Mayor Lori Lightfoot on Wednesday defended her decision to grant interviews on her two-year anniversary in office only to journalists of color, saying it was intended as an effort to confront the issue of what she described as a mostly white and male City Hall press corps.
But the move, revealed Tuesday by her office, was greeted skeptically by some in the Chicago media and beyond, with questions about whether excluding white reporters is a discriminatory act from a mayor who has had an often contentious relationship with reporters of all backgrounds.
Lightfoot emailed a two-page letter to Chicago journalists on Wednesday saying her choice was a continuation of her campaign’s promise to “break up the status quo.”
“I have been struck since my first day on the campaign trail back in 2018 by the overwhelming whiteness and maleness of Chicago media outlets, editorial boards, the political press corps, and yes, the City Hall press corps specifically,” Lightfoot wrote.
She wrote that there are no women of color assigned to the City Hall beat, saying, “I find this unacceptable and I hope you do too.”
WBEZ disputed the mayor’s observation in a Wednesday story, noting that two of its three City Hall reporters are women, one Hispanic and the other South Asian.
Diversity and inclusion is imperative across all institutions including media. In order to progress we must change.
— Mayor Lori Lightfoot (@chicagosmayor) May 19, 2021
This is exactly why I'm being intentional about prioritizing media requests from POC reporters on the occasion of the two-year anniversary of my inauguration as mayor of this great city.
— Mayor Lori Lightfoot (@chicagosmayor) May 19, 2021
Interviews to mark Lightfoot’s two years in office were set for this week and come as she faces mounting problems over crime, policing, turnover in her office and ongoing battles with the Chicago Teachers Union.
The Tribune declined to participate in an interview with Lightfoot to object to the restrictions.
Charles Whitaker, dean at the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University, said journalists of color trying to break into the political press corps have faced barriers for decades. But while he applauded Lightfoot’s motivation, he said the one-time interview restrictions felt more like a “stunt” and don’t address the root of an age-old problem.
“I don’t necessarily know that it is the best way,” Whitaker said in a phone interview. “We would never, ever in a million years allow that of a white politician. And so it’s dangerous now to say we are going to allow that of a Black politician simply to make a point about the historic inequities in media.”
Tiffany Walden, editor-in-chief of the digital media outlet The Triibe, which covers Chicago’s Black communities, defended Lightfoot’s action, saying it was a small step toward leveling the playing field after what she described as a long-standing lack of access for Black and Latino journalists.
“A lot of people are outraged by this, but just imagine what it’s like for Black and brown journalists in the city to not ever have this access,” Walden said. “This is literally a daily struggle for Black and brown journalists in Chicago, and I wish that was the conversation instead of people who have access to the mayor every single day complaining about one day that they don’t have access.”
Walden challenged Lightfoot to uphold her promise for supporting diversity in media by prioritizing access for Black and Latino-run media outlets just as much as for legacy media. She said her outlet has struggled to get timely responses from the Lightfoot administration and been excluded from press calls. Wednesday’s interview was the first one-on-one meeting with the mayor for a Triibe staffer, she said.
The editor-in-chief of South Side Weekly, Jacqueline Serrato, tweeted Wednesday afternoon that her outlet did not get Lightfoot’s letter to media and later said the paper had not been granted an interview with the mayor despite requests to her office from two women of color on the staff.
Whitaker said it’s nothing new for politicians to give priority to certain media outlets. He said when he worked at Ebony magazine, the influential Black publication, it was easier to get access to top officials in Washington than to former Mayor Harold Washington, Chicago’s first Black mayor. Whitaker eventually got a one-on-one interview with Washington for a profile in 1987, the year of his death.
“I absolutely felt … Harold Washington’s press corps at that time was favoring local legacy media over a national Black publication,” Whitaker said. “If the mayor (Lightfoot) really wants to effect access, she can make sure that many of those smaller outlets that are owned and operated by publishers and publishing houses of color have equal access to her.”
Joie Chen, a senior adviser for the Poynter Institute for Media Studies, said that the question isn’t whether Lightfoot’s decision to selectively choose reporters is a new phenomenon — it is not — but whether it serves the public and democracy.
