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When the Editor Is Black, It Can Get Complex

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Audiences, Bosses Sometimes Make Assumptions

Who Lit the Match on Omar Controversy?

Honduran Women Fleeing Unspeakable Atrocities

Broadcast, Print Execs Put Focus on Local News

Sponsors Celebrate Tiger Woods’ Resilience

Slavery Descendant to Be Georgetown J-Student

Station in ‘Worst City for Black Americans’ Responds

Short Takes

 

Lorraine Branham in 1996 at The Tallahassee Democrat in Florida, where she was executive editor, with the newspaper’s publisher, Carrol Dadisman. (Credit: Mike Ewen/Tallahassee Democrat)

Audiences, Bosses Sometimes Make Assumptions

The remembrances of 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, did not dwell on the racism and sexism she experienced during her journalism career.

But her dismissal as executive editor of the Tallahassee Democrat in 1999 raised such questions and was included when the National Association of Black Journalists commemorated its 30th anniversary in 2005 and listed key moments during NABJ’s existence.

“The nation’s only African-American woman editor of a daily with a circulation more than 50,000 was forced to resign last week — prompting some to raise questions about subtle forms of sexism and racism,” Joe Nicholson wrote for the Oct. 23, 1999, issue of Editor & Publisher.

The headline was “Top Black Woman Editor Forced Out.” [PDF].

“Lorraine Branham, 46, executive editor of the Tallahassee Democrat, told a packed newsroom that she was stepping down after more than three years to accept a temporary post as a consultant with parent Knight Ridder. . . .

“Branham said a black woman editor faces many hurdles, often including an assumption ‘that she got the job not because she was smart and qualified’ but due to a diversity effort.

” ‘People always expect you to walk on water and be twice as good,’ she added. ‘The industry is so focused nowadays on the bottom line and circulation that issues like diversity and journalistic excellence really are secondary,’ said Branham. ‘My fear is that it’s going to [get] worse. ‘ ”

The Democrat reported that the move “was viewed as a response to the newspaper’s declining circulation.

Wanda Lloyd

“But Branham said circulation declines were in single digits and no different than those at numerous other papers,” the E&P story continued. “She said efforts she made produced improvement in readership among African Americans, [women] and younger people, although there was a drop among white males. Before she became editor, she said the Tallahassee Democrat had ‘a bad reputation in the African-American community’ and ‘was referred to as “The Dixiecrat.” ‘ ”

“I remember that story about Lorraine at the time,” Wanda Lloyd, a long-time Gannett editor who is now retired, told Journal-isms by email over the weekend.

“Ultimately, all of us black editors were accused of making our papers too black at one time or another, especially in Gannett, where Corporate was essentially telling us to do just that through the metrics of the All-American program. We had programs specifically set up to train newsroom personnel how to increase the accuracy in our newspapers by reflecting our communities based on race, gender and other aspects of diversity. For those of us on the ground in newsrooms in local communities, we knew that the reality was that while our communities were racially diverse, our traditional readers were older white residents.

“I got a. . .  fair amount of push back about diversity from a publisher at one of my newspapers. He said readers were cancelling subscriptions and a few advertisers were walking away. I was told that white readers were telling the publisher ‘this is no longer our newspaper.’

“The publisher came up with the idea to launch a new slick monthly publication targeted to upscale women. Even though I created the magazine and I was the executive editor, made all writing and photo assignments, and edited every story, the publisher told me I should leave my name off the masthead, presumably for fear of running off the intended audience. I even wrote a monthly column and signed it ‘The Editor,’ without using my name or photo.

“When a new publisher came to the newspaper, I just put my name in the next edition’s masthead for as long as the magazine was published. I didn’t ask; I just did it. I was sure the new publisher had no idea.”

Waleed Shahid, left, Karen Finney, Matt Lewis and Brian Stelter Sunday on CNN’s “Reliable Sources.” (Credit: Screen grab)

Who Lit the Match on Omar Controversy?

