UNITY shows the breadth of diversity it takes to produce great journalism.

This article reports on the UNITY convention of journalists held in Washington, D.C. as of September 2004. The conference atmosphere was remarkable considering the discouraging news released there: journalists of color make up just 10.5 percent of the press corps in Washington, D.C., reported the University of Maryland and UNITY. The Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ) and the Independent Press Association organized two panels to help mid-career writers bring a multicultural perspective to their pages. In general, magazines trail the efforts of daily newspapers and broadcast stations in acknowledging the U.S. population's changing demographics. But their editors have begun looking for more diverse readers, said both Angelo Figueroa, editor-at-large for Time Inc. magazines, and Charles Whitaker, an assistant professor at Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism. While most magazines focus on a niche market, they are realizing that the audiences they traditionally have sought are tapping out. Writers of any background can convince an editor to try something new if they surprise him or her with an outstanding idea, said Bernard Ohanian, associate editor of National Geographic.