This week we published our annual salary survey, which analyzes compensation and other data about the publishing industry. Among the results are the facts that the publishing workforce is getting younger, but it's still overwhelmingly white: 89% of survey respondents reported as caucasian. So, this week, we asked our readers what publishing could do to create a more diverse workforce.
The responses fell into two categories: those concerned with what publishers are publishing, and those concerned with how and who they are hiring.
Some readers feel that the problem starts with not publishing enough books that represent non-white people:
"We need to start by publishing books that appeal to a more diverse reader base," wrote -@rachel_bell4.
Others think that publishers need to modify their employment practices:
"Recruit a more diverse workforce by encouraging upward mobility in the publishing industry. Esp. POC," wrote @epubagent. Nora Victoria Johnston on Facebook suggested more aggressive outreach: "Offer internships and outreach programs to under served demographics. Let diverse groups of people know that publishing is a career opportunity worth pursuing."
If you have other thoughts, we'd love to hear them in the comments below.
Correction: This post was modified from its original version; one reader comment was removed.
