I could almost see the woman smoking a cigarette, pinching it between her middle and pointer fingers, then flicking it dismissively as she offered longtime, Emmy Award-winning journalist Jerry McCormick one of his first jobs. I could feel the tension of a military punishment as McCormick was forced to lead his team through an agonizing run after a superior caught him with a soda in hand.
McCormick recalled these memories as if they’d happened yesterday. He could do so because he’s a storyteller — not just any storyteller, but a journalist.
Today, a growing distrust of the media, fueled by political polarization, has altered America’s perception of journalism. Trust is at a constant risk, and so are the marginalized groups who rely on that trust.
As a novice journalist, I find it baffling that McCormick’s struggles as a Black man in the industry haven’t tainted his keen storytelling ability. I wondered about what is necessary, as a person of color myself, to survive in an industry that is ever changing, and recently — in desperate need of advocacy.
Like a Kid In a Candy Store
Often, student journalists notice how issues affecting local minorities are overlooked while major news corporations chase the headlines that bring the most engagement.
Today, several news corporations take a pundit-driven approach to preserve their audiences, their jobs, and their influence. Fox News and the New York Post are on the right side of the political spectrum in the AllSides media bias chart while CNN and CBS News are on the left side.
Roughly 60% of Republicans turn to Fox News, while 53% of Democrats turn to CNN, according to Pew Research Center.
“Now, we approach news as a society very much the way we approach when we’re going to choose a candy bar,” Keyana Simone said, adjunct faculty at Palomar College.
Simone specializes in the intersections of culture, mass communication, interracial, inter-gender and cross-cultural interactions.
As the Trump administration aims to end diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives, calling them “immense public waste and shameful discrimination,” courses like Simone’s might be at risk.
“I think we don’t do a good enough job as a society of embracing struggle,” Simone said.
When asked about students who may disagree with her course content, Simone said that her favorite students have often been those who’ve struggled
the most.
“This is our opportunity to struggle with some of these issues, to move toward a better understanding, more compassion, more humanity,” Simone said. “Everyone can kind of find what they want. But are we finding what we need?”
In the era where conservatives and liberals seek news outlets that align with their beliefs, it is increasingly challenging to deliver unbiased news.
More so, stories centered on inequality are especially vulnerable to erasure.
The Trump administration’s executive orders have already resulted in the archiving of documents referencing DEI efforts, according to The U.S. Department of Education. The department has also put employees leading DEI initiatives on paid administrative leave.
The Society of Professional Journalists’ code of ethics emphasizes holding those in power accountable and giving a voiceto the voiceless, including historically marginalized groups.
Yet, as polarization intensifies, even the press is not immune to censorship.
The Associated Press (AP) was denied access to President Trump after it refused to follow his executive order to rename the Gulf of Mexico to the “Gulf of America.” Trump called the AP “radical left lunatics.”
In a lawsuit against Trump officials, the AP argued that such a change would cause confusion and harm international audiences. After a judge ruling, AP received their White House privileges back in April.
Although AP regained access to cover presidential events, the press was still limited during a crucial time in the presidency. Because of these restrictions, many journalists were forced to question what is being asked of them — to protect their jobs, and more importantly, the American public.
Simone emphasized that consumers also shape the news coverage they receive.
“That’s the argument, people who refer to the USA as the United States of Amnesia. And I subscribe to that argument,” Simone said, referencing American author Gore Vidal’s term.
Vidal believed oppressive systems in America are viewed as disconnected from our nation’s historical roots, when in reality, they’re deeply intertwined.
If the president can restrict major news outlets over disagreements with their editorial guidelines, what does that mean for stories tied to DEI?
“That’s the thing about how the USA works. There’s been systemic efforts to prevent people from being aware and knowing that particular history,” Simone said. “The Trump administration is … kind of banking on the gaps that have been allowed to evolve through our educational systems.”
Between Two Worlds
Writers for college publications are often told to write about their school as if it were its own city. While they may lack the resources of major outlets, there is no shortage of necessary news in a setting where people go to build their futures.
