51% of Black Adults: We Shouldn’t Use It, Either

. . . Nearly Half Say They Hear Racist Comments

Lorraine Branham: ‘Like a Sun You Gravitated To’

Colleagues Mourn Gomez, Stanford, Valiente, White

Female Presidential Hopefuls Cast More Negatively

JPC Filed Bankruptcy, but Ebony Says It’s Still Here

Black TV Station Ownership About to Increase

Short Takes

51% of Black Adults: We Shouldn’t Use It, Either

“Among blacks, opinions about the use of the N-word by black people vary across genders and age groups,” the Pew Research Center reported Tuesday. “Black women are more likely than black men to say this is never acceptable (43% vs. 31%). And while half of blacks ages 50 and older say it’s never acceptable for black people to use the N-word, 29% of blacks younger than 50 say the same.”

The finding was part of a broader “Race in America 2019” study.

Its chief conclusion was that, “More than 150 years after the 13th Amendment abolished slavery in the United States, most U.S. adults say the legacy of slavery continues to have an impact on the position of black people in American society today. More than four-in-ten say the country hasn’t made enough progress toward racial equality, and there is some skepticism, particularly among blacks, that black people will ever have equal rights with whites. . . . ”

“Opinions about the current state of race relations — and President Donald Trump’s handling of the issue — are also negative. . . .”

Particularly relevant to journalists of color is the finding that, “Blacks are far more likely than other groups to say their race is very or extremely important to how they think about themselves, but about half or more Hispanics and Asians also say being Hispanic or Asian, respectively, is central to their overall identity; only 15% of whites say the same about being white.”

It was not long ago that white editors were asking black journalists, “Are you black first or a journalist first?” It was a false choice — the two are not in competition. Meanwhile, columnists of color are often asked by both readers and editors why they write “so much” about race or ethnicity.

The effort by some African Americans to reclaim the N-word in different permutations has occasionally posed problems for the news media. Last October, comedian Michael Che casually dropped the word in a sketch on NBC’s “Saturday Night Live.”

Larry Wilmore, then a late-night cable host, was both pilloried and defended in 2016 when he told then-President Barack Obama, “you’re my n—a” at the White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner.

In 2007, a Chicago cameraman was suspended for five days after he used the word as he and another black photographer were vying for a shot. The employee, who worked for WLS-TV, vowed afterward that the word would never pass through his lips again.  Seven years later, the NFL considered penalizing players 15 yards if they used the N-word on the field, leaving sportswriters and columnists who questioned such a penalty in an ironic position: They would be sanctioning language that they were not permitted to use in their own workplaces.

Pew, whose sample included 530 non-Hispanic black and 508 Hispanic respondents, reported, “Most Americans (70%) — including similar shares of blacks and whites — say they, personally, think it’s never acceptable for a white person to use the N-word; about one-in-ten say this is always (3%) or sometimes (6%) acceptable.

“Opinions are more divided when it comes to black people using the N-word: About half say this is rarely (15%) or never (38%) acceptable, while a third say it is sometimes (20%) or always (13%) acceptable. Again, black and white adults offer similar views.”

Mainstream media are nearly unanimous. The “N-word” entry in the Associated Press stylebook says, “Do not use this term or the racial slur it refers to, except in extremely rare circumstances — when it is crucial to the story or the understanding of a news event. Flag the contents in an editor’s note. See obscenities, profanities, vulgarities and race-related coverage.”

The New York Times’ tone is stronger. Under “slurs (ethnic, racial, religious and sexual),” its stylebook says, “The epithets of bigotry ordinarily have no place in the newspaper. Even in ironic or self-mocking quotations about a speaker’s own group (in rap lyrics, for example), their use erodes the worthy inhibition against brutality in public discourse. If an exception is essential to readers’ understanding of a highly newsworthy crime, conflict or personality, the decision should first be discussed thoroughly by senior editors.”

The Washington Post: “We exercise great care if and when using words and expressions generally regarded as obscene, profane or blasphemous,” said spokesperson Shani George. “We also consider its relevance to the story.”

