People Count: Diversity Trumps Demographics in Election Coverage

October 27, 2008

People Count: Diversity Trumps Demographics in Election Coverage

Ultimately, elections are about numbers: Whoever gets the most votes (popular or Electoral College) wins. Therefore, it’s tempting for news organizations to view communities primarily as demographic blocks—essentially, as numbers.

The classic form for this type of election story is: “Here’s how Latinos are polling on issue X or candidate Y,” plus perhaps a few example anecdotes to make the story superficially appear to be more about people than numbers. This approach fits well with the too-easy horserace style of election coverage.

For instance, check out these recent stories…

Roaring Fork Valley Latinos backing Obama (Vail Daily, CO, Oct. 27)
Utah Blacks Energized by Obama (Salt Lake Tribune, Oct. 27)
Will Obama Finish Strong on Election Day? “When it comes to the black vote, Obama now leads McCain 87-7 in the FOX poll although I’m sure he’ll go well over 90 percent.” (Fox News, Oct. 25)
Economy, Values Split Coveted Latino Vote (ABC News 10, Sacramento, CA)

It’s true that there is analytic value to quantifying politics through demographics. But when demographic polling becomes a news organization’s primary lens on a community’s politics, there’s also a danger. Demographics-focused stories may unintentionally promote stereotyping or even divisiveness because they prioritize characteristics over individuals in what is fundamentally a matter of personal choice.

When covering what local communities of difference think about political issues and the upcoming election, remember that these communities are comprised of people. Ultimately, democracy is about individuals. Therefore, individual community members can (and probably should) be routine sources of opinion, insight, and commentary throughout all of your election coverage.

Make sure that your stories about rallies, polling places, ballot counting, issues, commercials, campaign volunteers, and more includes a diverse base of sources.

For instance, when writing about candidates’ differences on energy policy, don’t just interview politicos and experts. The head of a Guatemalan-American family living in a rural trailer park would probably have a lot of interesting things to say about energy costs. So might an Asian-American college student living in a urban shared apartment. So might the managers of the local Jewish community center.

This approach offers the advantage of presenting communities of difference in a broader democratic context, rather than pigeonholing them. It also can make your election coverage more nuanced, lively, and less predictable. So go ahead and run the occasional demographics-based story—as long as it’s balanced by diverse sources throughout your coverage. Also, be sure to learn more about political diversity within communities of difference. (Here’s an example.)