Predictors of Diversification of Journalism & Mass Communication Faculties 1989-1998
The percentage of faculty in journalism and mass communication programs who are women is increasing, but the change is so gradual that, at the present rate, it will be around the year 2035 before the faculty looks like the students enrolled in journalism and mass communication programs today in terms of gender. The situation is much the same in terms of race and ethnicity.
Yet, some journalism and mass communication programs have made strides in diversifying their faculties, both in terms of gender and race. What explains that variation? Why have some journalism and mass communication programs enjoyed more success than others in diversifying their faculties? This article examines three different factors that could explain the variability: the characteristics of the region in which the journalism program is located, the characteristics of the university that houses the program, and the characteristics of the journalism program itself.
In summary, the increase in the percentage of minority students, strong commitment of the unit leader, some level of support for diversification from the central administration, and hiring flexibility, etc. are all related to the increase of diversification of faculty. The characteristics of the program and university also have some impact on faculty diversification.
Copyright of this article is held by the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication.
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