Articles Feature

‘I Sure Hope He’s Not Black’

by richard01745

‘I Sure Hope He’s Not Black’:
Black Press Ignores MSU Mass Shooting
Biden Order Might Aid ‘Small Disadvantaged’ Media
Charges Dismissed Against News Nation Reporter
How Should Non-Natives Cover Natives? ‘Don’t’
County Pulls Funding for ‘Black Power’ Station
Black Startup Launching 2nd Local Newsroom in Gary
2 Freelancers Each Awarded $100,000 Prize
Journalism Luminaries to Teach Young Hopefuls

Short Takes: ‘LatinX’ term; Buffalo mass killer’s sentencing; Black college students’ extra life responsibilities; $2 million to renovate Afro’s archives; $2 million to boost Howard U. research center; nominations open for ’10 News Publishers That Do It Right,’ Blavity commerce; Rashida Jones; Haitian journalist kidnapped.

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Michigan State University Police and Public Safety release photo of shooter Monday night. (Credit: YouTube)

Black Press Ignores MSU Mass Shooting

The nation’s biggest and most tragic news story on Tuesday was the mass shooting at Michigan State University: Nine people were shot, the gunman and three students dead, with five others in critical condition.

Amid the reporting came a cringeworthy moment for many Black readers and viewers: Authorities released a photo of the perpetrator. He was Black.

But you couldn’t tell that from the statewide Black newspaper, the Michigan Chronicle, nor the national news service from the National Newspaper Publishers Association, the Black-press trade association, nor the websites of such Black news sources as Blavity, The Root, The Grio, Ebony, Black America Web, HuffPost Black Voices or the new Capital B.

They all ignored the story and went on with business as usual.

Even the NAACP, in a statement decrying the shootings and calling for action on gun legislation, made no reference to the fact that this was a Black shooter, and that at least one of the victims was Black.

(On the internet, the digital “Roland Martin Unfiltered” lists this among the topics Wednesday: “There have been over 70 mass shootings in 2023 after the recent shooting at Michigan State University. We will discuss this recent phenomenon and why the rate of mass shootings is rising.”)

[Feb. 18 update: bet.com was an exception, with two pieces on the shooter and the Black shooting victim.]

For mainstream newspapers, publishing the photo of the suspect, Anthony Dwayne McRae, 43, who died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound, was sufficient reference to his race.

After all, the standard guidelines on racial identification, developed after years of protest that such identification was being used to vilify African Americans, say that such IDs should be used only if their relevance can be established.

“We did not have any lengthy discussions about whether or not to identify the MSU shooter by race, but I suspect that’s because we do not typically identify someone’s race unless it is relevant or a point of issue,” Gary Miles (pictured), editor and publisher of the Detroit News, messaged Journal-isms. “For example, I expect we would have had that conversation if police had told us that the crime was racially motivated. There has been no such suggestion here.

“So I’d like to think that, instinctively, we’re no more likely to identify someone’s race in a story like this than their hair color or build.

“(We did identify the race of the man police were searching for Monday night when they were able to provide a more complete description).”

It may prove true that McRae’s actions are more attributable to his individual issues than his race, which, as some point out, is a social construct.

Nevertheless, the shooter was a member of the Black community. Just last week, the National Newspaper Publishers Association closed a story about its midwinter conference with words from its president and CEO Benjamin F. Chavis Jr. (pictured), who, “gracious but overwhelmed, stated that the NNPA is devoted to keeping its readers, constituencies, and supporters informed, engaged, and empowered through breaking news, cultural excellence, and visionary opinions and editorials.”

Cathy Nedd (pictured), the new president of the Real Times Media News Group, based at the Michigan Chronicle, could not be reached. Real Times owns the Chronicle, the Chicago Defender, Atlanta Daily World, Atlanta Tribune and the New Pittsburgh Courier.

To one Black media observer, the conclusion was simple: “It’s a breaking news story that they are not on. Not even a wire story.”

Said another Black press veteran: “Oh my. I didn’t know he was Black. Hadn’t seen the photo.”

  Clint C. Wilson II (pictured), longtime Black-press scholar and author of 2014’s “Whither the Black Press? Glorious Past, Uncertain Future,” provided Journal-isms his observations Wednesday. Wilson is emeritus professor of journalism and communication, culture and media studies at Howard University’s Cathy Hughes School of Communications.

