From the editor: An update on our newsroom diversity pledge

As part of our commitment to build and sustain a diverse newsroom, we are updating our progress this year.

While our goal is to have a staff that reflects the diversity of the communities we serve, the numbers speak for themselves. We have a long way to go.

The current hiring market is perhaps the most difficult we have seen in our careers; people have many options in every field, including in journalism. We are especially challenged with the recruitment and hiring of journalists of color. This is not an excuse; please be assured that diversifying our staff remains a priority.

It helps our recruitment that we promote our journalists of color. This year, two earned roles at USA TODAY, Gannett’s flagship news site, and another was promoted to our New York State team.

We strive to give focus to reporting and storytelling for people of color, LBGTQ+ and newcomers to the country. Our series that examined gangs in the Hudson Valley, for example, was told through the lens of Black and Latino residents, frustrated by the lack of public support to counter ongoing violence in their neighborhoods. 

From USA Today:Gannett newsrooms making steady progress in overall diversity

Newsroom diversity:Having a diverse newsroom is critical to telling stories about the Lower Hudson Valley

Following a rash of racist incidents at high school sporting events, we asked important “why” questions and held school and athletic officials accountable. We documented violence targeted at Asians, and hatred directed at the LBGTQ+ community.

Our education team continues to explore the impact of disrupted learning on members of marginalized communities, probing the hard questions about whether districts are serving the needs of Black and brown students, and those who are LBGTQ+, newcomers to the country or have special needs. We’ve also celebrated the successes of minority-majority districts.

Working with our colleagues across New York, we examined topics around government transparency, including health access and equity, environmental justice — including flood-prone neighborhoods, lead abatement and crumbling sewer systems, which disproportionately affect people of color — consumer rights and police and public safety. We documented the plight of lower-wage workers, especially home health aides and those who care for people with disabilities. And kept a close eye on eviction protections and affordable housing. 

We’ve made — and owned — painful lessons this year.

We apologized to our Jewish audience after we posted — and immediately took down — a promotional illustration on our social media channels whose words and imagery unintentionally featured an anti-Semitic trope.

Following that blunder, we sought help to improve our connection to and understanding of the Jewish community.  We are grateful to the American Jewish Committee, the Jewish Federation & Foundation of Rockland County, and the Holocaust Museum & Center for Tolerance and Education for the training they provided our journalists.

If you represent a community you’d like us to learn more about, please reach out. If you have story ideas or issues you would like us to cover, send me an email. If you know of a network we might tap for talent, please let me know.  I am at mdolan@lohud.com.

Mary Dolan is executive editor of lohud.com and The Journal News.