However, theRoot.com, edited by and for African Americans, and a publisher of such headlines as “Maxine ‘Reclaiming My Time’ Waters Still Has No Time for Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin’s Shit,” has a different take.

“The Root’s policy is while the term is offensive, much like with other obscene or profane language, we do use this language from time to time for emphasis on certain stories, as we often write in the way people speak to one another informally,” Editor-in-Chief Danielle Belton said by email.

“In a society where black people being profiled, harassed, attacked or killed — some of it on video — is the norm, quibbles about language seem kind of small, and in some respects, antiquated. While controversial, the N-word isn’t going anywhere anytime soon, whether that is as a slur or a term of endearment, depending on who you’re talking to. It is common in popular music and literature, and is simply, at this point, part of our society.

“We, at The Root, would rather have an honest dialogue about the word rather than pretend it doesn’t exist.”

. . . Nearly Half Say They Hear Racist Comments

More of the Pew Research Center survey’s key findings, as compiled by the Pew Research Center:

• “Whites are especially likely to say their race has given them some advantages: 45% of whites say being white has helped them get ahead at least a little, while 50% say it has neither helped nor hurt and just 5% say it has hurt their ability to get ahead. In contrast, about half of black adults (52%) say their race has hurt their ability to get ahead. About a quarter of Hispanics and Asians (24% each) say their race or ethnicity has had a negative impact.
• “Most blacks say their family talked to them about challenges they might face because of their race. More than six-in-ten black adults (64%) say that, when they were growing up, their family talked to them about challenges they might face because of their race or ethnicity at least sometimes (32% say this happened often). In contrast, about nine-in-ten whites (91%) – and narrower majorities of Hispanics (64%) and Asians (58%) – say their family rarely or never had these types of conversations when they were growing up.
• “Black and white Americans differ in views on whether blacks are treated less fairly in a variety of settings. Majorities of blacks (87%) and whites (61%) say blacks are treated less fairly than whites by the criminal justice system and in dealing with the police (84% and 63%, respectively). When it comes to seeking medical treatment; applying for a loan or mortgage; hiring, pay and promotions; in stores or restaurants; and voting in elections, blacks are about twice as likely as whites to say blacks are at a disadvantage.
• “Across racial and ethnic groups, similar shares say they hear racist or racially insensitive comments from friends or family. Whites (46%), blacks (44%), Hispanics (47%) and Asians (45%) are about equally likely to say they often or sometimes hear comments or jokes that can be considered racist or racially insensitive from friends or family members who share their racial background. About half in each group say this rarely or never happens.
• “About three-quarters of blacks (76%) and Asians (75%) say they have experienced discrimination or have been treated unfairly because of their race or ethnicity; 58% of Hispanics say the same. In contrast, 67% of whites say they’ve never experienced this. . . .”

• Louis Chan, AsAmNews: Pew Research Center: Asian Americans Feel Brunt of Discrimination
• Randall Kennedy, Boston Globe: When ‘the n-word’ meets public education

(Credit: Sarah Glover)

Lorraine Branham: ‘Like a Sun You Gravitated To’

About 225 people, including the members of the National Association of Black Journalists pictured above, gathered at Sharon Baptist Church in Philadelphia Thursday to pay tribute to Lorraine Branham, the dean of the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University who died at 66 of cancer on April 2. Her friend Roy Campbell, a former colleague at the Philadelphia Inquirer,

acknowledged those from Syracuse, Temple University, NABJ, the Philadelphia Association of Black Journalists, the Links and the Philadelphia Inquirer and Daily News.

“She believed in truth. . . . When Lorraine was the shepherd, you did not want to be no wolf!” said Kent Syverud, the Newhouse School chancellor.

Arlene Notoro Morgan, now at Temple University and another former Inquirer colleague, wore an orange blouse, as that was Branham’s favorite color. “Lorraine was like a sun you gravitated to, in good times and in bad. . . . If anything, Lorraine had guts,” she told the crowd.

The Rev. Lester Fields, an associate minister, said afterward that his church “did well” by “a woman of substance. She was an accomplished individual  [at a time] when we signify the insignificant.

“Here is a woman who was an icon,” he said.

