Comparing the racial diversity of the journalists
at America's daily newspapers
with the communities that they serve
Newsroom diversity report for
The San Diego Union-Tribune
San Diego, California
Owner: Copley Press (Calif.)
From a report for the Knight Foundation
by Bill Dedman and Stephen K. Doig, June 2005
Click here to read the national report or to select another newspaper
Year Non-white % of newsroom staff
2005 17.1
2004 16.9
2003 14.7
2002 Did not report
2001 Did not report
2000 Did not report
1999 12.8
1998 9.2
1997 9.2
1996 7.8
1995 7.1
1994 6.8
1993 6.9
1992 8.6
1991 Did not report
1990 Did not report
The latest year at peak is 2005
See the notes and definitions section below for the sources of these figures.
Newsroom Diversity Index
for The San Diego Union-Tribune
Year Non-white % of newsroom staff Non-white % of circulation area Newsroom Diversity Index (parity=100)
2005 17.1 45.5 38
2004 16.9 45.5 37
How the index is calculated
The Newsroom Diversity Index is the non-white percentage of the newsroom staff
divided by the non-white percentage of residents in the circulation area.
(Parity = 100.)
Company index
This newspaper's owner, Copley Press (Calif.),
has a companywide, circulation-weighted Diversity Index of 43.
See the notes and definitions section below for the sources of these figures.
Peer group comparison
for The San Diego Union-Tribune
This newspaper's Newsroom Diversity Index is 38. This paper
Peer group
Compare that with 70, which is the median Diversity Index for all newspapers
reporting in this circulation category of 250,001 to 500,000 daily sales.
In that group, this newspaper's Diversity Index ranks 24 out of 24
newspapers reporting in the category of 250,001 to 500,000 daily sales.
An example of a newspaper of similar circulation, in an area of similar level of non-white residents, but one that has a relatively high Diversity Index, is San Jose Mercury News, California, with a 32.1 percent non-white staff in a community that is 52.6 percent non-white. Its index is 61.
FYI, in circulation, this newspaper's average weekday circulation of
approximately 311,324 ranks 25 out of 1,410 daily newspapers in the US.
See the notes and definitions section below for the sources of these figures.
Details on race/ethnicity
in the circulation area
and the home county
of The San Diego Union-Tribune
Circulation area
Race/ethnicity % of population Number of residents
Hispanic 27.5 792,835
Black 5.5 157,809
Asian and Pacific Islander 9.0 259,656
Native-American 0.5 14,370
Other non-white 0.2 5,910
Multi-racial 2.8 82,058
  Non-white 45.5 1,312,638
White 54.5 1,572,034
Total 2,884,672
Home county:  San Diego
Race/ethnicity % of population Number of residents
Hispanic 26.7 750,965
Black 5.5 154,487
Asian and Pacific Islander 9.2 257,461
Native-American 0.5 15,253
Other non-white 0.2 5,822
Multi-racial 2.9 81,012
  Non-white 45.0 1,265,000
White 55.0 1,548,833
Total 2,813,833
The home county of this newspaper is San Diego.
About this report
This third annual report for the Knight Foundation adds context to an annual survey by the American Society of Newspaper Editors. ASNE has set a goal that
every newspaper, to help it know its community and gather the news, should employ at least one non-white journalist, and that newspapers should strive to
employ non-whites in proportion to their share of the community. ASNE's report, at www.asne.org, shows each newspaper's non-white employment, but does
not disclose how closely that employment mirrors the newspaper's circulation area.
That gap is filled by the report you are reading now. This report was not done by ASNE, but was done for the Knight Foundation by Bill Dedman and 
Stephen K. Doig. It shows how close each newspaper is to ASNE's goal, by comparing the newsroom staffing with the circulation area population.
The full report is at www.powerreporting.com/knight.
Notes and definitions
  1. The Newsroom Diversity Index is the non-white percentage of the newsroom staff divided by the non-white percentage of the circulation area's residents. Parity = 100.
  2. Source for staffing: Survey by American Society of Newspaper Editors, April 2005. Newspapers report non-white staff as of the end of the previous year.