“(1) The publication schedule of most Black weeklies precludes response to the event that occurred Monday evening. Those papers generally publish later in the week (Thursdays or Fridays). However, the papers that maintain online platforms should have been able to issue coverage within 24 hours.

“Nevertheless, the few online papers to which I personally subscribe (L.A. Sentinel, Washington Informer, Dallas Weekly, the Skanner in Oregon) have not yet covered the event although the shooter’s racial identity was made known as early as Monday night.

“(2) I suspect the shooter’s race angle caught many off-guard because Michigan State is a predominately White institution. The fact that one of the three initial fatalities is a Black female student will play into whatever coverage we see in the next day or so. 

“As you know, the fact these mass killings have overwhelmingly been perpetrated by young White males, their actions are almost always attributed by the White press to mental illness and/or the result of troubled and abusive childhoods etc. Therefore, I expect the Black press will follow suit in that regard.

“Finally, I believe the Michigan State shootings will immediately rekindle the age-old utterance among Black folks whenever news breaks in such cases prior to revelation of the perpetrator’s race: ‘I sure hope he’s not Black.’ “

Biden Order Might Aid ‘Small Disadvantaged’ Media

“President Joe Biden on Thursday ordered the federal government to do more to address racial inequality as the challenges and complexities of systemic racism are again drawing the public’s attention,” Josh Boak and Darlene Superville reported Thursday for the Associated Press.

Asked by Journal-isms whether the “executive order affects media companies of color. For example, the placement of federal ad dollars in media outlets owned by people of color,” a spokesperson replied after a press briefing:

“The Executive Order directs the Office of Management and Budget to support implementation of the annual agency Equity Action Plans through the President’s budget request to Congress. The Executive Order also formalizes the President’s goal of increasing the share of federal contracting dollars awarded to small disadvantaged business (SDBs) by 50 percent by 2025, and instructs agencies to expand procurement opportunities for small disadvantaged businesses through grants from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, Inflation Reduction Act, and other investments and programs that flow through states and local entities.”

On Twitter, Evan Lambert posted his response to the dropping of charges.

Charges Dismissed Against NewsNation Reporter

“Charges have been dismissed against a reporter who was arrested last week while covering a news conference on the train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, Dave Yost, the Ohio attorney general, said in a statement on Wednesday,” Christine Hauser reported for The New York Times.

“On Feb. 8, the reporter, Evan Lambert, had been waiting for the news conference about the status of the derailment, about 50 miles northwest of Pittsburgh, to start at 3 p.m. But the event was delayed for two hours, clashing with his scheduled live shot for NewsNation, the cable channel where he works. . . .

“ ‘While journalists could conceivably be subject to criminal charges for trespassing in some situations, this incident is not one of them,’ Mr. Yost said. . . .”

How Should Non-Natives Cover Natives? ‘Don’t’

“So how does a well-meaning reporter who isn’t Native American cover Indigenous communities?

“First, I gently suggest, don’t. Your newsroom might be wise to hire someone who is Indigenous, from the community you seek to cover, to do the work. And pay them well for their expertise. . . .”

Thus wrote Valerie Vande Panne Tuesday for the Poynter Institute under the headline, “Here are some tips for covering Indigenous communities, for non-Natives:”

“Reporters think they do ‘marginalized communities’ a favor by covering them. But that coverage is too often extractive and riddled with racist tropes,” Panne continued. She did, nevertheless, supply other coverage tips.

Protesters gather outside the Uhuru House in St. Petersburg, Fla., before a June 2020 march. On Tuesday, the Pinellas County Commission revoked funding it had previously approved for Black Power 96, the radio station that operates out of the house. (Credit: Dirk Shadd/Tampa Bay Times)

County Pulls Funding for ‘Black Power’ Station

“The Pinellas County Commission voted on Tuesday to revoke funding it approved last year for a radio station serving St. Petersburg’s Black communities,” Jack Evans reported for the Tampa Bay (Fla.) Times.

“The decision came days after Commissioner Chris Latvala raised concerns about the station’s association with the Uhuru Movement, the political group whose St. Petersburg headquarters were raided last year by the FBI.