Among those present: Annette John-Hall, Bryan Monroe, Arlene Notoro Morgan, Michael Fletcher, Sarah Glover, David Boardman, Roy Campbell, Marjorie Valbrun, Karin Berry, Linda Wright Moore, Maida Odom, Denise Bridges, Michael Days, Angela P. Dodson, DeWayne Wickham, Jackie Jones, Garry D. Howard, Elmer Smith, Linn Washington, Debra Adams Simmons, Angela Robinson and Vincent Thompson.

Among the Newhouse faculty, administrators and alumni in attendance: Lynne Adrine, Chuck Stevens, Hub Brown, Maximo Patiño, Angela Robinson, Kelsey Davis, Joel Kaplan, Tula Goenka, Larry Kramer, Kent Syverud, Melvin T. Stith, Amy Falkner, Harriet Brown, Sean Branagan, Carol Satchwell, Vincent Cobb.

• Sharyn L. Flanagan, Philadelphia Tribune: Saying goodbye to a journalism trailblazer
• Katharine Q. Seelye, New York Times: Lorraine Branham, Journalism Dean and Mentor, Dies at 66

Bryan Monroe, Annette John-Hall, Chuck Stevens and Lynne Adrine contributed to this report.

Colleagues Mourn Gomez, Stanford, Valiente, White

Colleagues and friends are mourning the passings of Luis Gómez, 40, anchor and reporter for Univision New York; Gregory Stanford, 72, retired editorial writer and columnist for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel; Alexa Valiente, 27, a producer for ABC News; and Carolyn White, 67, sportswriter for the Akron (Ohio) Beacon Journal and then USA Today.

“Gómez was diagnosed with testicular cancer in late 2017, which metastasized to his lungs and liver,” Veronica Villafañe reported Sunday for her Media Moves column. He died April 6.

“Despite the grim prognosis, Gómez was determined not to give in to the illness and remained optimistic until the very end. Even though his health had significantly deteriorated, he continued to work. His last day on the air was March 25.”

Villafañe also wrote, “Gómez documented his battle with cancer in a series titled ‘Corazón de Guerrero,’ with the goal to raise awareness about the disease. He became an advocate for cancer prevention in the Hispanic community. . . .

“Gómez was born in Mexico, where he started his journalism career as a documentary producer. He later worked as a writer, editor and multimedia anchor for Grupo Reforma before moving to the United States to join Univision Austin as a reporter and anchor in 2006. He moved to Houston five years later to become a reporter and morning anchor, before joining Univision New York. . . .”

Sarah Hauer wrote of Stanford Monday for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. His “career spanned four decades, first as a reporter, then as an editorial writer and columnist for 19 years before retiring in 2007.” Stanford “worked diligently to build bridges, highlight hope and lessen Milwaukee’s racial disparities and injustices,” Hauer wrote. He died of lung cancer.

“Joanne Williams met Stanford when she was a young reporter at WTMJ-TV in 1971. Together, they organized the Wisconsin Black Media Association, a local chapter of the National Association of Black Journalists. They wanted to cultivate journalists of color and help them understand the broader media landscape.

” ‘He was a door opener,’ Williams said. ‘We wanted (young journalists) to know that they needed to look back and keep the doors open for those behind them.’ Stanford funded a WBMA scholarship that is awarded in his name.

“Stanford was a kind man and a wonderful listener whose goodwill was the source of his strength, said Journal Sentinel Editor George Stanley. ‘I remember when Greg wrote about a foundation leader who was working to heal Milwaukee by funding improvement projects with a proven track record, and he led off the column with a quote from the leader describing how the city’s open wounds “hurt my heart.” And I thought, that’s what Greg has been doing his whole career — writing to heal the wounds that hurt his heart. . . .’ ”

Stanford was a member of the Trotter Group of African American columnists. Derrick Z. Jackson, a co-founder, recalled that “In ‘Thinking Black: Some of the Nation’s Best Black Columnists Speak Their Mind,’ (Crown, 1996), Greg called for a new children’s crusade, centered around community, church and family tutoring. As he wrote:

” ‘African Americans today must get ready. Nobody knows where the next spark will strike, but it needs tinder to keep burning. Rather than idly wait for a Parks or a King, we must actively put pieces of a tutorial infrastructure in place. If only we persevere . . . goodness gracious, a new locomotive will come tearing through the nation.’ . . .”