  3. Following ASNE's definition, newsroom staff includes only supervisors, reporters, editors, copy/layout editors and photographers.
  4. Also following ASNE's definition, "whites," "blacks," etc., exclude Hispanics, who are counted in a separate category.
  5. Source for boundaries of this newspaper's circulation area: ZIP Code circulation data, Audit Bureau of Circulations, latest available. 
  6. A paper may define its circulation area differently for marketing efforts, or news coverage, or to set advertising rates.
  7. If ZIP Codes or counties are used, this report applies a threshold: 10 percent household penetration is required to include an area in the circulation area.
  8. Source for the demographics of residents of that circulation area: US Census 2000.
  9. Source for total circulation: Editor & Publisher magazine, Monday-Friday average at year-end 2004.
 10. Staff of non-English publications, such as the Miami Herald's El Nuevo Herald, are excluded from the ASNE staffing survey for the first time this year.
      
Demographics of ZIP Codes
where sales were reported by
The San Diego Union-Tribune
Note that some ZIP Codes listed here may not have been included in determining the newspaper's circulation area. In calculating the Diversity Index, a
ZIP Code was included only if the household penetration was at least 10 percent. Any lower-penetration ZIP Codes are also listed here for your information.
Also, if the newspaper reported more than 300 ZIP Codes, only the top 300 in weekday sales are listed here.
ZIP / City / State / Approx. distance in miles from the newspaper's home office Weekday sales Households Penetration % (daily sales per 100 households) Median household income Non-white
% of
population
Hispanic
% of
population
Black
% of
population
Native
% of
population
Asian
% of
population
91910 / Chula Vista / CA / 12.4 mi. 10,899 26,566 41.0 $42,970 64.8 45.7 4.4 0.4 11.3
92037 / La Jolla / CA / 8.3 mi. 10,029 17,660 56.8 $68,691 22.3 7.0 0.8 0.2 11.2
92117 / San Diego / CA / 4.8 mi. 9,931 20,790 47.8 $47,245 30.5 16.0 1.8 0.4 9.0
92128 / San Diego / CA / 16.5 mi. 9,456 18,818 50.2 $66,676 25.2 6.0 1.9 0.2 14.5
92101 / San Diego / CA / 3.6 mi. 8,796 11,520 76.4 $23,762 41.8 22.2 10.0 0.9 5.6
92109 / San Diego / CA / 5.5 mi. 8,633 23,866 36.2 $45,202 18.2 10.6 1.3 0.3 3.1
91911 / Chula Vista / CA / 12.6 mi. 8,315 22,344 37.2 $38,010 74.0 60.4 4.2 0.4 6.7
92021 / El Cajon / CA / 16.8 mi. 7,886 22,260 35.4 $40,103 28.2 17.9 3.7 0.8 2.3
