Where's the Diversity?
Let me preface this post by saying that Cincinnati is very diverse and I most definitely see the beautifully bold representations of many different cultures when I hit the streets, but with that said, where’s the diversity in media?
I moved to Northern Kentucky a little over a year ago, at the time of this post, and instantly fell in love with the area. But, before I start gushing about Cincinnati and the surrounding cities that really make this area sparkle, Let’s start from the beginning.
At heart, I am, by all accounts a city gal. Born and raised to Jamaican immigrants in Miami Florida, I am no stranger to cultures clashing, marrying, mixing, celebrating and everything in between. So, when I left my Florida roots to move to the Midwest with my newly minted husband in 2010, we found ourselves in a very quiet town called Decatur in Illinois. It was a culture shock to say the least. There wasn’t really much celebrated culturally there. I mean, sure, there were a few “Mom and Pop” Mexican and Italian restaurants, but if you had a hankering for soul food, Creole cuisine, Jamaican fare, or Indian dishes, you’d be better off buying a plane ticket. This all seemed very…unnatural to me. Heck, there are places in Miami that require you to know the very basic of phrases in Spanish, or your goose would be cooked. Anyway, as beautiful and quiet as Decatur, Illinois turned out to be, there was something clearly missing: representation.
I started my broadcast journalism career in Decatur and at the time of my internship and employment at the local station, there was representation. My news director was Asian American, we had an African American news anchor and reporter, as well as a openly gay weather man. There were quite a few people of color on air, including me. But, when I left the station to “mom full-time” to my baby, I was disappointed to see that the station became more and more homogenized as anchors and reporters that were minorities left, and weren’t replaced with more minorities.
This is something that I began to pay close attention to as I continued my career in broadcast media. If I visit another state/city, I take mental note of the town’s demographics and then look for the representation of said demographics on air and in commercials, local publications, etc. So, what would this look like in my head? If I walk around the town square and see 60-80 percent Caucasians and 40-20 percent of “People of Color” there should be at least 5 on air personalities who are not Caucasian. Extra points go to the stations who have plus size women, or women with natural hair on air. Local magazines and advertisements should also be just as diverse. As I am sure you’ve guessed that wasn’t the case in Central Illinois.
But, when I moved to Northern Kentucky, just 20 minutes from Cincinnati (hello from across the bridge), I was THRILLED. Though Northern Kentucky isn’t very diverse, Cincy has SWAGGER. There is a confidence that the city has that is very much lived in. You can feel it in the way people treat one another, the way they dress. It’s all very attainable, but still self assured with an air of sophistication. It’s unlike anything that I’ve seen or felt in any other city, including my own.
What made me grin the most was how diverse the city is. There’s clearly a sizable Indian population here. The black community is very present as well. I’m also excited to see the LGBTQ community seems to be represented well here too. Imagine my surprise when I noticed that many media outlets don’t seem to have that same representation and diversity reflected in their publications and TV shows!
I want to do something about that.
Cincinnati Style Report is born out of my passionate ambition to see more diversity in the media. Women larger than size 6, looking sickening in gold lame bathing suits. Trans men and women in beautiful, inspirational images that we’ve yet to see in national publications. Black women with locs of all textures and lengths, serving looks to the starving masses, dahling!And that’s just the tip of the iceberg. I want to put what high fashion, and mainstream media looks like on it’s head, and I want the greater Cincinnati area to be the face and voice of this movement.
I see it in my mind’s eye, and I’m so excited to see how it comes to life. Join me on this new and exciting adventure, and welcome to Cincinnati’s New, Cultured Corner.
-Taneica
Cincinnati Style Report Editor In Chief