Valiente, who had been facing health issues for several months, died Friday night, Kelly McCarthy wrote Tuesday for ABC News.

McCarthy also wrote, “Valiente, who started as an intern, was on the digital show integration team. Her work spanned different sections of the ABC News operation, including ‘Nightline,’ ’20/20′ and ‘Popcorn with Peter Travers.’ . . .

“Valiente graduated from Seton Hall University with a degree in diplomacy and international relations and was part of a leadership program at ABC News, mentored by Barbara Fedida, senior vice president for talent, editorial strategy and business affairs. She was selected to participate in the Asian American Journalists Association executive leadership program this month. . . .”

White died Sunday at the Cleveland Clinic, niece Candace Thompson told Journal-isms by telephone. She was treated for blood cancer, but the family will seek an autopsy, she said.

“Carolyn and her family took great pride in knowing that she was the first female, African-American sportswriter at the Akron Beacon Journal and was one of two African-American sportswriters at USA TODAY,” according to the family obituary.

“As a professional, Carolyn worked for 10 years as a high school sportswriter at the . . . Beacon Journal from July 1977 to December 1985. While there, she won two Ohio sportswriter awards for stories about financing high school sports and the shortage of black coaches in Akron city schools. . . .

“Her big break came in 1986 when she landed a job as a sportswriter for USA TODAY in Arlington, Virginia. . . .

“Carolyn had numerous stories about being the first African-American woman to cover sailing for a major newspaper. Her first ride on a sailboat during pre-America’s Cup trials resulted in her hanging on to the deck of the sailboat, hair all over her head with one hand on the protective rail and the other holding a bag. Three men stood around her to make sure she didn’t fall out of the sailboat or pass out. But she still got the story.

“Carolyn, as many of us know, could be stubborn and very deliberate in her thinking, which is how she once got arrested while trying to do her job. While trying to cover the Washington Redskins Super Bowl parade in 1988, the police took her into custody, even though she had press credentials. One can only imagine Carolyn kicking and screaming her way out of it. But she did. The charges were later dropped. . . .”

Services are scheduled for Saturday at Antioch Baptist Church, 8869 Cedar Ave., Cleveland 44106, brother Mark White said. Viewing is at 10 a.m. and the service at 11 a.m., with a repast at the church.

The full family obituary is in the Comments section, below.

• James Causey, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Through his example, Gregory Stanford taught me the importance of being a mentor
• George Thomas and Rick Armon, Akron Beacon Journal: Carolyn White, Beacon Journal’s first woman sportswriter, dead at 67

Female Presidential Hopefuls Cast More Negatively

“Female candidates running for president are consistently being described in the media more negatively than their male counterparts,” Alexander Frandsen and Aleszu Bajak of Northeastern University’s School of Journalism wrote on March 29. “That’s what we’ve concluded after an analysis of 130 articles from mainstream news outlets. It’s a disconcerting trend in the 2020 election coverage.

“We pointed this out in our first Storybench 2020 Election Coverage Tracker update last month. But with the addition of 70 more articles to our database, the picture has become even clearer. . . .

“Back to the analysis: [Bernie] Sanders and [Cory] Booker maintain their perch on the top of the overall sentiment rankings with [Beto] O’Rourke right behind them. [Elizabeth] Warren, [Amy] Klobuchar, [Kamala] Harris, and [Kirsten] Gillibrand all place under them. Again, these findings need to be taken with a grain of salt. The sentiment scoring is imperfect, and despite doubling our dataset, it is still too small to draw any certain conclusions. But the findings beg the question: What exactly is causing this apparent disparity in media portrayal? . . .”