“No matter their race, I think reporters will continue to ask the tough questions,” said Chen, a former member of the Washington press corps. “That’s what they should do, and I think that’s what they will do. And I don’t think anything in the mayor’s decision will affect that.”
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“Mayor Lori Lightfoot on Wednesday defended her decision to grant interviews on her two-year anniversary in office only to journalists of color,”
What do you think that this Mayor Lori Lightfoot thing, or the Democrat Party and their minion news outlets would say or do if ANY Republican would say that they are going to grant interviews “only to White journalists”???
Here we see a Democrat, black, homosexual, female exhibiting and promoting “discrimination” being granted privilege’s above any other race, based on race.
Trump couldn’t even kick out a foul mouthed woman beating white guy, I think his name was Acosta, the CNN guy from the white house press conferences. Here no white reporter even complained. So who is at fault?
Where are the lawsuits? Trump couldn’t even burp without drawing one.
That is what i want to know. WE SAW Dozens of news agencies (EVEN FOX) coming to Acosta’s defense when trump just wanted to kick HIM OUT OF the white house press corps.. AND A COURT RULED “that is an infringement on his press rights”.
SO WHERE ARE the suits here? Where are the media outlets coming out CONDEMNING what Corrupt-foot is doing?
Time for white people to follow the mayors lead and only deal with white people, drive the woke fools crazy.
That sounds like a great plan. The blacks can do it, so can the whites. These racist blacks are bringing about more racism in this country than most whites do, especially the phony socialists/communist blm.
Is this country screwed up or what?
You just know, if white folks TRIED doing that, the woke JUDGES would shank us over with ‘racism charges’.
Hey, “equality” crowd, what’s good for the black gander is good for the white goose. Equal rights to deal solely with your own race if that’s your preference i.e. self-segregation. No more goverment-forced “diversity” that Lightfoot’s maneuver proves is just code for one-sided moves against whites. Let whites gather without a single black forced among them unless invited, just as blacks gather in exclusively black organizations. Blow up the double standard where blacks have freedom of association while whites do not.
That’s how it damn well SHOULD Be minka.. BUT TILL we eliminate all the libtards in congress, and ALL THE liberal judges, i just don’t see it ever being able to happen..
Lightfoot is a racist just like Obama and Moochelle, Most blacks hate the whites, and the feeling is mutual in most cases.
The bug eyed bigot doubles down on racist policy. What a disaster.
Actually I think she is really some kind of space alien like in “Invasion of the Body Snatchers”, except during the duplication process something went wrong and her head got messed up. Apologies to those that never saw the movie.
Well leadhead is a DEMONcrat and has proven multiple times just how racist it really is, leadhead has not only proven she is racist but as hateful as can be. I just hope those in shecago come to their senses and give that one the boot sooner rather than later. To many of these self proclaimed rulers who just happen to world class racists also think that white people need to be exterminated like so many roaches. Many of these dictators need to be removed from office in cuffs, if regular people did some of the things that these dictators are committing they would be thrown into prison without so much as a trial.
That is correct. It is a communist administration, and these demonRATS are evil! Newsome, from Californication, Light -Head, from Illinois, and the swamp and squad. They should all be in jail or deported to the hell hole they came from !
Mayor Lorie Lightfoot demonstrated what the leftist Democrat elite really feel and are passionate about, and MAYOR Lightfoot agrees, and that is, Don’t do as we do, Do as we say ”
Maybe if she could handle the job as Mayor, the “racist” press would not give her those hard questions she is unable to answer.
Hey Mayor what’s the Black on Black shooting deaths and injuries up to NOW. STILL no Fix.
THE DEMS DO NOT ever want to fix the violence/crime problem.. THEY Profit from it too much, to ever do anything to fix it.
A member of the Obama /Presidency once said, ” Never let a crisis go to waste ” And Mayor Lightfoot was right on IT.
One could wish that the non-white reporters would do what happened when Obama tried to shut out FOX. They realized they could be next, so even the liberal reporters insisted on bringing FOX back.