92111 / San Diego / CA / 2.7 mi. 7,680 17,315 44.4 $42,774 50.1 22.1 5.2 0.4 19.0
92071 / Santee / CA / 9.7 mi. 7,625 18,739 40.7 $53,824 19.4 11.3 1.5 0.6 2.9
92020 / El Cajon / CA / 10.3 mi. 7,623 19,826 38.4 $37,230 35.6 22.4 5.3 0.7 2.8
91941 / La Mesa / CA / 8.6 mi. 7,612 18,695 40.7 $45,916 26.4 13.7 5.0 0.4 3.9
92129 / San Diego / CA / 14 mi. 7,590 14,914 50.9 $77,851 41.9 8.3 2.6 0.2 26.5
92009 / Carlsbad / CA / 23.6 mi. 7,564 17,289 43.8 $76,368 15.2 6.6 1.0 0.2 5.2
92126 / San Diego / CA / 8.1 mi. 7,558 22,690 33.3 $60,229 59.2 11.1 5.1 0.3 37.9
92064 / Poway / CA / 16.1 mi. 7,550 15,460 48.8 $71,385 22.8 10.4 1.6 0.3 7.5
92024 / Encinitas / CA / 20.4 mi. 7,051 18,277 38.6 $63,996 21.0 14.9 0.5 0.3 3.3
92103 / San Diego / CA / 2.1 mi. 6,650 17,567 37.9 $39,578 21.9 12.7 2.4 0.4 3.7
92115 / San Diego / CA / 4.4 mi. 6,498 20,697 31.4 $31,666 52.3 24.4 10.5 0.5 12.8
92019 / El Cajon / CA / 15.1 mi. 6,486 14,376 45.1 $56,486 23.5 13.3 2.7 0.6 3.3
92120 / San Diego / CA / 4.7 mi. 6,418 10,862 59.1 $57,461 20.0 9.3 2.9 0.3 4.6
91977 / Spring Valley / CA / 9.3 mi. 6,278 17,904 35.1 $45,917 54.8 28.4 13.0 0.5 8.3
92122 / San Diego / CA / 6.9 mi. 5,980 16,687 35.8 $52,039 30.2 6.8 1.4 0.2 18.4
92130 / San Diego / CA / 12.8 mi. 5,976 10,556 56.6 $93,929 23.5 5.9 0.6 0.1 14.1
92110 / San Diego / CA / 2.9 mi. 5,947 10,736 55.4 $40,642 26.9 14.4 3.6 0.5 5.3
92154 / San Diego / CA / 14.5 mi. 5,690 16,743 34.0 $42,970 80.4 54.9 6.9 0.3 15.6
92131 / San Diego / CA / 10.4 mi. 5,689 10,376 54.8 $90,811 25.7 6.9 2.3 0.2 13.1
92069 / San Marcos / CA / 26.2 mi. 5,523 17,823 31.0 $45,647 45.9 37.4 1.7 0.4 4.3
92114 / San Diego / CA / 6.9 mi. 5,212 17,470 29.8 $46,189 89.0 30.0 28.4 0.3 26.5
92104 / San Diego / CA / 2.4 mi. 5,133 21,459 23.9 $31,139 56.7 34.8 11.8 0.5 5.7
92040 / Lakeside / CA / 17.8 mi. 5,112 14,748 34.7 $49,011 18.4 11.6 1.2 1.6 1.5
92119 / San Diego / CA / 7.2 mi. 5,069 9,131 55.5 $55,973 19.2 9.2 2.4 0.4 4.3
92108 / San Diego / CA / 0 mi. 4,989 6,695 74.5 $42,626 31.6 13.0 5.4 0.4 8.4
92118 / Coronado / CA / 6.9 mi. 4,935 7,730 63.8 $66,489 21.4 9.8 5.0 0.5 3.9
92106 / San Diego / CA / 6.6 mi. 4,906 6,828 71.9 $62,121 15.0 7.8 1.7 0.4 2.8
92123 / San Diego / CA / 2.4 mi. 4,905 9,141 53.7 $49,646 41.2 14.4 8.8 0.7 12.0
92124 / San Diego / CA / 4.5 mi. 4,844 10,576 45.8 $59,164 34.3 10.5 8.0 0.5 10.7
92107 / San Diego / CA / 6 mi. 4,681 14,065 33.3 $42,660 16.4 8.6 1.6 0.4 2.1
92008 / Carlsbad / CA / 27.6 mi. 4,665 14,408 32.4 $55,123 24.5 17.9 0.8 0.3 3.3