When mainstream media stumbles, local publications are often tasked with preserving both diversity and freedom of the press.
Ana Lourdes Cárdenas, associate professor at San Francisco State University, helped establish the first bilingual journalism major in the country.
Because of this program, Latinx communities and students in the Bay Area have gained access to essential information about
financial aid, legal resources, DACA, and most importantly, stories in their language.
“I think that there is a prevalence of this coverage that portrays us in a very stereotypical way,” Cárdenas said. “It’s something hard to fight.”
Under Trump’s renewed deportation efforts, national headlines have often reduced Latinx identities to immigration issues and legal status. But this trend predates his second term.
For years, Hispanic and Latinx journalists have worked twice as hard in the newsroom to ensure a multifaceted experience for their community.
According to Cárdenas, it took three years to establish the bilingual department. With just over two years since its birth, the program is vulnerable to budget cuts if DEI initiatives are dismantled.
“I’m really, really concerned, not just about bilingual journalism, but all of the humanities that involve diversity,” Cárdenas said. “If we don’t get the numbers, probably we’re going to be cut off, right?”
The bilingual department courses inform students on the various Latinx representations, immigration policies, and the significant historical context that has led to the several social issues that still affect their communities today.
These courses offer critical context on immigration policy, Latinx representation and the historical roots of present-day inequality. Without these educational spaces, Vidal’s “United States of Amnesia” may become a reality.
“They want to erase us from the map and not consider our contribution and promote an agenda that is, you know, white supremacist,” Cárdenas said. “So it’s as simple as that, right?”
In the early stages of the program, Cárdenas and her team consulted with newsroom editors, who overwhelmingly emphasized the value of multicultural perspectives. The students who rely on these programs often embody those perspectives — preserving their resources ensures a more diverse newsroom.
Local and niche publications have often had to carry the baton of nuanced messages, unclouded by bureaucratic agendas urging for engagement.
Surviving the Story
Student journalists can only hope to keep the flame alive for the communities that have long sat in darkness. Just like the ember on the cigarette in Jerry McCormick’s story, their voices rely on the journalists who’ve navigated this darkness.
“The media has taken a huge hit,” McCormick said. “[President Trump] introduced the term ‘fake news,’ and that’s become part of the lexicon, and now … the media has become a dirty word.”
McCormick said that many newsrooms fear the growing influence of the current administration — and young journalists may need passion alone to survive in an unstable industry.
“Just over the last month, I know 10 different people … who’ve been let go, and these are talented journalists who did the work, served the time,” McCormick said.
In February, MSNBC’s weekly newscast “The Reidout” hosted by Joy Reid was cancelled, according to a network memo. Reid’s show focused on issues surrounding race, politics and injustice. Its cancellation sparked backlash from viewers who saw it as a rare voice for marginalized communities.
Amid the country’s economic strain, no one is immune — but journalists, the watchdogs of democracy, are being disproportionally targeted.
“This president, he basically inflamed or fanned the flames of racism,” McCormick said, “He’s given a lot of people their permission to say the quiet parts out loud. I’ve been called the N-word to my face in newsrooms. I’ve cried in the bathroom … but at the end of the day, I’ve survived.”
Even brief exposure to Trump’s rhetoric led participants, particularly Trump supporters, to express greater prejudice toward marginalized groups, according to social psychologist Benjamin C. Ruisch’s research for ScienceDirect.
Regardless of what happens to DEI efforts, journalists still have a protected right to question executive orders and report on the consequences of political decisions.
“You may be moving away from your family and friends in a strange city where you don’t know anyone, all because you have this burning desire to be part of the media, to write, to tell stories,” McCormick said.
Journalism asks us to stitch together the broken threads of a fast-moving world. The tears in our society remind us that there is still room to heal.
Sitting in McCormick’s office, I watched the sunlight stretch through the window — an unspoken guest, bearing witness to the stories that shaped him.
“If you know you uncover some sort of truth that helps society, or you tell some sort of story that helps people get the care and information that they need. That’s what keeps you going,” McCormick said.