WE could wish that.. BUT i doubt the left cares.
My deceased father who grew up on the south side of Chicago often espoused an expression common to his generation: “The Germans built Chicago . .. the Irish ruled Chicago. .. and now the (blacks) are destroying Chicago.”
a racist lesbo who would have thunk it.
Who votes for these things?
That dog no longer hunts in a globally focused world, as Caucasians are the Global Minority and the term ” People of Color” is mere code for anti White racists. What color is White? When do the black and brown majorities stop taking advantage of and persecuting the minority Whites?
Never. White and yellow are the innovators for the most part.
The church nearly killed Galileo for noting astronomical facts. No different than black leaders today screaming Kill Whitey.
The , ‘ Mayor is Confused and demonstrates as total lack of basic biology 101, and yet this. , Fill in the blank that best describes this personnage.I, for one wouldn’t presume to untangle from her actions, who it is we’re doing our best to try and figure out…
NOT till we stand the hell up, and MAKE THEM STOP>
There isn’t too much mystery in why a Democrat black mayor would discriminate against the “White Race, the only question is, why would this gay black mayor be so open in her reason for her racial bias.
This is just another example of RACISM, by a BLACK RACIST DEMOCRAT INCOMPETENT MAYOR ! This woman has done a HORRIBLE job of running Chicago, and, this is just another example of her lack of leadership.
COMMENTgrade for mayor is a F-MINUS, in all 3 categories, SUBJECT F- MINUS, and A FAILURE A MINUS in the other 2. Whatever they are , she has failed and that grade of failure she has earned is A++++
A shining example of a racist. Not only a racist, but an incompetent, coward, who wants to be protected by the police who she wants to defund. Defund her protection, have her pay for or not have taxpayers pay for her stupidity. What a shame that people will actually vote for or not throw out these idiots. How’s the crime level? how’s your community doing? how safe do you feel? Why don’t people actually throw them out. If you were stupid enough to want to interview her ask those questions and see what the idiotic response would be. If you had this stupidity in your house, would you put up with it for years? Clean house, so you can clean up your community. If not you get what you deserve. Good luck Chicago.
Can you imagine how SWIFTLY the condemnation of “Racial discrimination”, would come, if a WHITE politician said “I am only taking questions from fellow whites”?
OR the howls of sexism, if a MALE politician said “I am only taking questions from guys!”??
Interesting. She knows her voters. And to think, one of my ancestors not so far back, was mayor of the town. How far it has fallen.
Racism by another name is still racism, bee atch.
So she says: “Diversity and inclusion is imperative across all institutions including media. In order to progress we must change.” Apparently she does not really know or understand the true meaning of diversity and inclusion otherwise she would not do what she is doing, Nothing like being “racist” in reverse, oh wait, she is black so she cannot be racist as only white people are racist.
“Diversity and inclusion is imperative across all institutions including media. In order to progress we must change”. Yep Mayor Lightfoot, diversity and inclusion is “exclusion” of people that are white. Lori, go back to Kindergarten and learn how to spell the word “racist”, because you are a racist. How is that for “diversity”?
Diversity, unless you are white/male/conservative..
inclusion of everyone OTHER THAN white/male/conservatives..
So, Lori Lightweight wants to surround herself with her “own kind” who will only give her the puff-ball questions…. I get it.
Blech Lives Matter!
A hail Mary in what she obviously sees as a tough re-election. Also a diversion against the upcoming wave of violence as summer is fast approaching and the financial collapse of the city.
Why would anyone want to live in Chicago?
COMMENTcan not find a reason. Not one .
THat is why i scratch my head every time i see a new episode of house hunters, where someone is MOVING TO CHICAGO!?
COMMENT MOST Blacks JUST WANT A Free Handout. Food Stamps AND Welfare. Riots SO THEY CAN GET FREE STUFF FROM THE STORES THEY BREAK INTO. Free HOUSING, Food BANKS AND Guns SO THEY CAN KILL THEIR OWN KIND. WOW. GET OUT OF Jail FREE FROM THE Mayor.
