SheSource.org

It's no secret that women and minorities are underrepresented in the media world. One can see just by turning on the news that there are far fewer women and people of color than caucasian males in a single program. "While slightly more than half of local television news anchors are now women, women still make up only 28 percent of local news directors and 16 percent of the general managers at TV stations that air local news. People of color fill just 16 percent and 10 percent, respectively, of these key decision-making positions" (National Organization for Women). Although minorities make up 35% of the United States population, and women 51%, their view points are rarely represented in the news media.

However, there are alternative news sources out there written entirely by minorities and women. SheSource.org, for instance, is an online news source where female experts write about diverse topics designed to serve journalists, producers and bookers who need female guests and sources. SheSource.org includes spokeswomen from a variety of backgrounds, representing demographic and ethnic diversity.

The website is a program of the Women's Media Center, co-founded by The Women's Funding Network, The White House Project and Fenton Communications, who aim to increase the number of women whose points of views are reflected in the news media.

Women are still underrepresented in the news media as policy shapers and leading voices of authority on critical issues despite their growing ranks as experts in a variety of topics. Because the women at SheSource have heard from journalists that the main reason they do not quote women as experts on a range of topics is simply because they do not know how to find them (a weak excuse in my humble opinion), SheSource makes it easier for journalists to connect with women experts.

SheSource is owned by the Women's Media Center, who strive to represent women and make them powerful in the media, ensuring that women’s opinions are heard. Their three main tasks are to lead media advocacy campaigns; create their own media; and train women to participate directly in media. Their goal is to make sure a diverse group of women is present in newsrooms, on air, in print and online, as sources and subjects. They believe the media should reflect our opinions and the reality of our lives. WomensMediaCenter.com points out that the underrepresentation of women and people of color is most severe on the influential Sunday morning political talk shows where males outnumber females four to one, and whites outnumber people of color seven to one. Work like theirs that aims to diversify the media landscape is critical to ensure that everyone's voices are heard in the news.