The controversy around remarks by Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., about the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks was manufactured by right-wing media (video), CNN media reporter Brian Stelter suggested Sunday on his “Reliable Sources” show. Two of his guests said the brouhaha should be framed in the context of the disparagement of black and brown people by President Trump and his supporters.

“Controversies don’t just erupt like a bolt of lightning sparking a fire,” Stelter said. “No. Controversies are created like an arsonist lighting a match.

“Too often, our news coverage in the papers and on the TV, and online starts mid-story. We say there is a controversy brewing between these two people, but we leave out the most important part, the lighting of the match.

“So, let’s look at how the Omar 9/11 controversy started and how it is being framed. Omar gave a speech to the Council of Islamic Relations last month. Her focus was on the importance of protecting civil liberties. The speech didn’t really get picked up at the time.

“But then last Monday, the conservative website ‘The Daily Caller’, cofounded by Tucker Carlson, picked up on Omar’s reference to the 9/11 hijackers. She said, quote: some people did [something] while arguing that all Muslims should not be punished for the action of a crazy few.

“So, ‘The Daily Caller’ posted four minutes of video to YouTube. Then, an Australian man who calls himself a Muslim scholar and is very active on Twitter sets the frame for a week’s worth of news conference. The framing is that Omar was downplaying 9/11.

“His tweet took off and [it] spread [to] the right wing websites. It was all over the sites by Tuesday. Then on Tuesday night, Sean Hannity brought the video to television. . . .” Trump later posted a video that spliced together footage of the Sept. 11 attacks with a quote from Omar’s remarks, and has refused to yield to critics who have called that repugnant, divisive, out of context and in poor taste.

Waleed Shahid, communications director for a group called Justice Democrats, said on Sunday’s show, “it’s common sense why people on top in society want people on the bottom to be divided (transcript), fearing each other, [hating] each other, resenting each other, so that the few on top could thrive. ”

Karen Finney, a former campaign aide to Hillary Clinton who is now a CNN political commentator said, “I remember the time immediately after 9/11 where we had a president who I didn’t agree with on much, but who actually used the bully pulpit to say, this is not a war against Muslims.

“Instead, we have a president who is using all of his resources to essentially scapegoat black and brown people as part of a political strategy. And we see a very just unsettling symbiosis between right wing media and the president where they sort of act as an arm of the things that he — you know, this hate machine. . . .”

From the London Telegraph in January: Hundreds of Honduran migrants begin the long trek north as part of a new U.S.-bound caravan. (Credit: London Telegraph)

Honduran Women Fleeing Unspeakable Atrocities

“President Trump calls immigrants ‘criminals’ — drug dealers and rapists intent on plundering America,” Sonia Nazario wrote April 5 for the New York Times. “But the truth, as I saw so clearly over a monthlong reporting trip in Honduras, is that migrants are fleeing a society controlled by criminals.

“President Trump keeps threatening to shut off the southern border to prevent Central Americans from crossing. On March 29 he announced he was halting aid to Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador — about $450 million a year that we now spend on strengthening civil society and chipping away at the power of gangs and drug cartels. Mick Mulvaney, the acting White House chief of staff, defended the decision by arguing that the money made little difference: ‘If it’s working so well, why are the people still coming?’

Sonia Nazario

“Well, some of them are coming because they don’t want to die. This is particularly true of women, who make up a greater proportion of border crossers every year.

“This latest announcement comes on top of moves by the Trump administration to bar victims of domestic violence from applying for asylum. . . .”

Nazario also wrote, “Unlike in much of the world, where most murdered women are killed by their husbands, partners or family members, half in Honduras are killed by drug cartels and gangs. And the ways they are being killed — shot in the vagina, cut to bits with their parts distributed among various public places, strangled in front of their children, skinned alive — have women running for the border.

“Understanding what is going on in Honduras is crucial to understanding, and solving, what is going on at the United States border, where 268,044 migrants were stopped in the first five months of fiscal 2019, nearly twice as many as in the same period last year. A growing proportion — half — were families with children.

