UNC's Carolina Association of Black Journalists aims to increase the visibility and prepare underrepresented students for careers in journalism.
“Our motto is 'Without diversity, there is no excellence,'” said Trevy McDonald, professor in the School of Media and Journalism and one of the two faculty advisers of CABJ.
The media industry is less diverse than many others, according to research conducted by Pew Research Center. Over 75 percent of employees in a newsroom are non-Hispanic whites, compared to 65 percent of all U.S. workers. Sixty-one percent are males, compared to 53 percent of all U.S. workers.
CABJ, which is the UNC chapter of the National Association of Black Journalists, is working to diversify the field of media and journalism.
“We are in a place in our society where the industry has definitely changed," McDonald said. "When I think about me as a college student 30 years ago, you kind of had to specialize in one area, and I think that one thing that we do well at this school is teach students multi-platform. It is important that stories are being shared and that the avenues are open for people of color and underrepresented minorities."
CABJ wants to continue to extend its reach to underrepresented students in the School of Media and Journalism.
“CABJ is the only student media organization that is affiliated with one of the national minority organizations in our school,” said Jan Yopp, the other faculty advisor for CABJ, a professor in the School of Media and Journalism and the dean of Summer School for Academic Affairs.
Although it is a journalism organization, CABJ is a broad organization with participation from broadcast, journalism and public relations students.
CABJ hosts regularly scheduled programming meetings to plan things like networking trips to media stations and public service projects. They attend the NABJ Annual Convention and Career Fair, where thousands of students come to network with people who work in various fields of media and get insight to what a career in their desired field could possibly look life for them. CABJ hosts an annual student alumni breakfast, coordinated by McDonald, at the NABJ convention, where current students can network with alumni and build connections with journalism professionals.