• Philip Bump, Washington Post: Television news coverage of the 2020 Democrats is uneven — but not in the way you might think
• Morgan Radford and Aaron Franco, NBC News: ‘Breakfast Club’ radio show emerges as crucial stop for 2020 Democrats
• Elana Schor, Associated Press: Democratic White House hopefuls tout agendas to black voters (April 5)
• Veronica Stracqualursi, CNN: New York Post cover featuring Ilhan Omar quote infuriates Democratic colleagues

JPC Filed Bankruptcy, but Ebony Says It’s Still Here

Despite Tuesday’s bankruptcy filing by Johnson Publishing Co., creator and former owner of Ebony and Jet magazines, the current Ebony owners want all to know that they’re not that company and are still around.

“EBONY Media Operations, LLC brands, which include EBONY magazine, EBONY.com, digital magazine JET at jetmag.com and its related businesses, have viably operated independently of Johnson Publishing Company dba/ Fashion Fair Cosmetics (JPC) since Black-owned Ebony Media Operations, LLC (EMO) purchased the media assets of JPC in 2016,” the current owners announced Tuesday on ebony.com. “Black-owned investment firm CVG Group LLC assisted in the formation of EMO.

“EMO is unaffected by the Chapter 7 bankruptcy announcement regarding the dissolution of JPC. EMO is not able to comment further and is not familiar with the facts or events of the JPC business. . . .”

The Ebony owners then published JPC’s 35-page filing in U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Illinois, signed by Linda Johnson Rice, daughter of the JPC founders, John H. Johnson and his wife, Eunice W. Johnson.

The recent owners — Michael Gibson and Willard Jackson — were justified in their concern about confusion with JPC, the remains of which are essentially the Fashion Fair cosmetics operation and the richly historic Ebony and Jet photo archive.

The Associated Press ran a correction on Wednesday: “In a story April 9 about Johnson Publishing Co. filing for bankruptcy, The Associated Press reported erroneously that the company owns Ebony and Jet magazines. It is the former owner.”

Most stories about the bankruptcy filing highlighted the history and significance of Ebony and Jet in chronicling and helping to uplift postwar black America through the civil rights movement.

But some went into the nitty-gritty of the company’s attempts to survive in today’s business climate.

I-Chun Chen wrote Wednesday for the Chicago Business Journal, ” ‘This decision was not easy, nor should it have been,’ the company said. “Johnson Publishing Co. is an iconic part of American and African-American history since our founding in 1942, and the company’s impact on society cannot be overstated.’ Johnson cited ‘confluence of adverse events and factors outside of the company’s control.’

“Factors included the failure of the purchaser of the company’s media division to make required payments, the bankruptcy of one of the company’s largest retailers, increasing competition from e-commerce in the cosmetic business; and a costly recall resulting from receiving products with quality issues from one of its manufacturers.

“In short, Johnson Publishing Co. was caught in a tidal wave of marketplace changes and business issues which, despite exhaustive efforts, could not be overcome,” the company said.

Ebony Media Operations, meanwhile, tried to sound upbeat. “EMO looks forward to continuing to delight and serve the Black community in America and worldwide for years to come,” it declared.

• Lynne Marek, Crain’s Chicago Business: Is the slow-motion decline of Johnson Publishing accelerating? (April 5)
• National Association of Black Journalists: NABJ Leaders React to Johnson Publishing Bankruptcy
• Jon Seidel, Chicago Sun-Times: Johnson Publishing Co., the ex-publisher of Ebony and Jet, files for bankruptcy
• Corilyn Shropshire and Lolly Bowean, Chicago Tribune: Johnson Publishing once chronicled black life in Ebony and Jet. It sold the magazines in 2016 and now it’s going out of business.
• Rachel Siegel, Washington Post: Johnson Publishing Company, the ex-publisher of Ebony and Jet magazines, files for bankruptcy
• Ernie Suggs, Atlanta Journal-Constitution: Johnson, former Ebony and Jet publisher, files for bankruptcy
• Honoring a “Race Man’s” Values: More than 2,000 at John H. Johnson Services (Aug. 14, 2005)

Black TV Station Ownership About to Increase

“Timing is everything,” Adam Jacobson reported Monday for Radio + Television Business Report.

