Credit Samantha Horton / IPB News
Journalists at the Indianapolis Star and the South Bend Tribune are criticizing corporate owner Gannett for race and gender pay gaps. They say the disparities were uncovered when 14 unionized papers analyzed combined wage data to publish a nationwide study.
The Newsguild-Communications Workers of America union says nationally, Gannett paid long-time female employees a median salary of about $27,000 less than their male counterparts. Meanwhile, journalists of color reported median earnings 10 percent less than White journalists.
At the Indianapolis Star alone, women journalists made 80 percent of men's median salary – a difference of about $12,000 – while workers of color made 97 percent of their White peers' pay. The South Bend Tribune union found its male journalists made more than $6,000 more than female writers. Both newspapers had staff that were more White than the communities they cover.