ϲ

Skip to main content
  • Home
  • About
  • Faculty Experts
  • For The Media
  • ’Cuse Conversations Podcast
  • Topics
    • Alumni
    • Events
    • Faculty
    • Students
    • All Topics
  • Contact
  • Submit
Media, Law & Policy
  • All News
  • Arts & Culture
  • Business & Economy
  • Campus & Community
  • Health & Society
  • Media, Law & Policy
  • STEM
  • Veterans
  • University Statements
  • ϲ Impact
  • |
  • The Peel
Sections
  • All News
  • Arts & Culture
  • Business & Economy
  • Campus & Community
  • Health & Society
  • Media, Law & Policy
  • STEM
  • Veterans
  • University Statements
  • ϲ Impact
  • |
  • The Peel
  • Home
  • About
  • Faculty Experts
  • For The Media
  • ’Cuse Conversations Podcast
  • Topics
    • Alumni
    • Events
    • Faculty
    • Students
    • All Topics
  • Contact
  • Submit
Media, Law & Policy

Newhouse Study: Communications Firms Lag in Diversity Due to Lack of Accountability

Wednesday, June 22, 2016, By Wendy S. Loughlin
Share
Diversity and InclusionNewhouse School of Public CommunicationsResearch and Creative

A study conducted by the finds that while communications professionals are dissatisfied with the level of diversity and inclusion at their organizations, few are being held accountable for developing and implementing strategies for improvement.

Hua Jiang

Hua Jiang

The study was funded and released by the and the at the University of Alabama.

Newhouse assistant professor of public relations was the lead researcher on the study, which was based on a survey of members of the , an organization for senior public relations professionals.

“The survey and study found that all of the respondents have begun some programs to effect change, but those strategies tend to lack accountability for progress, have little measurement tied to them and therefore result in slow movement in achieving the corporate diversity and inclusion goals,” says Jiang.

About 64 percent of respondents reported that the CEO and other executives at their organizations place a very high level of importance on diversity and inclusion; however, 72 percent of those organizations do not tie diversity and inclusion goal achievement to executive compensation. Likewise, slightly more than half (58 percent) of all respondents said the communications leadership teams at their organizations place a very high level of importance on diversity and inclusion, while 86 percent of respondents reported that compensation for communications staff is not tied to diversity and inclusion goal achievement.

Further, only 40 percent of respondents claimed that they have integrated a comprehensive diversity and inclusion strategy very well or completely well into their overall business strategy.

“If, as an industry, we are to meaningfully impact the issue of diversifying our organizations, public relations leaders must combine our public advocacy of diversity and inclusion with clear and measurable accountability for achieving those objectives,” says Torod B. Neptune, president of the PRSA Foundation and corporate vice president, corporate communications at Verizon Communications.

The majority of the Page Society members surveyed say their companies do have diversity and inclusion goals and objectives that fit well with corporate character and mission. Those Page member organizations that seem to be making the most progress toward achieving these goals have strong leadership support and commitment.

The study identified best practices, including:

  1. Leadership support of proactive recruitment strategies with ethnically diverse universities and professional associations;
  1. Dedicated focus on employee engagement, using grassroots, corporate-funded affinity and employee resource groups; and
  1. Two-directional reaffirmation of skills and abilities to help with retention of talent.

“The findings of this study are aimed at helping public relations leaders build upon best practices in our field as well as in other industries,” says Karla Gower, executive director of the Plank Center. “We recognize that some industries might be ahead of our field in effecting change in this space.”

The PRSA Foundation, the Plank Center for Leadership in Public Relations, ϲ and the Arthur W. Page Society provided financial and in-kind support for the completion of the study.

  • Author

Wendy S. Loughlin

  • Recent
  • Vintage Over Digital: Alumnus Dan Cohen’s Voyager CD Bag Merges Music and Fashion
    Monday, July 7, 2025, By John Boccacino
  • Empowering Learners With Personalized Microcredentials, Stackable Badges
    Thursday, July 3, 2025, By Hope Alvarez
  • WISE Women’s Business Center Awarded Grant From Empire State Development, Celebrates Entrepreneur of the Year Award
    Thursday, July 3, 2025, By Dawn McWilliams
  • Paulo De Miranda G’00 Received ‘Much More Than a Formal Education’ From Maxwell
    Thursday, July 3, 2025, By Jessica Youngman
  • Law Professor Receives 2025 Onondaga County NAACP Freedom Fund Award
    Thursday, July 3, 2025, By Robert Conrad

More In Media, Law & Policy

Professor Nina Kohn Serves as Reporter for 2 Uniform Acts

College of Law Distinguished Professor Nina Kohn is helping to create “gold standard” legislation on some of the most important issues facing older adults and individuals with cognitive disabilities. Based on her legal expertise, including in the area of elder…

250 Years Later, Declaration of Independence Still Challenges, Inspires a Nation: A Conversation With Professor Carol Faulkner

In June 1776, from a rented room in Philadelphia, Thomas Jefferson penned the first draft of the document that would forge a nation. The stakes were high, amidst the ongoing war with the British, to find the right words to…

Philanthropy Driven by Passion, Potential and Purpose

Ken Pontarelli ’92 credits the University for changing his life, opening up opportunities to pursue his passions and achieve professional success that allows him to focus on the public good. In return, he and his wife, Tracey, are paying it…

First-Year Law Student to First-Year Dean: Lau Combines Law and Business to Continue College of Law’s Upward Trajectory

Three decades ago, Terence J. Lau L’98 walked the corridors as an eager student in the College of Law, then located in White Hall. He knew he had been given a rare chance—and a full scholarship—to be a part of…

Ian ’90 and Noah Eagle ’19 Share a Love of Sportscasting and Storytelling (Podcast)

There’s a new father-son sportscasting team on the national scene, one with a decidedly Orange background: Ian ’90 and Noah Eagle ’19. Ian finished his second year as the lead announcer for the NCAA men’s basketball tournament and has crafted…

Subscribe to SU Today

If you need help with your subscription, contact sunews@syr.edu.

Connect With Us

For the Media

Find an Expert
© 2025 ϲ. All Rights Reserved.