“Four days after Pluria Marshall Jr. filed a lawsuit against Nexstar Media Group for what [his company] says are the broadcast TV company’s active efforts ‘to undermine’ three TV stations it acquired from Nexstar, the company led by Perry Sook has revealed that two stations it must divest in Indianapolis are heading to an African American-led operator.

“It’s an old familiar friend of Nexstar, who on two previous occasions grabbed required spins from the company.

“In a sunrise announcement made ahead of the 2019 NAB Show in Las Vegas, Nexstar revealed that it has entered into a definitive agreement with a newly [formed] minority-led broadcast company that will result in a transfer of control of the CW Network and MyNetworkTV affiliates serving Indianapolis — WISH-8 and WNDY-23.

“Getting the stations is Circle City Broadcasting I Inc., controlled and owned by DuJuan McCoy.

“McCoy is a member of the NAB’s Television Board of Directors, and has been on the board since June 2012. He has also been on NABOB’s Board of Directors since December 2013, serves on the Broadcasters Foundation of America board, and completed the NAB Broadcast Leadership Program in 2008. . . .”

Mason King added Monday for Indianapolis Business Journal, “The sale of the two Indianapolis stations is a vital step in Nexstar’s plan to purchase broadcast giant Tribune Media for $4.1 billion. Tribune owns WXIN-TV Channel 59 and WTTV-TV Channel 4, which could set up federal regulatory obstacles for the purchase with one entity owning several major stations in a city. . . .”

Two advocates of broadcast ownership diversity, the Multicultural Media, Telecom and Internet Council (MMTC) and National Association of Black Owned Broadcasters, applauded the prospective sale.

“suing Nextstar, approved. “Great guy. Experienced operator,” he messaged Journal-isms, referring to McCoy.

According to the FCC, blacks or African Americans owned just 12 stations (0.9 percent) in the United States in 2015 and 9 stations (0.6 percent) in 2013.

• Harry A. Jessell, TVNewsCheck: Pai: More Relaxed Ownership Rules Coming
• Vic Ryckaert, Indianapolis Star: Indianapolis native buys WISH-TV and WNDY-TV for $42.5 million

Short Takes

“From criminal to cop, and back again, in Alaska’s most vulnerable villages,” read the headline in the June 8, 2018, edition of the Anchorage Daily News. Kyle Hopkins’ work was one of the winners in the annual IRE awards from Investigative Reporters and Editors, announced Tuesday. “The rape and death of a 16-year-old girl reveal how criminals can sometimes become cops in remote Alaska communities. The Daily News has found that villages have hired a registered sex offender, felons and other convicted criminals for police jobs in violation of state hiring requirements.”

The top honor, the IRE medal, went to “Myanmar Burning,” by Wa Lone, Kyaw Soe Oo and their Reuters colleagues. The Gannett Award for Innovation in Watchdog Journalism went to “Toxic City: Sick Schools” by the Philadelphia Inquirer, where “[r]eporters recruited and trained school staffers to test schools for lead in water, lead paint, mold, silica and asbestos in areas where reporters were not allowed to go. . . .”