This is literally the definition of racism honest to god do democrats even know what the word equality means !? Today the democrats only want the good things when it comes to equality. They want special treatment if the subect is negative but they are all on board for anything positive. In the real world you must take the good with the bad.
She a racist. It’s thst simple. she said so herself by only talking to blacks.
She no different than racists or fascists in any era.
Lightfoot is a total incompetent. She has to realize it. This with the reporters is just a distraction.
Mayor “Lighthead” Lightfoot is a perfect example of a RACIST, apparently she thinks Racism comes in only one color, she and others that think and act like her are the ones responsible for the DIVISION in this Country AND by making comments and taking such actions, she further proves that she is unfit to be MAYOR of Chicago nor any other OFFICIAL capacity, she is not smart enough, as a matter of fact she is, by her actions and words, really quite Ignorant and Dumb!
OF course leftists feel only whites can be racist.. No one else can. Just like only Men can be sexists, not victims of it..
Lightfoot unfortunately creates nation wide ridicule & stereotyping of blacks as being low IQ, racially hostile, inept, incompetent & utterly unqualified to hold any public office or positions of authority.
And, really, why would any honest journalist, if there are any, want to interview her anyway?
Everyone knows she is just going to give her zombie stare & blame any & all bad stuff happening in Chicago & everywhere else in the world on genetically racist white people, designated as such by the self appointed biological scientist Obama.
Would have to be a masochist to interview her just to hear her mumbo-jumbo blathering that white supremacy is reason why disproportionate number of black people are illiterate & become violent criminals, drug users / dealers & run amok shooting & killing lots of other black people.
As a reporter it would be my pleasure for her to ban interviews with me while I publicly & constantly mock, ridicule & point the finger straight at old Lori as being responsible & accountable for the corrupt rat & crime infested hell hole that Chicago has become.
ABC news censored me for say blacks have low IQ. But it’s true look it up.
Note you casual
Note, how casual this Mayor of Chicago treats what she has. Done. With contempt for the voting process and also showing her contempt for the
Legal voters by he filng the office which she how occupies …,
ITS to me, not a ‘wrong stereotype’, though, when SO MANY TIMES It is proven RIGHT!
This dumb, bigoted, racist, leftist, anarchist supporting crazy idiot has ruined chicago like deblasio has ruined new york. She has no business anywhere near elected office. She would not be a good dog catcher! Several treasonous mayors around the country must be forced out of office for the good of those cities! And on top of all of this, lightfoot is queer! What a horrible situation for chigago!
I have no problem with the fact that she is gay, but I DO have a problem with the fact that she is an incompetent, racist Mayor !
Is this discrimination legal? If so, all white, hispanic and oriental officeholders should reciprocate. That will advance the lefts new segregated view of society.
These days it seems its ONLY ok, if you are the right persuasion doing the discrimination (women to men, blacks to everyone else, Democrats to conservatives etc), otherwise its LAWSUIT after LAWSUIT to stop you…
For all the talk about “Whiteness” and “White Supremacy”, isn’t it interesting how everything relating to
racist”, “racism”, and “systemic racism” is pushed by the Left and militant Blacks. I think there is a very concerted effort to create racial division in this country. Somebody definitely wants to create hatred, especially between Whites and Blacks despite all of their condemnation of it.
Lordy Lordy, We have a “Light foot Gay Black as a plantation owner – keep your slaves under control. You are a model racist.
Lori Lightfoot? Lori Lightbrain. Let’s see what happens when a white mayor of better yet, a governor does the same thing. If the media goes along with this it loses all credibility.
Why are some blacks working so hard promoting racism? I know BLM is full of communists but the rest makes no sense at all. If you don’t know BLM was founded by communists google Patrisse Cullors and speech wherein she bragged that she and Alicia Garza were trained Marxists. You don’t get serious Marxist training in the U.S.
Apparently she only represents the POC in Chicago. Those who don’t match her skin tone are second class citizens. Racism isn’t something only white people exhibit. If a white mayor did this they’d justifiably be called out for it.