hand what those people were doing, Samuels was able to write a story that touched on the personal lives of all the people involved.

I also learned the importance of recognizing fault lines and gaps in coverage. According to the video lecture on fault lines, I found it interesting how our own fault lines influence our perceptions of events. Most of the time, we fail to acknowledge the different fault lines we encounter.

In addition, it is important to be factually correct. Usually, reporters on deadline do not stop to verify their information. For example, in the reading about the El Paso and Dayton shootings, it talked about how misinformation can so easily be spread through apps. The video lectures by First Draft touched on the importance of verification. It is not only important to get information right, but journalists should know how to filter this information and give it context.

Furthermore, I have enjoyed the practical steps that I have been able to conduct in this class.

The midterm was an important step in improving coverage for Annenberg Media. By conducting the content analysis, I was amazed to see how many gaps in coverage there were. Whether that was not enough sources or biased articles, I was glad to have been able to expose these gaps and offer solutions.

Lastly, the final project allowed my teammates and I to put our words into action. My team and I came up with a proposal on how to make Annenberg Media’s sports section more inclusive. I contributed to the project by thinking of common goals and reasons of why we were doing this project. There was a large focus on strengthening relationships between reporters and athletes and allowing criticism on past stories.

Now, at the end of the semester, I’m hoping to use everything I’ve learned in this class to be a journalist who is more inclusive of diverse communities. More than anything, I want to be a reporter who takes time to build trust among the community that I am reporting on.