She also wrote, “It’s about machismo — the culture of which goes back to colonial times, when conquering Spaniards came without wives and treated the indigenous like slaves. Today, in a world ruled by gangs and narco groups, it’s about engendering maximum terror in your enemies, and you do that by showing how macabre you can be in the way you torture or kill. Honduras is locked in a war of grisly one-upmanship, and women’s bodies are the battlefield. . . .”

Nazario appeared Monday on WBUR Boston’s “Here and Now,” which is is distributed by NPR.

Cathy Hughes, founder and chairperson of Urban One, became the first African American woman to be inducted into the National Association of Broadcasters’ Radio Hall of Fame on April 8 in Las Vegas. NAB President Gordon H. Smith opened the NAB conference with an emphasis on local news. (Credit: Joe Durkin/Urban One)

Broadcast, Print Execs Put Focus on Local News

National Association of Broadcasters president Gordon H. Smith kicked off this year’s NAB Show 2019 in Las Vegas last week by by speaking about the importance of local broadcast journalism as the ultimate way to “inform and help our communities,” A.J. Katz reported April 8 for Adweek.

“ ‘Your role has become more critical while people search for a trusted source of news,’ said Smith, a former two-term U.S. senator from Oregon who joined the organization in 2009. ‘Americans turn on their televisions to watch their favorite local news anchor and to get an unbiased report of what is happening in their communities. And they turn to their local broadcasters for a lifeline during emergencies.’

“However, not all local news is unbiased,” Katz added. “There’s the issue of Sinclair Broadcasting that has captured the attention of many in the media industry over the past few years. In addition to its failed acquisition of Tribune Media, the Maryland-based local broadcast company directs its stations to incorporate conservative and pro-Trump commentary into newscasts.

“One of the most recent examples is former Fox News personality Sebastian Gorka’s 30-minute special last year about the failures of socialist regimes around the world, titled Inside Socialism. During the special, he remarked: ‘Can the teachings of Islam and Western values ever be reconciled? Is it possible for the waves of refugees arriving in the West to assimilate and coexist peacefully?” That’s not exactly unbiased. . . .”

Meanwhile, Elizabeth Grieco of Pew Research Center reported Friday that “Roughly six-in-ten self-described urban residents (62%) say their local news media mainly cover the area they live in, while a majority of those who describe themselves as rural residents (57%) say the opposite is true — their local news media mostly cover some other area, a concern raised by many journalism watchers following newsroom cutbacks and media consolidation. Self-described suburbanites are more evenly split, according to the survey conducted Oct. 15-Nov. 8, 2018, among nearly 35,000 U.S. adults. . . .”

“Tiger Woods silenced a lot of critics with his stunning win at the Masters on Sunday,” Andy Nesbitt wrote Monday for USA Today. “Because over the years – through his personal scandal and then his very serious back issues – there were many times when talking heads on TV yelled about how Tiger was done and that he should just quit already.  Many of those hot takes were on ‘Around the Horn,’ ESPN’s daily debate show. Well, the show had some fun by making fun of itself on Monday, sharing this video in which they looked back at all the times over the past 11 years that they counted Tiger out.” See link below to call up video. (Credit: USA Today)

Sponsors Celebrate Tiger Woods’ Resilience

“Tiger Woods’ historic comeback victory Sunday at the The Masters Tournament shows the enduring star — and earning — power of a player once dropped by many sponsors because of his problems on and off the golf course,” Merritt Kennedy reported Monday for NPR.

” ‘It’s crazy to think a 43-year-old who has experienced every high and every low and has just won his 15th major …. is chasing the same dream as a 3-year-old,’ a new Nike ad says.

“President Trump announced Monday that he will award Woods the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honor, ‘because of his incredible Success & Comeback in Sports (Golf) and, more importantly, LIFE.’

“At 43, Woods is the second-oldest winner of the Masters. In 1986 Jack Nicklaus won The Masters for a sixth time when he was 46.

“And after Woods’ momentous victory Sunday, multiple sponsors are celebrating his resilience. At the end of the Nike ad, a very young Woods is seen on camera saying: ‘I’m going to beat Jack Nicklaus.’