91942 / La Mesa / CA / 7.7 mi. 4,639 10,838 42.8 $42,443 22.5 11.0 3.6 0.4 4.3
92105 / San Diego / CA / 4 mi. 4,261 21,334 20.0 $25,593 84.9 48.4 14.7 0.3 17.5
92083 / Vista / CA / 30.1 mi. 4,139 20,029 20.7 $45,901 49.0 37.1 4.2 0.5 4.7
92054 / Oceanside / CA / 32 mi. 4,047 27,573 14.7 $36,277 50.1 33.5 8.1 0.8 4.3
91950 / National City / CA / 7.7 mi. 4,016 15,225 26.4 $29,942 80.8 54.5 6.3 0.5 17.2
92116 / San Diego / CA / 1.4 mi. 3,961 16,545 23.9 $35,401 43.7 24.4 10.5 0.5 4.6
92065 / Ramona / CA / 25.9 mi. 3,729 10,698 34.9 $60,404 21.7 17.2 0.6 0.8 1.1
92025 / Escondido / CA / 22.6 mi. 3,558 14,841 24.0 $38,828 56.3 48.5 1.8 0.6 3.5
92056 / Oceanside / CA / 30.7 mi. 3,433 19,511 17.6 $53,676 35.0 20.4 4.5 0.4 6.6
92139 / San Diego / CA / 8.5 mi. 3,398 10,421 32.6 $49,032 82.2 28.3 13.8 0.3 35.2
92243 / El Centro / CA / 90.2 mi. 3,370 12,893 26.1 $35,024 79.7 72.5 2.7 0.4 3.1
92026 / Escondido / CA / 30.2 mi. 3,355 15,921 21.1 $48,441 35.3 25.5 2.0 0.4 5.0
92127 / San Diego / CA / 17.7 mi. 3,209 6,936 46.3 $75,219 28.1 7.9 2.4 0.3 13.7
91945 / Lemon Grove / CA / 7.1 mi. 3,175 8,499 37.4 $39,906 51.8 28.5 11.6 0.7 6.3
91902 / Bonita / CA / 10.8 mi. 3,138 5,811 54.0 $70,955 48.9 31.0 3.1 0.3 11.6
92014 / Del Mar / CA / 14.8 mi. 3,124 6,092 51.3 $97,029 12.0 4.4 0.6 0.2 4.7
92102 / San Diego / CA / 4.4 mi. 2,953 14,163 20.9 $26,505 85.6 63.1 14.3 0.3 5.7
92028 / Fallbrook / CA / 43.8 mi. 2,942 14,399 20.4 $49,284 35.1 29.8 1.1 0.4 2.0
92113 / San Diego / CA / 5.5 mi. 2,883 11,914 24.2 $23,841 97.1 74.7 17.6 0.3 3.2
92057 / Oceanside / CA / 32.8 mi. 2,858 15,576 18.3 $49,469 48.3 27.8 7.7 0.4 9.0
91901 / Alpine / CA / 24.9 mi. 2,754 5,708 48.2 $62,452 18.4 11.4 1.4 1.6 2.2
91932 / Imperial Beach / CA / 13.8 mi. 2,747 9,165 30.0 $36,025 56.3 40.0 4.9 0.7 6.8
92067 / Rancho Santa Fe / CA / 17.3 mi. 2,595 2,633 98.6 $196,298 10.3 4.9 0.3 0.1 3.5
92027 / Escondido / CA / 27.1 mi. 2,498 15,681 15.9 $46,077 44.2 35.7 1.9 0.7 3.8
92075 / Solana Beach / CA / 16.8 mi. 2,471 5,397 45.8 $69,057 21.6 15.5 0.5 0.2 3.4
91913 / Chula Vista / CA / 13.2 mi. 2,206 4,058 54.4 $66,968 61.9 35.4 4.6 0.3 18.4
92084 / Vista / CA / 31.4 mi. 1,954 14,167 13.8 $44,322 45.5 37.1 2.7 0.5 2.7
92173 / San Ysidro / CA / 17.6 mi. 1,901 7,311 26.0 $27,943 95.3 89.0 1.9 0.2 3.2
92029 / Escondido / CA / 21.5 mi. 1,810 6,580 27.5 $63,581 25.1 14.6 1.7 0.3 5.9
91915 / Chula Vista / CA / 16 mi. 1,566 2,712 57.7 $76,346 67.6 29.2 5.6 0.2 28.8
