The National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) is launching its Black Male Media Project, an initiative to help change the narrative around the lives and images of Black men in the news and in society, with a series of workshops nationwide on Saturday, June 10, 2017.
The NABJ Black Male Media Project will launch with 19 NABJ affiliate chapters hosting events in various cities across the United States, including Atlanta, Baltimore, Chicago, Dallas, Los Angeles, Miami, Pittsburgh and St. Louis, all on the same day.
The initiative is designed to inspire, support and develop training and mentorship opportunities for Black men working in or aspire to work in journalism and media.
The National Association of Black Journalists’ president Sarah Glover, stated, “NABJ has created the Black Male Media Project to combat the blotter-to-mugshot images of Black male faces, to create a fresh and real view of Black men in America and across the Diaspora and to help build trust in communities nationwide.”
The initiative’s launch with feature workshops, panels and events focused on examining newsroom diversity, professional development and networking. The New York Association of Black Journalists event will include Civil Rights Activist Rev. Al Sharpton, New York Daily News justice writer Shaun King and Fox 5 News Director Byron Harmon as part a panel of Black male journalists, discussing race and the perception of Black males in the media.
Concurrently, the Tampa Bay Association of Black Journalists will screen a documentary on that city’s historically Black business district.
The second phase of The National Association of Black Journalists Black Male Media Project will be a digital photography project showcased at the NABJ Annual Convention & Career Fair from Aug. 9-13, 2017 in New Orleans, Louisiana.
NABJ members will be invited to share positive pictures of Black men. Some of the images will be displayed during the convention, and hopefully a traveling juried exhibit will happen in the future.
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