MUMBAI: The Asian American Journalists Association (Aaja) has announced plans to debut a DVD to attract more Asian American males to the profession of television journalism in the US.

The DVD will feature the work of current male Asian American television reporters and anchors. It will be unveiled at the Radio and Television News Directors Association (RTNDA) / National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) convention to be held from 19-21 April in Las Vegas.

The DVD will be offered as a hiring tool at the event to all attendees and also to news managers, news directors, recruiters across the US. Aaja is also hoping that the DVD will help erase stereotypes and encourage Asian American males to choose broadcast journalism as a career.

Aaja is trying to set right a situation where there is a severe lack of Asian American men on television news. A 2002 study by the Annenberg School for Communications at the University of Southern California found that there were only 20 male Asian Americans on the air in America's top 25 markets.

By comparison the study found a total of 85 Asian American female television broadcasters on-air. This means a ratio of nearly 5 to 1 women versus men.

Aaja is encouraging Asian American male anchors, reporters, sportscasters and weathercasters to submit demo reels for the DVD. Participants do not need to be active job seekers to be included in the project. A company release ads that submissions should be in by 15 February 2004. Participants should include two packages and a montage of stand-ups and live shots. Anchors should also include samples of their anchoring. All participants must have paid professional working experience or must be students scheduled to graduate by June 2004.