• “ ‘Colorism’ is the discrimination against individuals with a dark skin tone,” Summer Sewell, Dream McClinton and Jessica Reed wrote Monday for the Guardian U.S. “This means that darker skinned black people have to fight prejudice even within their own community, where lighter skin is seen as more desirable. As such, darker skinned black people can experience both racism and colorism. For one week, Guardian US will explore this little-explored topic through the lens of 27 black women — writers, illustrators, photographers, activists, artists and mothers. The series is called Shades of Black. . . .”
• “The legacy of slavery, the Civil War and its aftermath are much-discussed in American politics, but seldom expansively enough to bring genuine context to them. PBS and professor Henry Louis Gates Jr. address that shortcoming in ‘Reconstruction: America After the Civil War,’ a four-hour documentary that weaves together the past with policies and debates that remain much in evidence today,” Brian Lowry wrote Tuesday for CNN. Lowry also wrote, “In his introduction, Gates dubs Reconstruction one of American history’s most consequential chapters, as well as one of the most ‘misrepresented and misunderstood.’ Even a four-hour documentary isn’t sufficient to remedy that lack of understanding, but thanks to the artful way that ‘Reconstruction’ lays out its case, it’s a start. The series began Tuesday and continues on PBS April 16. The first part is still online.
• Univision Communications has agreed to sell Gizmodo Media Group, owner of satire website The Onion, to the private equity company Great Hill Partners after a nine-month sales process — “the latest deal involving digital publishers in the past year as conditions worsen for niche media companies,” Claire Atkinson reported Monday for NBC News. “Gizmodo’s digital destinations include the women-focused website Jezebel, the sports-focused website Deadspin, the African-American issues website The Root, and personal improvement website Lifehacker, among others. . . .”
• On Monday, the Knight-Bagehot Fellowship in Business and Economics at the Columbia Journalism School announced 10 Knight-Bagehot Fellows for the 2019-2020 academic year. They include María Eloísa Capurro, 34, an economics journalist at the Búsqueda newspaper in Uruguay; Larry Madowo, 31, BBC Africa business editor; Akiko Matsuda, 53, real estate reporter for the Journal News/lohud in White Plains, N.Y.; Eshe Nelson, 27, economics and markets reporter at Quartz, based in London; Oheneba Ama Nti Osei, 31, production editor for the pan-African news organization the Africa Report, based in Paris; and Hamza Shaban, 32, technology and business reporter for the Washington Post. Nelson “developed several new coverage areas for Quartz, including a series of stories about sustainable finance and racial economic inequality. . . .”
• The Radio Television Digital News Association says it “is dedicated to improving coverage of issues important to diverse communities. We annually honor news organizations who provide outstanding coverage of diverse communities through the Kaleidoscope Award, accepting entries now.” The deadline to enter is May 3.
• The Associated Press announced Tuesday it will “expand its robust efforts to debunk false and misleading information, including in video and Spanish-language content appearing on Facebook. With a focus on Spanish-language text, photos and video seen by a U.S. audience, AP will debunk misinformation and publish corresponding fact checks in Spanish. AP is the first fact-checker in Facebook’s program to focus on content consumed by Spanish speakers in the U.S. . . .”

• “DeNeen L. Brown, an award-winning feature writer who for more than three decades has worked for The Washington Post, will join the University of Maryland Philip Merrill College of Journalism faculty this fall,” the university announced April 3. The Post added in its internal memo, ” But we’re pleased to add that she’s not leaving us entirely; she’ll continue to write stories on a contract basis, including a coming project about the 1921 Tulsa race massacre. . . .”
• “For her dedication to journalism and deep commitment to values of the First Amendment and press freedom, the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press will honor [April] Ryan at the 2019 Freedom of the Press Awards in May,” Pariss Briggs wrote April 5 for the committee. Ryan, White House correspondent and Washington bureau chief for American Urban Radio Networks and a political analyst for CNN, “brings a lot of issues that affect people who live in cities and minority populations to the table,” Bloomberg White House Correspondent Margaret Talev said in the release. “She’s also able to pinpoint areas of concern, whether they involve economics, demographics, social change, health care or education — areas of concern that may not otherwise be getting asked [about] in the [White House press] briefings.”
• “The Native American Journalists Association recently launched the Red Press Initiative survey designed to assess the perception of press freedom in Indian Country by gathering responses from the directors, producers and consumers of tribal media,” the association said Wednesday. It also said, “A vibrant Indigenous media is essential to an informed and engaged tribal citizenry, but the health and needs of these important news organizations [are] inconsistent and unclear. . . . “
• “On April 9, CNN host Brianna Keilar blamed Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) and her tweet that characterized President Donald Trump’s senior policy adviser Stephen Miller as a ‘white nationalist’ for making immigration ‘discussions more difficult.’ Cristina López G. wrote Tuesday for Media Matters for America. “But Keilar failed to explore the evidence of Miller’s nativist record that merits such a label. . . . This is not the first time a CNN host has bristled at the lack of ‘civility’ of calling Miller a white nationalist. Network hosts seem to find the white nationalist label more contemptible than Miller’s bigotry. . . .”
• Earvin “Magic” Johnson’s sudden, stunning resignation Tuesday night as president of the Los Angeles Lakers “leaves two, count them, two black team presidents who oversee basketball operations in the NBA . . . ,” William C. Rhoden wrote Thursday for the Undefeated. “The low numbers contradict the general perception of the NBA as a progressive bastion of liberalism in which more than 80 percent of the players are either African American, African or ‘of color.’ ” Rob Parker wrote Wednesday for the Shadow League, “if you really listened to Johnson’s words in that endless press conference and separated them from the smoke screens mixed in, the message was clear: Magic lost a power struggle with team owner Jeanie Buss. . . .”
• “Veteran NBA guard Kyle Korver stunned the sports world on Monday by acknowledging the issues of white privilege and racism in his first-person story in The Players’ Tribune,” Marc J. Spears wrote Tuesday for the Undefeated. “The rousing response to the words of a white player not known for saying much was a necessary reminder that white words matter in the fight against racism and social injustice. . . .”
• Four journalists were among at least 12 activists and writers detained by Saudi authorities on April 4, according to the Associated Press and the London-based human rights organization Al-Qst, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Monday. “The journalists’ locations have not been made public, and no charges against them have been announced. CPJ’s emailed request for comment to the Saudi embassy in Washington, D.C., did not receive a response. . . .”
• Reporters Without Borders said Tuesday it is “relieved to learn that Egyptian journalist Hisham Gaafar has been released conditionally after being held for three and a half years without trial, and calls for his release to be made unconditional and for the withdrawal of all charges against him. . . .”

