Reginald Stuart Emphasizes Importance of Diversity in Today's Newsrooms

Reginald Stuart spoke passionately at last night's SPJ meeting.

by Rebecca Leon

Reginald Stuart commented on diversity’s relevance to modern journalism and offered students some key tips for success at last night’s meeting of the Society of Professional Journalists’ VCU Student Chapter.

Mr. Stuart is a notable journalist with a career that spans 40 years. Although his career has taken him many places and he’s won many awards, Stuart currently works as a recruiter for The McClatchy Company, applying his experience to find new talent.

Stuart discussed the economic crisis and its impact on newspapers. He says employers are becoming more selective and competitiveness is higher than ever. As a recruiter for one of America’s top newspaper publishers, Stuart spends plenty of time looking at resumes. According to him, one of the most valuable skills to have is knowledge of at least one other language. He says it is something he always looks for when reviewing resumes.

“If you’re going to be a 21st century journalist, you have to know Spanish,” said Stuart. He pointed out that the majority of American journalists today do not speak Spanish, or any other foreign language. As a result, large populations living in America are being excluded from the media.

“We’re missing telling their stories,” said Stuart. He added that usage of a translator was not nearly as effective because “things are lost in translation” and said that it is ideal to “cut the middle man” in order to capture a person’s true emotions and feelings about a situation.

Along with a second language, Stuart suggested that students become more conscious of the rest of the world through travel and new experiences. He encouraged students to see as much of the world as possible and develop some general knowledge of world history and foreign cultures.

“The more you know about the rest of the world, the better journalist you’ll be.”

According to Stuart, journalists need to know as much about the rest of the world as possible. He noted that views of America have grown worse in recent times, but said that journalists might be able to change that by acting as representatives for their country.

“Americans are seen as introverts and arrogant. Journalists give Americans a chance to be extraverted and humble.”

Another important tip was confidence. According to Stuart, having the right attitude is key: “The worse thing you can do is be negative … stay focused, be positive.”

Many students found his advice to be quite helpful.

“I really liked that he talked about character traits that are important to have – professionalism, a positive focus, and forward thinking. They’re words we can all live by,” said student Ben Taylor.

“I found his talk on resume building to be very helpful, he knows what he’s talking about because he’s a recruiter,” said junior Santia Nance.

Stuart says that in order to have a successful career, a journalist should be open to change and to travel. He reminded students that they would likely have to travel to a different area for a job.

“Be flexible in your thinking,” he said, “Go wherever the opportunity is.”

According to Stuart, a foreign language, technical skills, travel, and a strong, accurate resume are key for aspiring journalists.

When it comes to success, Stuart made one thing very clear: “You have to do it all.”