MDA CEO on ‘Things I’ve Heard’ and the value of personalisation
Media Diversity Australia posted the #ThingsIveHeard hashtag to its Twitter account to highlight instances of casual discrimination towards minorities in media. Its CEO Mariam Veiszadeh spoke to Mumbrella's Anna Macdonald on the surprising stories that were shared, the importance of humanising statistics and how, ultimately, Media Diversity Australia's purpose is to put itself out of work.
Media Diversity Australia (MDA) launched a campaign on Twitter using the hashtag #ThingsIveHeard to highlight the microaggressions faced by Culturally And Linguistically Diverse (CALD) and other minority journalists.
The inaugural CEO of MDA Mariam Veiszadeh, who was appointed last November, tells Mumbrella the comments that were posted under the hashtag were shocking.
“I would have thought I’ve seen everything,” says Veiszadeh. “I would have thought that I’ve come across most things, having just my own personal experiences. But there were some of that quite shocking in terms of the frequency in which people experience it, but also how horrendous some of these remarks are… Even in 2022, these things are still being said….
“It’s a constant reminder as to why we do what we do, and why MDA and organisations like MDA are so vital because this is the landscape in which we are operating in. This is just scratching the surface, no doubt.”
In total, according to MDA, 127 stories were shared using the hashtag, not including the threads and discussions under the original Tweet.
One such Tweet by Antoinette Lattouf, seen below, alleged overhearing Islmaphobic comments, insinuating white people could not be terrorists. Lattouf is a non-executive board director for MDA.
A terrorist with an Anglo name and appearance was making headlines. Executive Producer says loudly in an open newsroom “well he doesn’t look like a terrorist is this the right guy” It was clear the implication was for a terrorist to be Arab or anything but white #ThingsIveHeard
— Antoinette Lattouf (@antoinette_news) January 21, 2022
Another by Jarni Blakkarly detailed an allegation of a host complaining about the accent of a caller.
Working in breakfast radio in my first job as a producer and after putting a talkback caller through who had a foreign accent, having the host come over to my desk and tell me never to put through a caller who “couldn’t speak English” again #ThingsIveheard @MediaDiverseAU
— Jarni Blakkarly (@JarniBlakkarly) January 21, 2022
The power of sharing such instances, as opposed to figures and data, is its ability to personalise cases of microaggressions, which are indirect or subtle incidents of discrimination.
“There’s nothing more compelling than reading about the narrative of someone’s experience,” says Vesizadah. “It’s one thing for us to put social assets that say: ‘Did you know according to MDA research: X, Y, Z?’ That’s one thing. But to add a personal narrative and a personal quote, as to what someone has experienced, we know that’s going to be far more compelling and often if you combine the two there’s more compelling.”
“We know when it comes to diversity inclusion,” adds Veiszadeh, “the media is a little bit more behind than corporate Australia. And I know that because my background is working in the management position at Diversity Council Australia. The banks and the corporates, they’re way ahead of media organisations.”
Tweets under the hashtag touched on a range of issues, with journalist Jane Hansen tweeting an allegation of a misogynistic comment.
Well I’m just a white girl, but my boss called me ‘a pig in swill’ in front of the whole office. ACA 2002. Pregnant. Lost that baby at 19 weeks. I’ve not forgotten, nor forgiven. #ThingsIveHeard https://t.co/3uVXs9gOKo
— jane hansen (@janehansen2000) January 24, 2022
Another by Marcus Strom, who is standing down as president of the Media, Entertainment and Arts Alliance’s (MEAA) media section, detailed an allegation of classism.
This is a good initiative.
Here’s one “Why should generations of people on welfare get to live with harbour views.”
A senior editor’s response to calls to save public housing at Millers Point #ThingsIveHeard https://t.co/G1S428LA0s
— Marcus Strom (@strom_m) January 21, 2022
Veiszadeh continues: “By bringing those experiences to the surfaces it’s not just about causing destruction for the sake of it. It’s about then media organisations sitting up and taking notes. And society more broadly sitting up and taking those and saying, you know what? This is not okay. It is not okay that a culturally diverse journalist or journalists of minority groups are experiencing these microaggressions every single day on a regular basis. That’s an unsafe work environment and, given how influential the media is, we need that to change.”
“I am certain that there would be other stories of other experiences of journalists that are currently working in the media that can’t be shared publicly because of fear of consequences,” adds Veiszadeh.
As for the ideal outcome of the campaign, Veiszadeh says: “Not the purpose of this campaign, but the focus of MDA, right? If you take it to the nth degree, it’s to put ourselves out of work. Because we would rather not have to exist. We’d rather not have to talk about media diversity because nobody would bat an eyelid at the idea of a minority being in a media position.”
The Millers Point comment is a bad example.
The motivating factor behind the editors comment was the fact that long term housing tenants at Millers Point were costing the government dearly by residing in ‘expensive to maintain’ heritage listed properties in the centre of Sydney with substantial values on the open market.
With a long waiting list for public housing, selling these properties allows many more people to be housed in brand new purpose built homes in other parts of Sydney for the same budget.
The point being made is – Why should some on welfare continue to live in expensive residences with harbour views when others on welfare are still waiting to be housed?
There is no class comparison.
It’s about equal opportunity for those who need public housing.
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