THE MILESTONES THE MEDIA INDUSTRY HAS MADE SO FAR

To be fair, the entire media industry has recently started to look within to see how the faces that make up the industry might affect its output. For instance, The Institute of Practitioners in Advertising have set up the IPA’s Ethnic Diversity project. It’s co-chair Barrett Cernis says the industry must stop recruiting predominantly from the same narrow talent pool of middle class graduates regardless of race

So far, the Ethnic Diversity project showed that the advertising industry has a 4% ethnic minority representation and 70% of that figure are support staff. What about senior management roles?

Those figures need to be reviewed to get a good balance. As much as I appreciate that this is a step in the right direction, more steps must be taken for the media industry to be successful - we must elevate our programs of specialized development, and take into account a broad range of multiculturalism.

The industry must appreciate that there is a massive potential role for ethnic minorities in enhancing the diversity of the PR work force, which would also create a better cultural understanding. With better understanding comes greater success and quality. A one-size-fits-all “minority program” can no longer be expected to identify the talent required to address the diverse needs and challenges of our clients and companies.