LETTER FROM THE EDITOR: spring 2022 midway diversity audit report

The spring midway diversity audit numbers

+Diversity%2C+Equity+and+Inclusion+editor%2C+Keyshawn+Davis%2C+details+the+coverage+at+The+State+Hornet+midway+through+the+spring+semester.+Davis+also+shares+what+sections+have+improved+and+the+sections+that+need+more+coverage.+Graphic+created+in+Canva.%0A

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion editor, Keyshawn Davis, details the coverage at The State Hornet midway through the spring semester. Davis also shares what sections have improved and the sections that need more coverage. Graphic created in Canva.

Keyshawn Davis, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion editor
March 25, 2022

Hello everyone! I hope everyone is having a great spring break. My name is Keyshawn Davis and this spring I’m the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion editor for the State Hornet. I’m the publication’s second DEI editor and I’m here to show everyone our progress thus far on covering underrepresented communities at Sacramento State. 

I’m excited to be in such a role after being a staff writer in the same section the previous semester. I understand how important it is to cover these communities, especially since The State Hornet has struggled to cover underrepresented communities on campus in previous semesters prior to the creation of DEI. We had a goal of getting more than 50% of our coverage to centered voices from underrepresented communities that I would love to continue. 

Part of my role as DEI editor is auditing The State Hornet’s coverage throughout the semester and leading a team of staffers that focus on covering diverse communities on campus. Our Diversity, Equity and Inclusion section this semester has centered stories around the Black, LGBTQ+ and Asian American and Pacific Islander communities.

Every single section has improved from the last audit. Last semester, video was at 71%, podcast was a close second with 67%, news with 66%, sports with 59% and arts & entertainment with 54%. 

The numbers look good, but I think we can do better.

The two sections that improved the most was video and podcast with 100% in video and 96% in podcast. We can attribute this increase to the personality podcasts “Keys ‘N D Minor”, “Take Your Shot”, “Not Just a Fad” and” Breaking Down the Walls” which all have diverse hosts. Most of the videos are from the podcast section with the exception of an episode of “The State Hornet Broadcast”.

Meeting our goal is cool, but I think we can do better and get more stories from the disabled community, the Native American community, and the Hispanic/Latinx community. These numbers are positive, but I think we can do better.

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion midway report spring 2022

Goals and Suggestions

  • Each section should have more than half of its stories centering around underrepresented voices.
  • We have hit our goal so far midway through the spring 2022 semester of getting every section to have 50% of coverage with a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion angle. 
  • We need to diversify the voices we’re centering in stories.
  • Our Asian American, Pacific Islander, LGBTQ+ community coverage has improved from the previous semester. 
  • More stories have come out of A&E with a diversity angle.
  • The State Hornet needs to do a better job covering the disabled and Latinx/Hispanic communities. 

Suggestion: The State Hornet will create a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion style guide that staffers must adhere to.

Note: “Centered sources” means stories that are focused on a source or sources from underrepresented communities, for example, Emma Hall, Dominique Williams and my story about Black faculty urging Sac State to call out campus racism. Andrea Molinar’s story about Black students’ reaction to the anti-racism convocation focuses on Black students’ experiences with racism. 

Podcasts: 27 podcasts this semester. 26 focused on or centered voices from underrepresented communities or are about underrepresented communities 96%. Which Podcast? :

Video: Eight Videos this semester. Eight videos focused on or centered voices from underrepresented communities or are about underrepresented communities from underrepresented communities: 100%. Which videos?:

News: 24 news stories. 19 stories focused on or centered voices from underrepresented communities or are about underrepresented communities: 79%. Which stories?:

Sports: 54 stories so far this semester. 42 focused on or centered voices from underrepresented communities or are about underrepresented communities: 77%. Which stories?:

Arts and Entertainment: 13 stories at the midway point. Eight stories focused on or centered voices from underrepresented communities or are about underrepresented communities: 61%. Which stories?:

OVERVIEW: A look at our Diversity and Identity Section:

Coverage on our Black community at Sac State:

Strengths:

 

  • Our story on the Black Alumni president Khalil Ferguson was a strong piece to start off Black History month. Ferguson has done a lot of activism at Sac State and is now the president of the Black Alumni Chapter. One of my favorite quotes from the story is: “‘I think you’ll realize that a lot of activists go from being primarily in the streets to doing activism and policy, because you can’t have activism without using that power to influence the change of law,’” said Ferguson.” 
  • The story on Melissa Muganzo Murphy was another strong profile. The story focuses on the self-proclaimed “living legend” and CEO of the first Black and Queer entertainment production company based in Sacramento. This  story was great for Black students and  has an LGBTQ+ angle to it as well. 
  • The Big Sky Conference women’s basketball MVP Lianna Tillman profile was outstanding. One of my own goals  was to have more DEI stories in sports. Tillman improved on every aspect of her game when she transferred to Sac State.
  • State Hornet Broadcast: Black History Month Special was perfect coverage for the State Hornet. This broadcast showcased services for Black students like the Cooper-Woodson Center and showcased art from local artist Aliyah Sidqe art gallery “The Babymama Effect.”

