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Ebony, Jet Swear Off That Epithet

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Black Publications Take Stand Against “N-Word”

In an editorial accompanying a discussion of the infamous racial epithet, Bryan Monroe, editorial director of Ebony and Jet magazines, declares that, “from here on, after you read the powerful discussion of that term in these subsequent pages of Ebony, you will likely never see that word used in this magazine — or our sister magazine, Jet — again.

 

 

“On the very rare occasion that its use is central to the telling of an important story, I, as the editor, will need to sign off on it personally.”

Monroe, the former Knight Ridder news executive and current president of the National Association of Black Journalists, assumed the newly created job only last summer. His declaration appears in the February issue under the headline, “Enough! Why Blacks — and Whites — should never use the ‘N-Word’ again.”

While the word has rarely been used in the two magazines, which together represent the most successful magazine enterprise targeting African Americans, Monroe’s statement was designed to introduce the package of articles and to put the publications on the record, spokeswoman LaTrina Blair told Journal-isms.

It is accompanied by “A brief history of the word ‘nigger,'” and two pieces. In one, Michael Johnson, a biracial South African who looks white, recalls that “after a reassuring glance into their rearview mirror to establish my Whiteness, countless taxi drivers have used the word in every U.S. city I have lived in or traveled to.” And “having lived in America, Africa and Asia for nearly equal thirds of my life and spending scattered years in Europe . . . I can explain firsthand how the global bond of White racism operates through language.”

In a second piece, Goldie Taylor, a black woman whose father was murdered in 1973, explains that the word was used by the black men who killed him. But while Johnson opposes the word’s use, Taylor says “the larger issue here is the state of Black America . . . our time, talent and resources are better spent on causes that matter.”

Monroe, 41, argues that many blacks using the term today are ignorant of its history. “Some say it is a generational thing, that those over 40 can’t get with the language of the young folk,” he writes. “But I don’t buy that. We have a generation who have been desensitized to — or never were taught — the real origins and impact of such a hateful term.

“Whether it ends in ‘-er or ‘ah’ or -a,’ the word — and the pain — is still the same,” he said. . . . “How about ‘mah brutha’ or ‘mah man’ or ‘my friend.'”

Ryan Ford, executive editor of the hip-hop magazine The Source, told Journal-isms that his publication uses the word “when it’s quoted from an interview subject. We don’t just toss the word around.” He disagreed that its use was generational, citing its use in 1970s blaxploitation movies, for example. “If we stop using the word today, are they going to let all the blacks out of jail, are we going to have health care” and redress other social problems? asked Ford, who is 29.

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Washington Post Ends Series on Black Men

After seven months and 562,724 page views online, the Washington Post’s “Being a Black Man” series ended Sunday with two critiques in the paper’s “Outlook” opinion section and a commentary by a black comedian.

Kevin Merida, the Post associate editor coordinating the project, said the newspaper was considering turning the series into a book, and Managing Editor Philip Bennett told Journal-isms, “I’ve never been associated with a journalism project that generated as much response from readers and viewers.”

In narratives ranging from 2,500 to 4,800 words, the paper sought to describe the lives of black men at various stations in society, for the most part leaving readers to draw their own conclusions.

In Sunday’s Outlook section, Patricia J. Williams, a law professor at Columbia University and columnist for the Nation magazine, wrote, “Reading all this, I felt myself sinking into despair. To the extent that the series accurately reflects our culture, I saw little possibility of escape, no window of bright hope toward which to point my son. What will our children have to do to overcome the confinement of subtle rhetorical boxes, the presumption of others that they can glance at you and know everything there is to know?”

Orlando Patterson, a professor of sociology at Harvard University, took heart that, “The Post’s survey found that 60 percent of black men attribute their plight to their own personal failures and attitudes rather than to racism. They do not underplay the persistence of racism in the United States, but they refuse to explain away their troubles by blaming the system.”

However, Patterson called for “social policies that reduce the exposure of young blacks to the streets, increase adult supervision during childhood and lessen the burden on black mothers, especially in light of welfare policies that oblige them to work. All this implies more, not less, government.”

The series represented a new step in collaboration between the printed newspaper and its online component, which featured the series in multimedia presentations. Tanya Ballard, project coordinator for the online version, said the Web site would remain up for some time and that readers are continuing to submit comments. The initial video, featuring opinions on what it means to be a black man, is probably the site’s most popular feature, she said.

Merida said in an online chat Monday, “The most impressive thing, from my vantage point, was seeing how readers engaged the series. Whether praising or criticizing, the critiques were thoughtful and often impassioned. . . . We carried our series to neighborhoods, in the form of forums, which were well-attended. And all of that reminded me that there is a readership for long-form journalism that touches people’s lives and seems authentic to their experiences. The most disappointing thing was having to end this series, and not being able to get to so many other topics worthy of inclusion — from black men and spirituality to single mothers and grandmothers who have raised so many black boys. But ending the series does not end our commitment to this kind of journalism and to those subjects.”

Bennett’s complete comment: “I think ‘Being a Black Man’ was an important success for The Post and for the communities we cover. The series addressed with depth and nuance some of the most complex subjects in American society, and I think what emerged was a portrait of black men that did justice to that complexity, and to the diversity and richness of their experiences.

“I think these stories asked tough questions and described tough truths as our reporters and photographers discovered them. There was an honesty and genuine quality to these stories — and the voices that they carried — that connected with readers, in the paper and through the stunning videos on our web site.

“I’ve never been associated with a journalism project that generated as much response from readers and viewers. One of our goals was to get people talking, and they’re still talking, to us and to each other.”