“The commission approved the expenditure in November, as part of its first round of small allocations to nonprofits from the American Rescue Plan Act, the federal COVID-19 relief program.

“Of the more than $2 million allocated to 34 Pinellas organizations, about $36,800 went to the African People’s Education and Defense Fund, an Uhuru-affiliated nonprofit. The Fund’s application said the money would be spent on radio equipment and computers for WBPU 96.3 FM, also known as Black Power 96.

“The station broadcasts from the Uhuru House at 1245 18th Ave. S in St. Petersburg. The house was raided by federal agents in July amid the Uhuru Movement’s alleged connections to a Russian national accused of working with U.S. groups to spread pro-Russia propaganda and interfere with elections. . . .”

Black Startup Launching Local Newsroom in Gary

“Capital B, the one-year-old nonprofit news startup for Black Americans, has announced plans to launch its second local newsroom in Gary, Indiana,” Sarah Scrire wrote Wednesday for Nieman Lab.

“Gary is a small city on Lake Michigan where 78% of the 68,000 residents are Black. Local news coverage there, residents have told Capital B, is often dominated by journalism from and about the much-larger city of Chicago just 25 miles away. . . .

“Capital B’s announcement comes as part of a larger effort to expand local news in Indiana. The Indiana Local News Initiative, announced Wednesday, launches with more than $10 million in funding from the American Journalism Project, Nina Mason Pulliam Charitable Trust, Herbert Simon Family Foundation, and others.

“As part of the partnership, a 25-person news organization will launch in Central Indiana. (The job listing for the editor-in-chief role is online.) Existing outlets TheStatehouseFile.com, The Indiana Citizen, The Indianapolis Recorder,” a member of the Black press, “and Indiana News Service are also receiving support. . . .”

“Journalism, at its best, tells stories that linger, that simmer, that gently or forcefully pose questions we feel compelled to answer,” said Foundation Board Chair Liz Simons. “Our American Mosaic Journalism Prize winners do this and lift the curtain on communities of people who have been misrepresented, under-represented, and all too often, marginalized and oppressed. By connecting us via our common humanity, these journalists make it impossible for us to turn away.”

2 Freelancers Each Awarded $100,000 Prize

Carvell Wallace, a writer and podcaster based in Oakland, Calif., and Cerise Castle, a freelance journalist based in Los Angeles, have won the American Mosaic Journalism Prize, “an unrestricted cash prize of $100,000 per recipient — making it one of the largest dollar amounts given for a journalism prize in the United States,” Brian Eule of the Heising-Simons Foundation announced Tuesday.

“Throughout his career, Wallace has explored complex and difficult topics and writes about them with empathy and compassion. The prize judges reviewed pieces such as ‘What if my mother had an abortion: Who might she have been?’ in which he questions the trajectory of his mother’s life and how it may have been less tragic had she not given birth as a teenager, and, ‘Justin Williams can see the future,’ written about one of the nation’s few Black bike racers, which takes an in-depth look at a man who is challenging the lack of cultural, economic and racial diversity in the sport of cycling. . . .

“In the wake of the George Floyd protests of 2020 and after more than six months of investigative research, Castle wrote ‘A Tradition of Violence,’ the first history of deputy gangs inside the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, the largest local law enforcement agency in the United States.

“The investigation was published as a 15-part reporting series for Knock LA exposing 18 gangs, 19 documented murders — all of whom were people of color — and over $100 million dollars in lawsuits paid for by the people of Los Angeles. . . .”

Full disclosure: Journal-isms Inc. is a Heising-Simons grant recipient.

Journalism Luminaries to Teach Young Hopefuls

“The Dow Jones News Fund, best known for providing training and internships for college students, is expanding its scope to provide foundational skills reinforcement for young journalists in their early years in a newsroom. The pilot program will launch Feb. 16-17 in Nashville, with the opening session featuring former Poynter Institute president Karen Brown Dunlap and Pulitzer-prize winning reporter Wesley Lowery,” the fund announced Tuesday.

“The News Fund, in a partnership with McClatchy, will train 13 journalists from five of its local newsrooms as the first cohort of Early Career Training Fellows. Most participants are beat reporters with less than three years of experience. . . .

