The Associated Press recently announced that their 2019 stylebook will contain a new umbrella entry concerning race-related coverage. This new entry into the AP Stylebook will not only increase accuracy in reporting, but it will encourage open discussion about racism and bias within the newsrooms.

Aly Colón, a media ethics professor at Washington and Lee University, believes that these changes will lead to better and more honest reporting, “The AP is pushing journalists to be more specific when mentioning race and have context with what they’re saying.”

One notable update to the book is when to use the word racist. It says the terms — racist and racism — can be used to describe actions or people who attempt to assert superiority over or hatred of other races. More updates include the when journalists should include the race of the people being written about. AP is rightfully urging journalists to carefully consider whether identifying people by race is relevant to the story.

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Reporting on race can be tricky if reporters don’t know what words should and should not be used. It’s arguably common sense, and ultimately, errors can result in misrepresentation of minorities. But these updates are a good first step in standardizing diverse coverage.

Colón agrees that misrepresenting someone according to their race is extremely common, citing the example that Puerto Ricans are often not portrayed as true American citizens in news coverage.

The AP Stylebook updates will also encourage reporters to think more critically about the role of race in events that they cover. Stereotypes of minority groups can be perpetuated by including extraneous descriptions of the perpetrator or the victim’s race when covering crime.

Colón said considering the use of those sometimes unnecessary descriptions is essential to avoid discriminatory stories.

These updates could also foster an ongoing conversation about personal or institutional biases, which is increasingly important as newsrooms are less diverse than other workplaces in the United States. Representation of minority groups is lacking, so it’s imperative to ensure that race is openly discussed in newsrooms.

By implementing these new entries, the AP is helping to ensure newsrooms around the country are producing honest, inclusive and reliable content.

Lauren Spiezia is a freshman Newspaper & Online Journalism major. Her column appears biweekly. She can be reached at lespiezi@syr.edu.

Published on April 15, 2019 at 10:47 pm