At an NUJ discussion day on building the future of Irish journalism, our social policy officer Dr Laura Bambrick presented to members on the underrepresentation of journalists from a working-class background – the reasons for it and recommendations for fixing it.
Dr. Bambrick said: “The media is long known to be notoriously difficult to break into without family connections. But the social class gap is widening, in large part as a result of the declining economic fortunes of the industry.
“While we rightly put a lot of focus on the need for diversity in media ownership, diversity among journalists is also essential for the sustainability of the industry.
“The Commission on the Future of Media put forward a range of recommendations to create a more diverse workforce. These must be acted on as a matter of urgency, together with linking the savings from the 0% VAT relief to decent work and diversity measures.”
Laura's presentation can be read here.
