The Courier News, Bridgewater... Racial diversity of its news staff and community

Comparing the racial diversity of the journalists

at America's daily newspapers

with the communities that they serve

Newsroom diversity report for

The Courier News, Bridgewater

Bridgewater, New Jersey

Owner: Gannett Co. (Va.)

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

12.8

2004

11.4

2003

13.3

2002

13.6

2001

12.5

2000

21.2

1999

16.7

1998

14.0

1997

16.9

1996

13.2

1995

11.3

1994

11.3

1993

10.0

1992

4.5

1991

Did not report

1990

Did not report

The latest year at peak is

2000

See the notes and definitions section below for the sources of these figures.

Newsroom Diversity Index

for The Courier News, Bridgewater

Year

Non-white % of newsroom staff

Non-white % of circulation area

Newsroom Diversity Index (parity=100)

2005

12.8

33.0

2004

11.4

32.6

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, Gannett Co. (Va.),

has a companywide, circulation-weighted Diversity Index of 89.

See the notes and definitions section below for the sources of these figures.

Peer group comparison

for The Courier News, Bridgewater

This newspaper's Newsroom Diversity Index is 39.

This paper

Peer group

Compare that with 44, which is the median Diversity Index for all newspapers

reporting in this circulation category of 25,001 to 50,000 daily sales.

In that group, this newspaper's Diversity Index ranks 83 out of 140

newspapers reporting in the category of 25,001 to 50,000 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 Longview News-Journal, Texas, with a 23.1 percent non-white staff in a community that is 28.4 percent non-white. Its index is 81.

FYI, in circulation, this newspaper's average weekday circulation of

approximately 40,098 ranks 262 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 Courier News, Bridgewater

Circulation area

Race/ethnicity

% of population

Number of residents

Hispanic

10.4

42,514

Black

12.5

50,883

Asian and Pacific Islander

8.0

32,558

Native-American

0.1

430

Other non-white

0.2

839

Multi-racial

1.4

5,676

Non-white

32.6

132,900

White

67.4

275,257

Total

408,157

Home county: Somerset

Race/ethnicity

% of population

Number of residents

Hispanic

8.7

25,811

Black

7.3

21,571

Asian and Pacific Islander

8.4

24,961

Native-American

0.1

229

Other non-white

0.2

565

Multi-racial

1.3

3,769

Non-white

25.9

76,906

White

74.2

220,584

Total

297,490

The home county of this newspaper is Somerset.

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 Courier News, Bridgewater

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

08807 / Bridgewater / NJ / 0 mi.

4,878

13,212

36.9

$86,517

20.0

4.9

2.3

0.0

11.5

08876 / South Branch / NJ / 2.9 mi.

4,021

15,872

25.3

$68,213

25.1

8.9

6.5

0.1

7.9

07060 / Plainfield / NJ / 9.8 mi.

3,316

16,161

20.5

$51,406

69.0

29.9

33.1

0.2

3.5

07080 / South Plainfield / NJ / 10.2 mi.

2,251

7,146

31.5

$67,487

27.1

8.6

8.3

0.2

7.5

08846 / Middlesex / NJ / 6.1 mi.

1,796

5,048

35.6

$60,723

17.6

9.0

3.2

0.1

4.1

08822 / Flemington / NJ / 12.2 mi.

1,753

10,368

16.9

$77,639

9.3

3.7

1.3

0.1

3.1

08854 / Piscataway / NJ / 8.3 mi.

1,738

16,507

10.5

$68,709

55.1

7.9

19.8

0.2

24.8

08835 / Manville / NJ / 3.7 mi.

1,624

4,120

39.4

$51,258

7.9

5.4

0.4

0.1

1.3

08812 / Green Brook / NJ / 6.9 mi.

1,415

4,374

32.4

$67,377

19.8

9.9

3.2

0.1

5.5

08805 / Bound Brook / NJ / 4.3 mi.

