ASNE’S “Covering the Community” contains tips on how to conduct a content analysis of the diversity of your newspaper’s coverage. The audit project, produced under the leadership of Gregory E. Favre, then executive editor of The Sacramento Bee, offers these tips and questions to consider:

• Raw numbers don’t mean much — there is no magic number. The counts can be used to compare sections and to measure progress over time.
• Play oftentimes is more important than the number of stories.
• Breaking stereotypes isn’t news. Women and racial minorities today hold all kinds of jobs at all levels. Features that single out “unusual” roles slur groups of people.
• Is there an abundance of stories about affluent whites helping needy minority children or adults?
• Are mainly minority communities covered only when a crime occurs?
• Look for stereotypes in pictures. The photo of the African-American child playing basketball is overdone. Seldom do you see minorities pictured in a classroom or science laboratory.
• Do stories about women and minorities run only on weekends or in special sections?
• Is there excessive focus on special holidays or “theme” months, such as Black History or Hispanic Heritage, at the expense of day-to-day coverage?
• Are cultural differences respected?