Ofcom report addresses how diverse talent is declining

Ofcom report suggests representation is declining. Credit: Luciana Guerra/PA

New Ofcom report finds that broadcasters are more concentrated on entry-level recruitment instead of focusing on keeping diverse staff.

The five-year review into diversity within radio and TV is to address the progress that has been made, as well as to see how this may be shaped in years to come.

Within the report, it revealed that broadcasters are more representative of ethnic diversity in the UK.

In 2017/18, in radio BAME groups only made up 6%. Whereas now this has increased to 10%, but this is still below the UK working population benchmark which is 12%.

However, in TV, 16% of staff are from BAME backgrounds, which is up from 13% during that same period.

Despite the increase within radio and TV, there is little improvement for diverse talent within senior roles.

Individuals with a disability only make up 6%. Although a fifth of ethnic minorities get a promotion, it is unclear if they are promoted to senior management roles.

Vikki Cook, Ofcom’s Director of Broadcasting Policy expresses her thoughts on the increase of new talent. She said: "Broadcasters have made progress hiring a wider range of talent,"

"For example, there are twice as many people working in radio from minority-ethnic backgrounds as there were three years ago," She continued.

Although the Ofcom Director of Broadcasting Policy acknowledges the problems found within the data. She said:

"But for the first time, more people are leaving the industry than joining, particularly women, while disabled people remain significantly underrepresented. And because companies have focused on entry-level recruitment, there still isn’t enough diverse talent in senior roles". - Vikki Cook

"So we’re calling on broadcasters to slow the revolving door and focus on retaining and progressing talented people from all walks of life".

You can read the full report here