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Of Presidents, Latino Leader Says Clinton “Gets It”

Raúl Yzaguirre, whom the Hispanic Link News Service calls “the Hispanic community’s most influential and respected national advocate throughout the last quarter century,” believes that “The Bill Clinton era represents the high watermark for Latino influence in the White House and in the federal government. Bill Clinton does not have the personal visceral affinity for Hispanics as he has for African Americans, but he gets it. By that I mean that at a cerebral level, he understands the importance of Latinos in this nation.”

Yzaguirre “nurtured the growth of the National Council of La Raza into this country’s most powerful Latino civil rights organization as its president for three decades” and retired on Dec. 31, 2004. He made the observation in an interview with Hispanic Link in which he was asked to assess recent presidents. The interview, carrying Alex Meneses Miyashita‘s byline, was transmitted in three parts. Yzaguirre said:

The interview does not indicate he was asked about Ronald Reagan. After leaving La Raza, Yzaguirre joined Arizona State University as presidential professor of practice in community development and civil rights.

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“Racists Have All But Ruined” Comment Section

“A local website has become ground zero for hate in South Florida. It’s loaded, on an almost daily basis, with racist stereotypes, slurs, and sentimental references to slavery and lynchings. You can see it at this address: http://www.sun-sentinel.com,” Bob Norman wrote Dec. 28 in the Broward-Palm Beach (Fla.) New Times.

“That’s right, our oh-so-proper daily newspaper of record, the politically correct Tribune Co.-owned standard-bearer of stodginess, has become the chief disseminator of hate speech in the region, quite possibly the entire state.

“It’s not coming from the Sentinel’s reporters and editors but from the readers. This summer, the newspaper began allowing readers to post unchecked comments beneath each article on its website. Almost immediately, the hatemongers stormed the gates, and they haven’t let up since.

“. . . The racists have all but ruined what should be a good thing, and it’s getting more and more obvious that the newspaper needs to monitor the boards a lot more closely.”

Sun-Sentinel Editor Earl Maucker, who wrote in a Nov. 26 “Ask the Editor” column that, “we’re very disturbed when we see insensitive, racist and offensive messages that some feel compelled to post,” did not respond to a request from Journal-isms for comment.

Norman wrote, “The Miami Herald, smartly, has restricted comment capability to just a few stories, so it has largely been able to avoid the problems faced by the Sentinel.

“Maucker might want to start taking note of his competitor’s strategy, or really get his newspaper to start monitoring the website instead of just promising in his column to do so.”

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Lives of Mexican Reporters Remain on the Line

“Journalism has always been a challenging, murky craft in Mexico,” Hugh Dellios, the Chicago Tribune’s foreign editor, wrote on Sunday.

“For decades, reporters and editors were co-opted by the ruling Institutional Revolutionary Party, or PRI, just like any other ‘interest group.’ Regular perks and paychecks kept reporters in line with ‘the revolution.’

“Today, after years of struggle for freedom of expression, a more modern media is emerging in the big cities. But in remote corners and along the borders, the narco bosses are the new co-opters, and many journalists find it as hard to resist as the local police do.

“‘Plomo o plata?’ the saying goes. Lead or silver?

“Too often, the authorities quickly write off the death of a journalist as just a common street crime.”

Dellios was writing of the November death of Misael Tamayo Hernandez, founder of the newspaper El Despertar de la Costa—The Awakening of the Coast. His body was found in a cheap motel room, nearly naked on the bed, hands tied behind his back with a belt.

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“No Such Luck” on New Day for Muslims

“I really thought things were going to be materially better for people with ‘funny’ names like mine when Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., came to Washington. And they have been,” Askia Muhammad wrote from Washington for Saturday’s Duluth (Minn.) News Tribune.

“Since he’s been here I have noticed an appreciable mellowing of people on the telephone. I’ve gone from typically hearing the indignant ‘Who?’ whenever I would leave my name, to a curious ‘Will you spell that, please?’

“So, as a Muslim who has encountered my fair share of religious bigotry, I thought things would be similarly better when the first Muslim was elected to Congress, especially one with a ‘normal’ name.

“No such luck.”

Muhammad went on to discuss the insults directed at Rep.-elect Keith Ellison, D-Minn., after he said he would use a Koran at his swearing-in ceremony, and his own experiences as a Muslim journalist in the capital. His was one of several recent commentaries on the politics of 2006 and 2008:

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CNN Details Airing of King Papers Series

CNN began its “American Morning” series on the Martin Luther King Jr. papers on Monday with a look at those dealing with the Montgomery bus boycott of 1955-56. The schedule for the rest of the week is: Tuesday, Birmingham police dogs (1963); Wednesday, the “I Have a Dream” speech (1963); Thursday, the Nobel Peace Prize and the Selma march (1964-65); and Friday, the assassination in Memphis (1968). The series airs during the 8 a.m. block, barring breaking news.

Feb. 23 Deadline for Jarrett Medal Nominations

The Institute for Advanced Journalism Studies at North Carolina A&T State University is accepting nominations for the Vernon Jarrett Medal for Journalistic Excellence, given to journalists for outstanding coverage of people of African descent and the issues that affect their lives.

It is intended to promote greater diversity in the coverage of domestic and foreign news by media organizations in the United States. Applications must be postmarked by Feb. 23.

Jarrett (1918-2004) “was a race man and journalist. For nearly six decades he merged his black consciousness with his drive for journalistic fairness. As columnist for the Chicago Sun-Times, Chicago Tribune and The Chicago Defender, Jarrett was a champion of black causes. He used his journalistic voice to trumpet the achievements of blacks and to condemn those who ignored or trivialized the impact that blacks have had throughout the world,” the Institute’s Web site says.

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