Mariam Veiszadeh

Media Diversity Australia (MDA) is launching the Women of Colour mentorship program supported and funded by the Crescent Foundation to empower female journalists from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds to attain leadership positions in Australian media.

The mentorship program, which has attracted Monash University and University of Melbourne as partners, is designed to address the dramatic lack of women in Australian media senior decision-making roles.

Despite Australia being one of the most culturally diverse countries in the world the representations of these cultures in Australian media is poor. A report released by MDA in 2020 found that only 5.9% of television appearances by presenters, commentators, and reporters were from non-European or Indigenous people. The overwhelming majority (75.8%) were of Anglo-Celtic background.

While on-screen representation of diversity was poor, the picture was even more stark for those behind the scenes in positions of power. The report found that at that time every national news director in Australia, without exception, was an Anglo-Celtic male. Only 28% of those working in the most senior news media roles were women, and all of them were of Anglo-Celtic background.

MDA will select 12 mid-career, women journalists of First Nations and culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds to take part in the mentoring program. Mentees for the program will include alumni from Monash University and the University of Melbourne. Over 12 months, each mentee will be paired with an established media professional and receive in-person and online sessions to build their skills in leadership, presentation, compelling storytelling, and career development.

As part of the program, mentees will find and write stories of personal resonance with the chance of being published and will be invited to attend networking events where they will meet senior journalists and high-profile media professionals.

MDA CEO Mariam Veiszadeh says lack of media leadership diversity is concerning on a number of levels and needs to be addressed.

“The media is a megaphone for culture – it not only reflects but has the incredible power to create and influence social and cultural norms. The faces, voices, stories and perspectives that are reflected back at audiences have broad implications. The decisions made in the top echelons of the industry, whether in production content, coverage or sources ultimately impact Australian culture and social cohesion.

“Consistently, across several industries, women of colour tend to be overlooked when it comes to moving into senior positions of power. While many programs seek to help open doors for women, not many focus on ensuring those women are also offered a seat at the decision-making table – this program does precisely that,” said Veiszadeh.

The Crescent Foundation is a not-for-profit organisation with a goal of opening opportunities to everyone regardless of race, background, or cultural identity and supports initiatives that bring about catalysing change in our communities.

Executive Director Sayd Farook said the Crescent Foundation was proud to support MDA through its Crescent Community Grants Program, which also supported refugee education, combating homelessness and preserving Islamic cultural heritage.

“Media Diversity Australia is a unique, values-driven not-for-profit organisation led by journalists and media professionals. Through initiatives like this one, they are championing diversity in Australian journalism and news media and driving positive change in our society,” he said.

Mentees for the program will be selected from Monash University and the University of Melbourne alumni. These alumni and MDA representatives will be invited to address students at events at the universities.

Andrew Dodd Director, Centre for Advancing Journalism at University of Melbourne said: “We’re just not getting the whole story when the same voices are doing all the talking. This mentorship program has benefits for everyone. More people are empowered to speak and we are all rewarded with deeper, richer and fresher accounts of this diverse world.”

Associate Professor Fay Anderson Deputy Head of the School of Media, Film and Journalism at Monash University added: “The School of Media, Film and Journalism at Monash University is privileged and honoured to sponsor Media Diversity Australia’s Women of Colour Mentorship Program. The lack of diversity and inclusion in Australian news media is an issue that needs to be urgently addressed. It is critical that our journalists reflect the rich cultural and linguistic diversity of Australian society. We look forward to working with Media Diversity Australia on this vital initiative.”

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Craig Foster

Crescent Foundation, a non-profit dedicated to supporting refugee education, homelessness, Islamic cultural heritage, and youth and has extended its support for refugee students to a third Australian University.

The Foundation has unveiled plans to grant Crescent Leadership Scholarships to four University of Technology Sydney (UTS) students a year for the next three years to help cover their cost of study.

The scholarships, which are expected to be the first in a number of initiatives with UTS, are open to students who hold a humanitarian protection visa or have a refugee background and are Australian or New Zealand permanent residents.

The announcement follows the Crescent Foundation earlier this year partnering with Deakin University’s Centre for Refugee Employment, Advocacy, Training and Education to mentor up to 70 individuals from refugee or asylum-seeker backgrounds.

The 70 individuals are paired with prominent business and academic leaders who are members of the Crescent Champions Club who have volunteered to guide the younger people on their journey towards career success and leadership.

The Crescent Foundation has also awarded almost 30 Crescent Leadership Scholarship to students with refugee backgrounds to study at Western Sydney University.

The Hon. Bob Carr, Former Foreign Minister of Australia and presiding Chair of the Crescent Foundation, said the latest initiative was an example of how the charity was dedicated to breaking down barriers providing opportunities for all Australians and particularly for refugees.

“We hope our support of UTS and other universities will encourage private sector corporations and institutions to come forward to help facilitate the inclusion of refugees into the workplace and break through the canvas ceiling faced by refugees.”

UTS Deputy Dean Professor Carl Rhodes said: “UTS is a public university of technology, committed to social justice and the economic, social and cultural prosperity of our communities. Central to this is ensuring equitable access to education for students from all backgrounds – especially those facing economic barriers. This is why this partnership with the Crescent Foundation is of such great importance.

“For many refugees coming to Australia, attending university is a life transforming experience for not only them, but their wider family and the generations that follow. The generosity of the Crescent Foundation and Institute is making a real difference for real people by providing mentoring and financial support for our students to ensure they have prosperous careers and futures.”

Craig Foster, Director, Crescent Foundation said: “In demonstrating the immense strength and courage to make a new life, refugees display characteristics which make them amazing contributors in the workplace and society.

“They tend to display the highest degrees of entrepreneurialism, generating a far higher proportion of their income from their own businesses which in turn contributes to broader economic growth,” he said.

“They volunteer at higher rates than Australian-born citizens, are highly active in other forms of civil and community engagement, and their uptake of Australian citizenship is higher than any other migrant group, reflecting integration into Australian communities and a joining of cultures that offers Australia equal benefits in kind.”

UTS Executive Director, Social Justice Verity Firth added: “At UTS, we believe in a shared future for all. To achieve this, we must ensure that access to high quality education is available to everyone, regardless of circumstance. Education not only helps reduce disadvantage for individuals, but their communities and support networks as well.  Community partners can help make education more accessible.

“Organisations like the Crescent Foundation provide students from refugee and asylum seeker backgrounds with the material support to succeed at university.

Without their help, accessing higher education will remain a challenge for these students.”

In addition to programs at the three universities, the Crescent Foundation supports a range of initiatives including: 

• Scouts NSW to enable children from refugee families can participate in scouting.
• Thrive Refugee Enterprise which helps refugees and asylum seekers start their own small businesses in Australia, and Sanctuary Australia Foundation, which helps refugees from war-torn areas with aspects of settlement, including education, employment and housing.
• Several organisations and programs to help the homeless, including The Big Issue, an independent, not-for-profit social enterprise that develops solutions to help homeless, marginalised and disadvantaged people positively change their lives.
• The Islamic Museum of Australia, based in Victoria, which showcases the artistic and cultural heritage of Muslims in Australia, as well as the University of Melbourne Grimwade Centre for Cultural Material Conservation, which preserves significant Islamic manuscripts dating to the 13th century.
• The ‘What Matters’ competition organised by the Whitlam Institute at Western Sydney University – an initiative which encourages young school students nationwide to speak up and write about what matters to them.

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