1,374

4,296

32.0

$50,634

37.0

30.7

2.0

0.2

3.1

07062 / Plainfield / NJ / 11.1 mi.

1,371

4,561

30.1

$52,568

81.9

16.5

61.9

0.2

1.3

08502 / Belle Mead / NJ / 8.1 mi.

1,218

5,898

20.7

$114,854

15.9

2.4

2.2

0.1

10.2

08873 / Zarepath / NJ / 8 mi.

1,052

15,441

6.8

$68,047

49.9

8.8

27.5

0.1

11.1

08869 / Raritan / NJ / 1.5 mi.

1,009

2,584

39.0

$51,278

18.7

8.4

0.7

0.1

8.5

07059 / Warren / NJ / 6.1 mi.

900

4,616

19.5

$103,825

16.4

3.1

1.2

0.0

10.7

07063 / Plainfield / NJ / 8.6 mi.

678

3,698

18.3

$53,373

79.3

18.7

57.0

0.1

1.9

08853 / Neshanic Station / NJ / 7 mi.

668

3,903

17.1

$100,432

10.3

2.3

1.9

0.1

4.9

08836 / Martinsville / NJ / 3.2 mi.

659

1,393

47.3

$113,639

9.1

2.0

0.7

0.0

5.7

08889 / Whitehouse Station / NJ / 6.8 mi.

549

3,397

16.2

$95,476

6.3

2.1

0.8

0.0

2.4

07076 / Scotch Plains / NJ / 12.2 mi.

539

7,216

7.5

$78,742

26.0

4.2

12.4

0.1

7.8

08833 / Lebanon / NJ / 10.7 mi.

530

2,957

17.9

$100,816

5.3

1.5

0.8

0.1

2.3

07920 / Basking Ridge / NJ / 6.5 mi.

527

9,300

5.7

$105,471

13.0

2.6

1.4

0.0

7.8

08880 / South Bound Brook / NJ / 5 mi.

522

1,632

32.0

$48,984

36.6

22.9

7.7

0.1

4.1

08809 / Clinton / NJ / 15.5 mi.

326

2,047

15.9

$68,889

21.4

5.5

12.2

0.3

2.3

07921 / Bedminster / NJ / 4.5 mi.

306

4,063

7.5

$71,219

13.4

3.8

1.8

0.1

6.6

07090 / Westfield / NJ / 14 mi.

292

11,756

2.5

$98,684

11.9

2.8

3.8

0.1

4.0

07023 / Fanwood / NJ / 12.1 mi.

274

2,574

10.6

$85,233

14.5

3.7

5.1

0.1

4.4

08801 / Annandale / NJ / 13.2 mi.

223

2,608

8.6

$99,010

18.8

5.3

9.9

0.2

2.3

07922 / Berkeley Heights / NJ / 10.8 mi.

189

4,142

4.6

$105,056

13.5

3.9

1.1

0.1

7.8

07924 / Bernardsville / NJ / 8.5 mi.

187

2,703

6.9

$103,506

10.1

6.0

0.3

0.1

2.6

08829 / High Bridge / NJ / 14.2 mi.

187

1,437

13.0

$69,063

5.2

2.2

0.8

0.3

1.5

08817 / Edison / NJ / 12 mi.

184

16,253

1.1

$63,980

44.5

8.5

7.9

0.1

26.0

07830 / Califon / NJ / 12.6 mi.

181

2,302

7.9

$92,370

4.0

1.2

0.6

0.0

1.6

07934 / Gladstone / NJ / 8.8 mi.

159

548

29.0

$104,078

4.0

2.2

0.6

0.1

0.9

08551 / Ringoes / NJ / 14.4 mi.

138

1,717

8.0

$90,149

5.8

2.0

0.8

0.0

2.2

08867 / Pittstown / NJ / 13.9 mi.