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

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• Book Notes: From Coretta to Barack, and in Search of the Godfather
• Journal-isms’ Richard Prince Wants Your Ideas (FishbowlDC, Feb. 26, 2016)
• “JOURNAL-ISMS” IS LATEST TO BEAR BRUNT OF INDUSTRY’S ECONOMIC WOES (Feb. 19, 2016)
• Richard Prince with Charlayne Hunter-Gault,“PBS NewsHour,” “What stagnant diversity means for America’s newsrooms” (Dec. 15, 2015)
• Book Notes: Journalists Follow Their Passions
• Book Notes: Journalists Who Rocked Their World
• Book Notes: Hands Up! Read This!
• Book Notes: New Cosby Bio Looks Like a Best-Seller
• Journo-diversity advocate turns attention to Ezra Klein project (Erik Wemple, Washington Post, March 5, 2014)
• Book Notes: “Love, Peace and Soul!” And More
• Book Notes: Book Notes: Soothing the Senses, Shocking the Conscience
• Diversity’s Greatest Hits, 2015
• Diversity’s Greatest Hits, 2014
• Diversity’s Greatest Hits, 2013
• Diversity’s Greatest Hits, 2012
• Diversity’s Greatest Hits, 2011
• Diversity’s Greatest Hits, 2010
• Diversity’s Greatest Hits, 2009
• Diversity’s Greatest Hits, 2008
• Book Notes: Books to Ring In the New Year
• Book Notes: In-Your-Face Holiday Reads
• Fishbowl Interview With the Fresh Prince of D.C. (Oct. 26, 2012)
• NABJ to Honor Columnist Richard Prince With Ida B. Wells Award (Oct. 11, 2012)
• So What Do You Do, Richard Prince, Columnist for the Maynard Institute? (Richard Horgan, FishbowlLA, Aug. 22, 2012)
• Book Notes: Who Am I? What’s Race Got to Do With It?: Journalists Explore Identity
• Book Notes: Catching Up With Books for the Fall
• Richard Prince Helps Journalists Set High Bar (Jackie Jones, BlackAmericaWeb.com, 2011)
• Book Notes: 10 Ways to Turn Pages This Summer
• Book Notes: 7 for Serious Spring Reading
• Book Notes: 7 Candidates for the Journalist’s Library
• Book Notes: 9 That Add Heft to the Bookshelf
• Five Minutes With Richard Prince (Newspaper Association of America, 2005)
• ‘Journal-isms’ That Engage and Inform Diverse Audiences (Q&A with Mallary Jean Tenore, Poynter Institute, 2008)