Excerpt:
The managing editor of one of the country's biggest newspapers thinks news organizations ought to hire more Muslim reporters.
Philip Bennett, the Washington Post's managing editor, said reporters often struggle with understanding Islam during a speech Monday at UCI about the difficulties of covering the religion.
Bennett's speech focused on the media's need to cover issues concerning Islam in an in-depth, long-term manner.
To illustrate this point he drew mainly from quotes of notable colleagues and statistical polls, rarely giving his own opinion directly.
"Six of 10 Americans, according to a 2007 ABC Poll, don't understand the basic tenets of Islam," Bennett said.
He attributed this to the lack of Muslims working in American newsrooms.