Is The Black Press Poised for A Resurgence Assisted by Technology?

Every news organization is looking for its audience. There is little doubt technology has changed the way news is reported, but those who own media outlets with predominantly African American readers believe the narrative is still more significant than the way it is delivered. At the annual National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA) in Houston this week, the conversation is about sustaining a strong Black Press.

The President of NNPA, Dr. Benjamin Chavis, said, “I think the need for Black-owned newspapers is just as important today as it was 189 years ago when Freedom’s Journal was first published in New York. The Black Press does more than just report the news it also documents the Black experience. And, the documentation of our experience in America and our experience in the world give rise to the cultural genius of our people.”

Chavis, a former NAACP President, is leading an organization committed to its base constitutency. A cell phone may provide the connection to the local Black newspaper’s front page instead of a folded copy of the publication lying on the kitchen counter. But, what matters he says is “to be everywhere that touches a person’s consciousness, the Black Press has to be there.”

Many media experts metaphorically wrote the newspaper industry’s last story when technology upended the way readers traditionally accessed news. But, after several awkward years, the industry adapted and found its way into the 21st century. NNPA joined the revolution, working to solidify its network of over 200 Black-owned community newspapers.

Bernal Smith is the publisher of the Tri-State Defender in Memphis. He and his news reporters are reaching their audience by leveraging the influence of social media. “Social media gives you access to millions, and content is king. As long as you are aggregating good content, you can build an audience and news relevance,” he said.

Young journalists with tech savvy are sought after and groomed for roles in newsrooms. NNPA organizers dedicated the first day of its conference to the next generation of storytellers. NNPA Board Chairman Denise Rolark Barnes, the second-generation owner of the Washington Informer, encouraged them to combine the technology with the tenets of good journalism, saying “You all are the historians of tomorrow, the ones who will keep our story alive. I’m concerned if we don’t tell honest, factual stories we will get written out of history.”

Noted rapper and activist, A.J. McQueen, commanded the crowd with a spoken word tribute to the Black Press. A former St. Louis gang member transformed into a rising pop culture star, McQueen shared his love of writing and appreciation for the Black Press. “They pressed through police brutality,” he rapped. “They pressed through all of it. Through confrontation. To give us information.”

With camera phones flashing and a parade of posts, McQueen’s rhymes raced around the internet. Chavis watched the energy of the moment.

“I’ve learned what you put in the front end comes out the back end. So, the Black Press has to be a channel of the success stories so it will be the magnet. They’re drawn to social media because it allows self-expression so the NNPA has to give space, promotion and give opportunity to the self-expression of young people and even nurture it,” he remarked.

That determination to give voice to a segment of the population is how the Black Press started almost two hundred years ago. Neither technology, trends, nor time has changed its mission.