Toning Down Offensive TV Talk   

Sensitivity is the watchword on and off the air.

Some might call it "political correctness." Others would say it's just a matter of common courtesy. Whatever it's called, it has become a major issue in television newsrooms. Offensive words once spoken routinely behind the scenes and sometimes on air are no longer tolerated.

"The rules have changed...," says Gary Wordlaw, news director at WJLA in Washington, D.C. "There are certain words and phrases you dare not use. You're not ever going to stop people from swearing completely but people are conscious of words that are now taboo."

Tom Bier, news director at WISC in Madison, Wisconsin, says newsrooms have become more professional. "Just as you want people to dress properly, you want them to talk appropriately," he says.

But it's more than profanity that is being discouraged. Words that might be objectionable or disrespectful to individuals or groups also are forbidden, and not just in the newsroom.

"There is a heightened sensitivity about trying to do the right thing on the air," says Nancy Shafran, who was a news director in Jacksonville for several years before moving to Houston's KPRC this summer. "We're trying harder to figure out the correct words to use to describe people. It might not occur to you that you might use a term that is offensive to someone.

"I remember one example in Jacksonville where something happened to someone who had epilepsy," she continues. "We found out you don't say someone with epilepsy has a 'fit.' But we didn't realize this until it came up. Hopefully, there is enough diversity in your newsroom to get other opinions that help make the decision easier."

But the decision will never be easy. No matter how carefully the words are chosen, someone may be offended.

Wordlaw is one of the few TV news directors who is black, or, to be politically correct, African American. "Who decided I had to be `African American?'" he challenges. "I have debates in my newsroom about what to be called. I think it depends on the generation. My father fought for the right to be called a 'Negro.' When he was raised he was called a lot worse than that. But you have to remember not all blacks are African Americans. A person from Haiti is not an African American.

"The term 'good of boy' is another example. White people often refer to each other that way. But if a white man says that to a black man they may wind up in court because it's demeaning to black people. And, any man of any race who refers to a woman as a 'girl' will also land in court, although women often refer to each other as 'girls.' A manager has to be especially aware of the potential legal problems in using certain words."

Occasionally, ill-chosen words can contribute to a lawsuit. Attorney Neil B. Katz believes the ambience created by the uninhibited use of certain words helped his client, Nancy Norman, a videotape editor and photographer, win a $500,000 judgment for sex discrimination against WUSA in Washington, D.C.

"I was amazed at the bad manners and language I found," says Katz, who had not been in a TV newsroom before taking the case. "You wouldn't behave that way around your wife or sister or children but there was what I describe as a 'locker room' or 'old boy' atmosphere.

"I don't mean to trivialize this because there was more than bad manners in Nancy's case," Katz adds. "But I think grievances about work schedules, assignments and other things are stirred up in this atmosphere and that really leaves the employer vulnerable."

Station management will not comment on the case. Katz says WUSA has asked the court to review and reverse its decision.

Marty Haag, vice president of news for the broadcast division of A.H. Belo Corp., says managerial and technological sophistication have contributed to making newsrooms more hospitable. "The type of management style has changed over the years and the computer has made it easier for everyone to communicate without shouting and yelling," he says. "That's brought about sensibilities that simply didn't exist in those shoot-from-the-hip raucous newsrooms of 20 years ago."

However, there is some concern that people may sometimes be overly sensitive. Mike Cavender, news director at WTSP in Tampa, recalls a recent incident in his newsroom when the National Weather Service issued a warning about the dangers of sunbathing, saying people with light skin burn far more quickly than those with dark skin.

"Some of my staffers thought that reference was derogatory to black people, but the weather service was just trying to establish a frame of reference," he says. "We discussed it and everyone was satisfied. Five years ago we wouldn't even have raised the issue. There's always that risk of overreaction, but at least we are more sensitive now about what we say off the air and on."