Where we need to do better:

  • We need more anti-racism coverage. 
  • We need to profile more Black students on campus.  
  • We need to continue showcasing Black stories in every section.

Coverage on our Latino/Hispanic community at Sac State:

Strengths:

  • Former Digital Editor Mercy Sosa podcast with Dr. Alma Flores was really powerful. The State Hornet Spotlight podcast breaks down teaching as a Latinx professor.

Where we need to do better: 

  • We need more coverage in this community period. 
  • This community has not been covered as much as I’d like this semester and that needs to change because Sac State is a Hispanic serving institution, so we should have more stories out to reflect that. 
  • We need to connect with students in the Serna Center and other Latinx and Hispanic student clubs for event coverage.

Coverage on our Asian American and Pacific Islander community at Sac State:

Strengths: 

  • Our Zoom recap from DEI reporter Michael Pacheco wrote a story on Sac States Asian Pacific Islander and Desi American the “model minority” focused on APIDA students sharing their stories of discrimination and adversity. I thought it was very  insightful and I loved learning about International third-year student Maanvee Mehrotra who came from India in 2018 and struggled with the culture shock of being independent and away from home for so long. “I lived in a village, and my parents sent me and my brother to a boarding school for eight years of our life,” Mehrotra said. “So we were always away from home.” 
  • The State Hornet also published the story “The first non-binary Asian Pacific Islander Pride Center coordinator makes history at Sac State” Pham is Vietnamese and their job is to be in charge of the Pride Center and keep the door open for students. They also create programs and events for LGBTQ+ students. 

Where we can do better:

  • Overall coverage needs to increase.
  • We need more stories that have student voices.
  • We need more stories about the community that doesn’t relate to COVID-19 or hate crimes.
  • We should establish that it’s more than Asian American and Pacific Islander. There’s also Desi Americans. Also, Asia also includes India, Pakistan, Iran, etc. We should be looking into those communities as well. 

Coverage on our Native American community at Sac State:

Strengths: N/A

Where need to do better:

  • There needs to be more coverage in this community.
  • Last fall Emma Hall did a great job making sure the Native American community at Sac State was being covered.
  • This community had better coverage especially during Native American Heritage Month.
  • ‘Existence is resistance’: the reality of being Indigenous students at Sac State does a great job of showing how small this community is a Sac State. The State Hornet spoke with three Indigenous students: Amanda Croteau, Josiah Nelson and María Elena Pulido-Sepulveda about their academic journeys and what it is like being Indigenous at Sac State. We need more stories like this.
  •  The State Hornet needs to make more connections to Native faculty and Native students at Sac State.

Coverage on our LGBTQ+ community at Sac State:

Strengths:

  • DEI reporter Hannah Asuncion has been doing a great job covering the LGBTQ+ community at Sac State. So far, Asuncion has written two feature stories centered around the LGBTQ+ community such as her coverage on the Pride Society. The Pride Society is a new student organization at Sac State that talks about resources they offer for LGBTQ+ students like connecting and planning events with the Pride Center. 
  • Asuncion also wrote a feature story on the first non-binary Asian Pacific Islander Pride Center coordinator Tranh Pham. Pham’s job as the Pride Center Coordinator is to provide a welcoming space that allows LGBTQ+ students to be themselves. This story shows who Pham is and how much they are loved and respected in the Pride Center. I love Pham’s anecdote of what they have described as their dream job – doing what they love for a community they said they care deeply for with an amazing team by their side.

Where need to do better:

  • Overall coverage needs to increase.

Coverage on our disabled community at Sac State:

Strengths: N/A

Where need to do better:

  • There are no stories within our entire Diversity and Inclusion section about students with disabilities and I take full responsibility as DEI editor.
  • Our latest story in this community was at the start of the fall 2021 semester. Sac State’s Services for Students with Disabilities transitions to campus was the last story covered by the State Hornet in this community.
  • We need to include students with disabilities in our diversity coverage. 
  • We need to connect with students at Services to Students with Disabilities.
  • We need to connect with students from student organizations like the Disabled and Non-Disabled Alliance