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Front Page Talking Points
FOR THE WEEK OF JUNE 17, 2013

Fresh population figures show the changing face of America

Pick an article about an ethnic minority group member or members of your community and list what you learn.

Find a photo of a nonwhite newsmaker that has nothing to do with his or her race.

In addition to quoting and picturing people of color in news reports, what sections can focus on minority group contributions to culture?

New Census Bureau statistics provide the latest evidence of how America is evolving in terms of race. For the first year in modern U.S. history, more white people died than were born from July 2011 to July 2012, due to an aging white population. And half the U.S. children under age five currently are minorities. Here's something else: The total minority population has grown 21 times as fast as that of whites since 1970.

All this leads experts to say the country is on track have a nonwhite majority in 30 years. Even before then, "today’s racial and ethnic minorities will no longer be dependent on older whites for their economic well-being," says population scholar William Frey of the Brookings Institution in Washington, D.C. Policy issues important to minority groups "will hold greater sway than ever before," he adds.

For now, whites still are the majority with 63% of the population – a drop from 69% in 2000 and 80% in 1980. Hispanics are the largest minority group (17%), followed by blacks (12%) and Asians (5%). At the local level, more than 11 per cent of the nation’s 3,143 counties were "majority-minority" by mid-2012. In Texas, white Americans became the minority in three counties last year. Hispanics are expected to become that state's largest ethnic group by 2020.

Researcher says: "This is the tipping point. . . . The younger, rapidly growing minority population will be driving economic and demographic growth this century." -- William Frey, senior fellow at Brookings Institution

Census director says: "The proportion of young children from an ethnic minority has been increasing since the 2010 census." -- Thomas Mesenbourg, acting director of U.S. Census Bureau

Broadcaster says: "The changing complexion will have huge, social, political and economic implications for the entire country." – Tom Costello, NBC Today Show

Front Page Talking Points is written by Alan Stamm for NIEonline.com, Copyright 2013
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