“Veteran news executive Sandra Long Weaver (pictured) is the coordinating director for the pilot. She has lined up more than a dozen distinguished journalists to lead interactive sessions that will give the Fellows a stronger foundation and teach tricks of the trade that can be put to use immediately. Trainers include Dean Baquet of the New York Times, Cheryl W. Thompson and Keith Woods of NPR, Michelle Faust Raghavan of NextGen Radio and Maria Reeve of the Houston Chronicle. . . .”

Short Takes

(Credit: NBC News)

  • Editorializing on the life sentence given Payton Gendron, 19, for last May’s racist mass killing at the Tops supermarket in Buffalo N.Y., which left 10 dead and three wounded, the Buffalo News wrote, “But now, a federal trial looms and, there, Gendron faces the possibility of execution. You can oppose the death penalty and still believe that if anyone ever qualified for it, he does. . . . If a federal trial, rather than a guilty plea, allows prosecutors to shine a light on the racism coursing through parts of the internet and to show how 18-year-olds can be radicalized into committing mass murder based on hatred, then it could be worth putting this defendant on trial – whatever becomes of him.” (Photo: Derek Gee/Buffalo News)
  • Editor & Publisher is seeking nominations for its list of “10 News Publishers That Do It Right,” to be published in its April issue. “Never meant to be a ’10 Best’ list, instead, this feature allows you to help us find special news operations (print, digital, broadcast, or newsletters) that have performed a notable achievement over the past 12 months that deserve spotlighting to the entire industry,” the publication says. It is seeking a diverse list of candidates. Deadline: Feb. 28.
  • MSNBC President Rashida Jones (pictured) was asked about making tough decisions Wednesday in a New York Urban League Champions event, part of a fireside chat with Avra Rice, CEO and president of the New York Urban League: “Any executive is going to have to make a tough decision. I think about the teams that I develop, the newsrooms I fill. Am I doing my responsibility to center building a pool of diverse leadership, a pool of diverse talent, a pool of diverse perspectives? And I think that’s what’s most important is the culture that you’re building, is the dream that you’re building. There are going to be times where you have to make tough decisions.”
  • . . . . Jones also said, “For us, rather than looking at a political culture or a political perspective, what we focus on is the truth. Are the angles that we’re hitting representative of truth and democracy and the rights of humans across the board? We can get stuck into both sides for a fair amount or however you look at it. You can’t sacrifice the truth. Sometimes the truth isn’t pretty. Sometimes the truth might be critical of this group or that group. Rather than trying to keep a scorecard of, well, we had X number of perspectives in this party, and X number of perspectives in this party. It’s gotten a little bit more nuanced than that. That’s one of the things we’ve done really well, that nuance.” 
  • “A reckoning that most media companies contend with, Blavity Inc has started the revenue diversification efforts of moving from a display advertising-first business model to include more reader revenue options, like commerce,” Kayleigh Barber reported Tuesday for Digiday. “To help with the transition, Melody Brown was hired as Blavity Inc’s new associate vp of consumer media in Sept. 2022 from Travel + Leisure to help with the construction of this revenue stream, including launching a new home interior brand ‘Home & Texture.’ But the push into commerce doesn’t stop there. Brown said on the latest episode of the Digiday Podcast that the company’s lifestyle brand 21Ninety and travel title Travel Noire were both also pivoting to a commerce-first business model to both bring in a new revenue stream, but also to give readers more assistance from the content they’re already reading. . . .”
  • “Suspected gangs have kidnapped another Haitian journalist as colleagues demanded his release, a government office announced Wednesday,” the Associated Press reported Feb. 8. “The journalist was identified by the Office of Citizen Protection as Jean Thony Lorthé (pictured), who works for Radio Vision 2000. Local media reported that Lorthé was headed to a funeral with two other people including his brother, who is a professor, when they were kidnapped last Friday in the Laboule 12 neighborhood of Port-au-Prince. . . .”

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Richard Prince’s Journal-isms originates from Washington. It began in print before most of us knew what the internet was, and it would like to be referred to as a “column.” Any views expressed in the column are those of the person or organization quoted and not those of any other entity. Send tips, comments and concerns to Richard Prince at journal-isms+owner@groups.io

About Richard Prince

View previous columns (after Feb. 13, 2016).

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