Aim of New UNITY Initiative is More Diversity in Top Media Management

CHICAGO, July 23 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- More journalists of color need to
be in executive-level management positions in newsrooms across the country,
according to UNITY: Journalists of Color. At the UNITY '08 national convention
that begins here tomorrow and runs through July 27, the organization will
unveil a bold new plan, "Ten by 2010: Transforming Journalism Through
Diversity Leadership."

The goal of "Ten by 2010" is to have 10 media companies commit to selecting at
least one high-potential manager of color and to promote that employee to a
senior management position by midyear 2010. Participants will receive
customized training to help prepare them for specific senior level positions.

"As our nation becomes increasingly diverse, it is essential that we have
managers in key positions who understand the nature and the importance of
diversity," said UNITY President Karen Lincoln Michel. "That is true in terms
of overall news coverage, as well as in the areas of recruitment, hiring,
retention and promotion."

"With more than 50 percent of the population projected to be people of color
in less than a generation, it is unthinkable that the nation's news
organizations continue to generate dismal diversity numbers year after year,"
said Michel. "'Ten by 2010' is a significant step in the right direction."

Michel will announce the project and the first two participating media
companies during tomorrow's UNITY '08 opening ceremonies at 5:00 p.m. in the
McCormick Place West Skyline Ballroom. UNITY hopes to secure commitments from
eight additional media organizations by the fall of 2008.

About UNITY: Journalists of Color
UNITY: Journalists of Color, Inc. is a strategic alliance advocating news
coverage about people of color, and aggressively challenging its organizations
at all levels to reflect the nation's diversity. UNITY, representing more than
10,000 journalists of color, is comprised of four national associations: Asian
American Journalists Association, National Association of Black Journalists,
National Association of Hispanic Journalists, and the Native American
Journalists Association.

SOURCE UNITY: Journalists of Color

Rahnesha White, UNITY Communications Manager, +1-703-854-3587,
rwhite@unityjournalists.org