NAHJ’s Parity Project reaches out to the Valley of the Sun

By Michele Gonzalez, Parity Project Associate Director - Southwest

On the heels of an immigration-related protest that ended up being the largest public demonstration in the history of Phoenix, the National Association of Hispanic Journalists’ (NAHJ) has launched its Parity Project at KNXV ABC 15 television.

About 65 people from the Phoenix Latino community turned out for a town hall on March 27, 2006 with that station.

Edmundo Hidalgo, chief operating officer of the Phoenix-based group Chicanos Por la Causa, Inc., said he was “…skeptical of the station’s commitment to the Parity Project” But, he added that he “was glad he was finally seeing it happen.”

Only a few days before the town hall, about 20,000 people took to the streets of Phoenix to protest against proposed federal legislation that would, among other things, make being in the U.S. without proper documentation a felony.

Phoenix had never seen a public demonstration that large in its history. It was one of several protests against the federal immigration proposals that were held in cities throughout the U.S.

KNXV ABC 15 General Manager Janice Todd said she did not fear a backlash from viewers who may oppose immigration rights. “On the contrary, I hope that our audience, especially among the Latinos in Phoenix, grows.”

The prevailing attitude among those attending the town hall was that the Phoenix Latino community did not feel a strong connection to the station. Most attendees called for greater participation from the station in Latino community projects and councils.

KNXV-TV’s Interim News Director Joe Hengemuehler pledged that the station would always look for diverse video images and would strive to tell both sides of every story.

To view video clips of the town hall go to: www.abc15.com

This is NAHJ’s initial Parity Project’s launch in the Phoenix, AZ media market.

Of the 1,321,045 residents of Phoenix 449,972 are Latino (34%). It is NAHJ’s goal for KNXV-TV’s staff to properly represent this percentage of the population, so they can better diversify their coverage.

The Town Hall was ABC15's effort to listen to Valley Hispanics and get ideas on how to better serve that community through news coverage. Additionally, ABC15 provided attendees a list of job opportunities.

KNXV ABC 15 is owned by the E.W. Scripps Company. NAHJ will be launching the Parity Project at its sister station, WPTV NewsChannel 5 in West Palm Beach, Florida, on April 11, 2006.

The Robert R. McCormick Tribune Foundation is a major funder of NAHJ’s Parity Project. There are 23 news organizations throughout the U.S. that are currently partners in this program.

NAHJ’s Parity Project is intended to serve as an example to the entire journalism industry when it comes to improving newsroom diversity and coverage of diverse communities.