Press Release

NAHJ Troubled by Dismal State of Minority Media Ownership

Washington, D.C. – The National Association of Hispanic Journalists is troubled by the dismal state of minority media ownership detailed in a recent study released by Free Press, a national media policy organization.

The report, titled “Out of the Picture: Minority & Female TV Station Ownership in the United States,” found that even though people of color comprise 33 percent of the U.S. population, they only comprise 3.26 percent of commercial broadcast television station owners.

Out of 1,349 full-power commercial TV stations in this country, 15, or 1.1 percent, are owned by Hispanics. In addition, blacks or African Americans own 18 stations (1.3 percent) and Asians own 6 stations (0.44 percent). The study also examined the state of female media ownership and found that women only own 67 stations, or 4.97 percent.

Free Press’ study criticizes the FCC for failing to keep up with the state of minority media ownership in the United States and not taking into account the effect ownership rules have on media owners of color. Concerned about these low numbers resulting in part from increased media consolidation, NAHJ had recently called for diligent analysis by the government of the state of minority ownership, but those efforts were unsuccessful.

Now, as the FCC begins another round of a procedure to determine regulations governing our nation’s broadcast ownership rules, the results of this study become alarmingly important.

NAHJ urges the FCC to consider the results of this study and the unsettling numbers it contains when deciding who can own the media in this dynamically-changing country where a third of the population are people of color.