The Authentic Voice: The Best Reporting on Race and Ethnicity

Arlene Notoro Morgan, Alice Irene Pifer, and Keith Woods

July, 2006
Paper, 352 pages, 65 photos
ISBN: 978-0-231-13289-3
$46.50

Cloth, 352 pages, 65 photos
ISBN: 978-0-231-13288-6
$77.50

"Compelling. No one should study journalism without reading (and viewing) The Authentic Voice... It should be on the required reading list." — Quill & Scroll

"An important and highly useful addition to the collection of diversity related titles." — Jack Breslin, Journal of Mass Media Ethics

"The Authentic Voice is an important multimedia tool for journalists and journalism educators who have struggled to find better ways to serve Americans of all races and ethnic backgrounds. Its selection of journalistic writing isn't just about covering race but about exemplary reporting and storytelling as well. It offers a journalistic primer on covering all of America and facilitating our social conversation, and the book's discussions with journalists offer valuable and important insight into the craft and the art behind the stories themselves. The challenge of this century is how the press can help make sense of the world and elevate and clarify our rich public discourse so that it represents all of society. The Authentic Voice not only shows that reporting with truth, courage, context, humanity, and compassion is possible, but that others can learn how to do it for themselves, their readers and viewers, and for their communities." — Edward C. Pease, professor and graduate director in journalism and communication, Utah State University

"The Authentic Voice is a well conceived, logically organized and user friendly multimedia approach to providing examples of and strategies behind a splendid collection of stories about the complexities of race and ethnicity. Sophisticated and itself authentic, this is a book of pedagogical beauty—one that, through a blend of exemplary print and broadcast stories, background essays, poignant interviews, discussion questions, suggested readings, and Web links, effectively frames and illustrates the challenges of covering an increasingly multicultural America. The book, DVD, and Web page are thoughtfully calibrated—making this a work of journalism and instruction at its best." — Douglas Anderson, dean, College of Communications, The Pennsylvania State University

"A must-read for journalists and journalism educators, The Authentic Voice: The Best Reporting on Race and Ethnicity strikes just the right balance between the skills and sensibilities journalists need to report honestly and completely about race relations in America. This unique book uses stories as well as the stories behind the stories to provide insights into reporting on race. Especially effective are “The Making Of” sections in which the journalists share the personal journeys their stories took them on." — Erna Smith, professor of journalism and senior director, Center for Integration and Improvement of Journalism, San Francisco State University

Related Subjects

• Journalism
• Journalism & Media Studies
• Race and Ethnicity

About the Author

Arlene Notoro Morgan is the associate dean of prizes and programs at Columbia University and the director of the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism's "Let's Do It Better! Workshop on Journalism, Race, and Ethnicity." Formerly, she was an assistant managing editor at The Philadelphia Inquirer, where she was honored with the first Knight Ridder Excellence Award for Diversity in 1995. Alice Irene Pifer is the director of professional education at the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism and a former producer at ABC News. Keith Woods is the dean of faculty at the Poynter Institute and a former reporter, city editor, editorial writer, and columnist at The Times-Picayune.

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