Racial minorities in advertising.

I mentioned in an earlier post about toilets and lunch that I have worked in something like 15 agencies in the last couple of years.

Because of that I’ve actually noticed a few other things unconnected with lavs and sandwiches.

For example, the number of racial minorities in agencies varies enormously. Although not particularly high anywhere, in most places it seems not-inconsistent with the proportions of the nation as a whole.

I don’t know about you, but I think that living in cosmopolitan old London has given me a somewhat skewed perception of how many people in this country are ‘white’ or ‘other’. The 92.1% of the country who have trouble dancing properly and go a fetching shade of red on holiday is actually higher than the proportions I’ve seen in some agencies, while I’m surprised that less than 5% of the country originate from the Indian subcontinent (I know most of them ‘originate’ from the UK, but you know what I mean).

Whether or not this suggests advertising is an all-encompassing industry of which Malcolm X would be proud is a matter of debate, but the next question is whether those minorities are working in the more prestigious jobs or just in the shit ones like planning.

Ha ha…but seriously folks, how does your agency stack up, mix-wise? And what about those of you that work abroad? Are Indian agencies troubled by the number of whites they employ? Are agencies in the Palestine less inclined to hire Jewish account directors? Answers on the back of a 12-inch of Ebony and Ivory please.