92591 / Temecula / CA / 52.5 mi. 1,478 8,231 18.0 $58,429 29.6 18.9 2.7 0.4 4.6
92007 / Cardiff by the Sea / CA / 18.9 mi. 1,466 4,395 33.4 $62,877 21.3 14.8 0.7 0.3 2.7
91935 / Jamul / CA / 20.3 mi. 1,302 2,846 45.7 $80,291 22.3 16.1 1.3 0.6 2.1
92036 / Julian / CA / 49.2 mi. 1,241 1,449 85.6 $47,636 12.5 7.8 1.0 0.9 0.5
92121 / San Diego / CA / 9.2 mi. 1,219 1,810 67.3 $70,750 37.1 6.3 1.8 0.1 25.9
91978 / Spring Valley / CA / 13 mi. 1,177 2,862 41.1 $46,853 33.6 17.5 6.3 0.6 4.5
92082 / Valley Center / CA / 34.5 mi. 993 4,727 21.0 $58,147 31.5 22.8 0.4 5.2 1.2
92003 / Bonsall / CA / 35.9 mi. 819 1,417 57.8 $58,059 28.4 23.3 0.9 0.3 2.5
91914 / Chula Vista / CA / 14 mi. 615 833 73.8 $68,771 60.8 36.3 4.9 0.1 15.4
92227 / Brawley / CA / 98.8 mi. 535 7,076 7.6 $31,694 76.8 72.3 2.0 0.4 1.1
91906 / Campo / CA / 37.3 mi. 534 1,041 51.3 $39,359 36.8 23.3 2.4 6.8 0.5
92592 / Temecula / CA / 50.8 mi. 533 14,357 3.7 $67,593 29.9 16.8 3.6 1.3 5.2
92262 / Palm Springs / CA / 82 mi. 486 11,029 4.4 $32,844 39.4 28.2 5.5 0.7 3.4
92251 / Imperial / CA / 88.7 mi. 332 3,033 10.9 $51,008 70.3 56.0 11.5 0.5 1.5
92231 / Calexico / CA / 93 mi. 319 7,002 4.6 $28,851 97.3 95.0 0.1 0.2 1.7
92004 / Borrego Springs / CA / 60.7 mi. 318 1,280 24.8 $35,648 35.8 33.5 0.8 0.4 0.3
92562 / Murrieta / CA / 54.1 mi. 280 11,933 2.3 $61,583 27.1 16.9 3.0 0.4 4.0
92692 / Mission Viejo / CA / 64.8 mi. 252 16,603 1.5 $82,690 23.7 10.5 1.2 0.2 8.9
91962 / Pine Valley / CA / 42 mi. 234 598 39.1 $63,971 10.6 7.5 0.0 0.6 0.6
91916 / Descanso / CA / 31.4 mi. 197 606 32.5 $46,976 12.2 7.2 0.4 1.1 1.0
92250 / Holtville / CA / 107.3 mi. 189 2,360 8.0 $39,583 69.5 67.3 0.3 0.3 0.6
91905 / Boulevard / CA / 49.9 mi. 153 520 29.4 $37,727 35.0 18.0 3.8 9.9 0.7
91963 / Potrero / CA / 33.5 mi. 89 291 30.6 $29,531 48.9 42.6 0.1 0.3 1.0
91934 / Jacumba / CA / 55.4 mi. 87 276 31.5 $25,568 43.5 34.1 2.9 3.2 0.0
92086 / Warner Springs / CA / 46.1 mi. 81 509 15.9 $38,077 25.0 13.1 0.1 8.9 1.4
91917 / Dulzura / CA / 23.4 mi. 63 256 24.6 $32,917 33.3 29.9 0.3 0.4 1.3
91980 / Tecate / CA / 33.2 mi. 63 23 273.9 $20,417 72.4 71.3 0.0 0.0 0.0
92070 / Santa Ysabel / CA / 36.3 mi. 54 465 11.6 $30,449 42.6 16.8 0.9 23.3 0.1
92233 / Calipatria / CA / 98.1 mi. 42 1,076 3.9 $31,031 78.5 56.7 19.6 0.6 0.7
91931 / Guatay / CA / 34.8 mi. 40 306 13.1 $29,375 19.8 14.5 1.7 0.3 0.4
92539 / Anza / CA / 64.2 mi. 29 1,466 2.0 $30,338 25.4 17.9 0.6 3.7 0.8
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