The Review is sponsoring a Diversity in Journalism Conference this Saturday, beginning at 10 a,m, in Peters Hall. A diverse group of journalists will discuss what it's like to be a minority in the newsroom. The journalists described below are some of the Conference's guest speakers. Reports were compiled by Margo Lipschultz and Abby Person.

Maki Becker, OC '93, first became interested in journalism during her years as a writer for the Review.

"I started out as a sports writer just to help out a friend who was a sports editor during my first year," Becker said. "But I knew nothing at all about track."

Although she was a self-described "terrible sports writer," Becker found her niche as an arts writer and, during her senior year, as a news editor. "I just got hooked," she said.

She graduated a full year early with the desire to pursue a journalism career. During Saturday's Diversity Conference, she will share with students tips she has acquired on "Getting your foot in the door" of such a career.

Becker is now a bureau reporter for theCharlotte Observer in North Carolina. Prior to her work for the Observer, she was an intern and freelance writer for L.A. Weekly, and a stringer for the Los Angeles Times. She is also a member of the Asian American Journalists Association (AAJA).

"There are a lot of Oberlin graduates in the field of journalism. I'm curious to find out why that happens," Becker said. "I think it's great to not come from a journalism school and to get involved in journalism. You think differently, take a different approach and learn by doing instead of from a textbook."

Becker said she hopes students will attend the conference to express their feelings on diversity in the newsroom.

"I think a lot of people are critical of 'The Media' and don't know that many people involved in it are trying to make a difference," she said. "Diversity, whether it's ethnic, or cultural, or through sexual orientation, allows people to offer their own perspectives and bring a lot to the media. Lots of newspapers are working hard to have more diverse newsrooms."

In accordance with this effort, Becker hopes to see more diversity at the management level of journalism. "The media is becoming more sophisticated at approaching new parts of society, though there's still a long way to go. AAJA is working a lot on promoting diversity at the decision-making level," she said.

Charles Blair's success in journalism stems from his commitment to perpetuating newspapers outside the control of monopolies.

Blair, who was part owner and general manager of the African-American Indianapolis Recorder from 1990 to 1997, said he has been interested in journalism since he graduated from Oberlin in 1970 with a degree in Communications.

"I'd been a creative writer of stage plays and had always been interested in writing. A career in journalism was a logical extension of that and my Communications studies," Blair, a member of the National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ), said.

"We were interested in saving the newspaper from its financial difficulties and staff loss, because of its long history of commitment to the Black community. It was primarily a business decision initially," Blair said.

At Saturday's conference Blair will speak about "The Illusion of Objectivity." He said he hopes to emphasize the importance of "diversity of opinion," as well as racial diversity.

"By the year 2000, maybe 20 companies will own almost all the broadcast outlets of America. All papers will be owned by monopolies," Blair said. "So diversity of opinion is more and more an issue for those who read the paper and watch TV, and that includes all of us. People should know who's controlling the the newspapers."

Although Blair no longer runs the Recorder, he is still a contributing reporter. He is also an associate professor at Martin University in Indianapolis.

Sports writer Chris Broussard has traveled with the Cleveland Cavaliers and interviewed gold-medalists at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta. For Broussard, it's all in a day's work.

Broussard, a member of the National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ), worked his way up from a summer internship at the Cleveland Plain Dealer to become The Akron Beacon Journal 's Cavs reporter. He also covered the 1995 World Series, the 1996 summer Olympics and the NBA All-Star games in 1995 and 1996.

A member of Oberlin's basketball team in the late 1980s, Broussard, OC '90, said he found his calling while he was a student at the College. "Basically, I was at Oberlin searching for something to do. I took something I was good at-writing-and combined it with something I loved-sports," he said.

The combination proved successful for Broussard.

"It's been a lot of fun. The Olympics were just awesome. It was a lot of work, but certainly the best assignment I've ever had," he said. Meeting players in the NBA was another nice fringe benefit of his job, he added.

Broussard will speak on a panel on diversity at Saturday's conference.

"The nation is getting more and more diverse racially. As this shift in the population happens, it's important for people representative of different races to work in the media, because that's how the information gets out and that's how opinions are formed," he said. "Diverse groups of people in the media industry can be involved with the presentation of facts so a culture that White America isn't all that familiar with can be included."

In the future, Broussard said he hopes to see more people of color in the fields of reporting, editorial and decision-making positions. "There's a relatively low amount of minority journalists out there. Hopefully there will be a big influx of journalists of color in the next couple of years," he said.

Broussard also hopes to see changes in his own future in the next few years. After two years covering the Cavs' games, he has stepped down and now covers sports at the University of Akron.

He had planned to go to seminary in California this year in order to become involved full-time in the Christian ministry. The recent birth of his identical twin daughters, however, took precedence over his travel plans.

"Traveling was rough because I was going wherever the Cavaliers were going. For now I'm sticking closer to home," Broussard said.