“Woods now has 15 major wins, compared to 18 for Nicklaus. ‘I felt for a long time that he was going to win again. … He’s got me shaking in my boots, guys,’ Nicklaus told the Golf Channel after Tiger’s victory. . . .”

Slavery Descendant to Be Georgetown J-Student

“It wasn’t until April 16, 2016 that I began to learn the complex nature of my family history — a truth that had been suppressed for years,” Elizabeth Thomas reported Monday for ABC News. “Almost three years to the day, I was home with my family as my mother, Sandra Thomas, was reading the New York Times and my siblings and I were in our rooms relaxing.

“My mother saw on the cover of the New York Times a story with the headline, ‘272 Slaves Were Sold to Save Georgetown. What Does it Owe Their Descendants?’

Elizabeth Thomas

“The story featured a photo of the Immaculate Heart of Mary cemetery where many of my ancestors have been laid to rest. . . .

“I often wonder if the story had never published if my family and others would ever know our true history in the United States. . . .”

Thomas also wrote, “One unexpected result of this discovery was that it ignited a passion for journalism and storytelling. This story, my story, sparked a new passion for journalism inside of me.

“I wanted to tell stories that changed people’s lives — stories that bring truths to the surface that have been purposely buried or silenced.

“I received my undergraduate degree from Louisiana State University and had a great job in my home town of New Orleans, La. when this story broke.

“And when Georgetown University announced that they would be offering preferential admittance status, otherwise known as ‘legacy status,’ to the descendants of the 272 enslaved people they owned and sold, I wasn’t immediately sure what that would mean for me.

“Essentially, preferential admittance status gives an application for admittance a boost when applying. This preferential admission status provides the same attention given to legacy applicants who are descendants of faculty, staff or alumni.

“I never considered going back to school until this opportunity arose.

“But, after much reflection, I decided to apply and was accepted into Georgetown University’s School of Continuing Studies to pursue a masters of professional studies in journalism. . . .”

Station in ‘Worst City for Black Americans’ Responds

“When you think of places in the country that have racial disparity, Waterloo, Iowa probably wouldn’t be the first city that comes to mind,” Paul Greeley wrote Monday for TVNewsCheck.

“But a recent 24/7 Wall St. study published in USA Today claimed that Waterloo, Iowa was No. 1 on the list of the worst cities in the country for black Americans, based on racial disparities in income, unemployment, home ownership and more.

“This greatly disturbed the people at KWWL, according to a note from Mike Cunningham, the Quincy Media NBC affiliate’s marketing director.

“Here’s what Cunningham sent me to share about this story. What interests me in this story and many others I share, is the process of good journalism. And I think you’ll see that in evidence here.

“ ‘We were greatly disturbed by this ranking and wanted to do something about it,’ said Cunningham.

“ ‘We wanted to dig deeper into the problem and help find solutions. Our main anchor, Ron Steele who’s been at the station for 45 years, led the way. Ron does a weekly half-hour public affairs program called The Steele Report. To begin to tackle this tough issue, he created a special, expanded one-hour, primetime edition of The Steele Report called Racial Disparity in Waterloo: Closing The Gap.

“ ‘Ron brought together many of the major stakeholders in Waterloo for a very frank and open discussion about how we got here and how we move forward. He also brought together a roundtable of black youth to get their take on the issue.

“ ‘Judging by some of the feedback, we feel we made an impact and helped get the discussion and search for solutions started.’ . . .”

[LaTanya Graves, president of the Black Hawk County NAACP, told Journal-isms by telephone Thursday that she wouldn’t say that Waterloo was the worst place in the country for African Americans, “but I’d say it ranks pretty high. It’s that we’re not being given opportunities.”

[She added, “I stopped watching the news because it was so depressing,” failing to cover positive community news. Whites fail to realize their responsibility for change, she added. “We’re not the banks; we’re not the major corporations. “You have to hire us and make an impact in this community.”]

 

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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.
 
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