136

1,492

9.1

$94,953

5.5

2.3

0.8

0.1

1.7

08825 / Frenchtown / NJ / 21.3 mi.

126

1,679

7.5

$59,432

3.9

1.9

0.3

0.1

1.1

08848 / Milford / NJ / 23 mi.

124

3,116

4.0

$70,876

3.4

1.8

0.5

0.1

0.4

07974 / New Providence / NJ / 12.7 mi.

123

4,133

3.0

$93,033

13.5

3.5

1.0

0.0

8.0

08826 / Glen Gardner / NJ / 16.6 mi.

106

2,126

5.0

$75,371

5.2

2.5

1.0

0.1

0.9

08559 / Stockton / NJ / 19.3 mi.

100

1,943

5.1

$83,819

3.5

1.4

0.5

0.0

1.0

08823 / Franklin Park / NJ / 10.4 mi.

3,013

3.2

$64,051

49.8

5.7

18.9

0.1

23.3

08827 / Hampton / NJ / 17.7 mi.

1,457

6.4

$79,393

6.9

2.6

2.2

0.1

1.1

08753 / Toms River / NJ / 45.3 mi.

22,983

0.4

$56,526

9.2

4.8

1.4

0.1

2.1

08558 / Skillman / NJ / 11.8 mi.

1,748

5.0

$126,027

7.4

1.5

0.0

3.6

07980 / Stirling / NJ / 8.6 mi.

897

9.1

$71,250

10.4

4.7

0.2

0.1

4.2

08802 / Pattenburg / NJ / 20.3 mi.

1,333

5.1

$77,079

3.4

1.3

0.7

0.1

0.7

08530 / West Amwell / NJ / 21 mi.

2,896

2.2

$62,137

14.9

3.1

10.0

0.1

0.9

07083 / Union Center / NJ / 18.5 mi.

18,124

0.3

$60,487

34.5

9.3

15.2

0.1

8.1

08553 / Rocky Hill / NJ / 11.6 mi.

284

21.5

$79,469

8.2

3.9

1.4

0.0

1.1

07901 / Summit / NJ / 14.9 mi.

8,507

0.7

$93,785

19.2

9.7

3.9

0.0

4.5

08858 / Oldwick / NJ / 10.7 mi.

71.8

$94,037

0.6

0.0

07066 / Clark / NJ / 15.4 mi.

5,636

0.9

$65,019

7.3

3.7

0.2

0.0

2.8

07933 / Gillette / NJ / 10.8 mi.

1,206

3.9

$81,862

10.4

3.0

0.6

0.1

5.4

07092 / Mountainside / NJ / 14 mi.

2,434

1.9

$97,195

7.4

3.0

0.9

0.1

2.8

08865 / Phillipsburg / NJ / 27.6 mi.

11,296

0.4

$44,092

7.8

3.7

2.1

0.1

0.9

07027 / Garwood / NJ / 15.1 mi.

1,731

2.3

$52,571

7.3

5.0

0.4

0.0

1.3

07016 / Cranford / NJ / 16 mi.

8,397

0.4

$76,338

9.4

3.9

2.6

0.0

2.2

07931 / Far Hills / NJ / 7.2 mi.

996

3.5

$132,919

6.7

3.0

0.8

0.0

2.3

08723 / Osbornsville / NJ / 42.7 mi.

12,470

0.3

$50,069

7.7

4.7

0.9

0.1

1.2

07081 / Springfield / NJ / 16.2 mi.

6,144

0.5

$73,100

13.3

4.1

3.6

0.0

4.7

07001 / Avenel / NJ / 16.9 mi.

4,628

0.6

$55,468

44.8

8.9

13.0

0.2

19.3

07065 / Rahway / NJ / 16.6 mi.

10,031

0.3

$50,729

49.4

14.1

29.2

0.1

3.3

08901 / New Brunswick / NJ / 10.7 mi.

13,082

0.1

$36,048

67.1

39.0

20.7

0.2

5.3

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