When Melanie Eversley, OC '83, edited the Commentary section of the Oberlin Review, for a period of time she was the paper's only black staff member. Now, 15 years later, the established journalist said she still recognizes a lack of diversity in the media.

Eversley, a member of the National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ), currently works in the Washington Bureau of the Detroit Free Press. Prior to that she covered race relations for the Free Press, as well as for New Jersey's Ashbury Park Press. Earlier jobs include covering the City Hall beat for the Poughkeepsie Journal, an internship at the New York Newsday and a stint in the production department of WPIX-TV in New York.

"I always knew I'd go into some field like journalism or social work, because I grew up in a household of socially aware people. There were always discussions of local politics and social issues," Eversley said.

Her longtime coverage of issues of race relations has led to a heightened awareness of the need to diversify the newsroom. She will speak on the topic during the conference Saturday.

"Something is going to have to change, not only in this field, but in many others. Soon the majority of Americans will be what we consider minority Americans, so many folks are realizing they need to foster a workplace that's welcoming to all backgrounds," Eversley said.

To Tanya Fuentez, being passionate about journalism is an essential part of having a career in the media.

"It's important that you love whatever you do, because some days you'll be pulling your hair out. You have to make sure you have your heart in the right place," she said.

Fuentez's heart has led her to many different places. After graduating from Marquette University with a Bachelor's degree in Communications, she attended the University of Akron graduate school and earned a degree in Mass Communications.

Her love of journalism stayed constant even when she left tropical St. Thomas, where she had her first real job working for The Virgin Islands Daily News, to write for the Fayetteville, North Carolina Observer-Times . She later became a copy editor of Ohio's Akron Beacon Journal, where she has remained for the past eight months.

"It's a career that's constantly changing," Fuentez said.

Fuentez will speak in a panel on Saturday about the experience of women of color working in the media. "I'm hoping to be able to answer students' questions and to add sensitivity and perspective about diversity in the newsroom," she said.

She added that students should recognize the need for diversifying the media. "Presenting different perspectives objectively and with some kind of depth is very important," she said. "As we enter the 21st century we're learning the world isn't as big as we thought it would be. If we don't have some kind of respect for other cultures and other groups, everything will be made more difficult."

WKYC-Channel 3 News reporter Marshall McPeek loves his job.

"If you love meeting people and telling their stories, this is the field for you. I love what I do and can't imagine doing anything else," McPeek said.

He will speak on "The Gay and Lesbian Experience in Journalism" on Saturday's Diversity in Journalism Conference.

Last September McPeek founded the Ohio chapter of the National Lesbian and Gay Journalist Association (NLGJA). "It's still a fledgling chapter. We'd been trying for a few years to institute it, and we finally got enough people together. I'm really pleased with the way it's going so far," he said.

McPeek said he hopes Saturday's conference will raise awareness about diversity among attendees.

"We all have issues, and understanding each other's issues is what helps make us a better newsroom," he said. "The more perspectives you have and the more you call on those perspectives in the newsroom, the better your coverage will be. We come to the table with a different set of experiences, and it's important for the newsroom to draw on individual experiences."

McPeek has been involved in journalism for 15 years.

After graduating from Ohio University with a Bachelors of Science in Journalism, McPeek worked for CTV in Canada. He became an assignment editor at Cleveland's Channel 5 before moving to an ABC affiliate in Southern Illinois. He then worked for four years as a reporter for a CBS affiliate in Toledo. He has been at Channel 3 since June of 1997.

While the Apollo is reveling in its second-run movie of choice Saturday, Mudd 050 will house a sneak preview of an award-winning filmmaker's documentary on the Black press to be aired on PBS later this year.

Filmmaker Stanley Nelson will show his 90-minute documentary "Soldiers Without Swords: The Black Press", Saturday as a part of the Diversity in Journalism Conference.

Nelson's documentary explores the history and significance of the Black press, one of the only means to report on events of African-Americans at a time when African- Americans were not covered in the mainstream press.

At their height, hundreds of black newspapers were in circulation in the United States. Nelson, who has produced a number of documentaries on African-American history, used many of these black newspapers for his research and found that they were equally as compelling for study.

"I was fascinated by those newspapers. I found I started reading the comics and the ads and editorials. They are an amazing window into African-American history," Nelson said.

The film explores the founding of Freedom's Journal in 1827 and follows the progression of the Black press through the turn of the century and World War II. It focuses on a number of influential Black journalists including Robert Abbott and John Sengstacke of the Chicago Defender.

The decline of the Black press in the last 30 years has had a notable effect on African-American communities in America which the film also investigates.

Nelson majored in Film at the City College of New York in 1976. Since then, he has been nominated for an Emmy award, produced programs for PBS and the Smithsonian Institution and taught film production at Howard University.

Today Nelson is founder and president of the independent film production company Half Nelson Productions.