Our story and commitment
In 2017, Common Sense launched a diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging (DEIB) task force to chart a path forward for the organization's role as an advocate for all families and educators in the global media and technology marketplace.
After a time, it became clear that the work of the volunteer task force model would not alone meet the organization's increased needs from an accountability and leadership perspective. So, we created and filled a permanent role for the head of diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging. The primary goal of the role is to advance our mission by prioritizing diversity, equity, and inclusion in our workplace and in our offerings to reflect and serve the diversity of all kids and families.
Our Commitment to Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging
Supporting Access and Representation
We believe every child should have access to a high-quality education, technology, and diverse representations in media. This is critical for all kids to become empathetic, engaged learners and citizens who are supported by media, technology, and society rather than marginalized by them.
Addressing Racism and Bigotry
We believe that standing for justice and equity can only be achieved when we commit to addressing racism and bigotry throughout the media and technology industries. As a nonprofit dedicated to supporting all families as they navigate media and technology, we must ensure that our users also see themselves reflected in our programs and our staff. Diversity, equity, and inclusion are foundational to this work, and our original research informs our focus and how best we can serve diverse communities.
Serving Cultures and Communities
We strive toward representation and equity among our staff and users, but we acknowledge that we have more work to do. We need to be vigilant in helping to create a just, antiracist future and reaching and serving cultures and communities according to their needs.
Our people
How we address DEIB
We address DEIB internally through our people operations strategies and professional development opportunities and externally through our programs for families, educators, and others.
Our Work
These are some recent examples of how the work of Common Sense reinforces our DEIB values.
Education
Our research-backed and philanthropically funded resources for students and educators equip the next generation of digital citizens to be safe, ethical, and responsible online. Through our website, commonsense.org/education, we distribute our free, culturally relevant K–12 Digital Citizenship Curriculum, which is used by more than half of all U.S. K–12 public schools. The curriculum includes family engagement resources translated into Arabic, Armenian, Bengali, Chinese, Farsi, Haitian Creole, Korean, Russian, Spanish, Tagalog, Urdu, and Vietnamese. More than 81% of U.S. Title I schools use our free resources. Through our Selections for Learning program, we offer free ratings and reviews of edtech tools, many of which are rated on privacy standards. We also offer free professional development and training for educators through webinars, talks, conferences, and events. An example of Common Sense Education's work coming alive in the world is a training session given by Jamie Nunez, regional manager on the Common Sense Education team, presented to over 300 educators at SXSW EDU in March 2024: "AI's Impact on Students of Color: Rethinking Digital Wellness."
Families
Our commitment to DEB in our families programming includes providing a variety of resources, like a community resource hub for diverse content to support children's identity development through entertainment and learning. We offer hundreds of our ratings and articles in Spanish, with a dedicated Spanish language editor who translates new content on an ongoing basis. In addition, Common Sense Media partners with external nonprofits, soliciting feedback on our language and strategy to ensure that we responsibly communicate our offerings to diverse audiences.
Advocacy
Digital equity is a pillar for Common Sense. We center digital equity in all of our policy recommendations. We were leading advocates for creating the Affordable Connectivity Program, which helps lower-income households pay for high-speed broadband service. One in six families in the United States relies on the ACP for affordable high-speed internet, and we continue to advocate for the program's extension. We have also researched the impact of the digital divide on students, their families, and the institutions that serve them. Through our advocacy, we've helped secure $55 billion in funding from the American Rescue Plan Act and Infrastructure Investments Jobs Act to connect people nationwide to high-speed internet and ensure they have the digital inclusion resources they need to use this technology. We also advocate for tech accountability across the board. In Congress, state legislatures, and abroad, we actively work with policymakers to pass laws and regulations supporting privacy and safety for children online. We're educating policymakers, educators, parents and caregivers, and other key stakeholders about the role of social media in the youth mental health crisis. We're also highlighting the critical need for digital citizenship to teach healthy cyber habits to protect personal data, and we're reporting on the state of kids' privacy. We recognize the vital role that technology plays in supporting the mental health of young people of color and marginalized communities, which is why we advocate for accountability—to keep these spaces safe and healthy so kids can get the support they need.
Research
The Common Sense Research Program has released multiple reports with a focus on DEIB. Over the last seven years, we've published a series of reports looking at diverse representation in traditional media, including Watching Gender: How Stereotypes in Movies and on TV Impact Kids' Development (2017), The Inclusion Imperative (2021), and Who Is the "You" in YouTube?: Missed Opportunities in Race and Representation in Children's YouTube Videos (2022), "A Double-Edged Sword: How Diverse Communities of Young People Think About the Multifaceted Relationship Between Social Media and Mental Health (2024). We've also explored the impact of the digital divide in lower-income and diverse communities and trends in media use in Black, Latino, Native American, Asian American, and Arab American communities in our biannual Common Sense Census.
Land Acknowledgment Statement
Common Sense gratefully acknowledges the Ramaytush Ohlone people, who are the original inhabitants of the San Francisco peninsula. With offices across the country, we also respectfully acknowledge the Native peoples who have stewarded this land since time immemorial. Consistent with our values of diversity, equity, and inclusion, we are responsible for making our relationship visible to Native peoples.
We recognize that we benefit from living and working on their traditional homelands and affirm their sovereign rights.Common Sense works with the Ramaytush Ohlone tribe as we create content on Native people to ensure our work is informed and considered.
For more information, contact Diane Jones Lowrey, [email protected].