Monday, December 10, 2007
Karyn McConnell Hancock: Media Coverage
I've been a journalist for nearly 25 years and I have to admit some of the McConnell Hancock media coverage has left me a little under-whelmed. I want to hear from fellow NOBMA and local NABJ members and the public before I throw my tw0 cents in, seeing that I'm living in Indiana now and I can only pick up what's online. I'm sure I'm missing a great deal (I sure hope so.) Since no one else will ask it, I will: how much of this story is affected because she's African-American and a woman? Has that meant better coverage or worse coverage? Why?
Tuesday, November 13, 2007
Media Consolidation: Join the fight
I remember talking to Charles Welch, owner of WJUC-FM, several years back. Welch fulfilled his dream 10 years ago owning his own radio station. It didn't take long for the big boys came calling, wanting to buy him out. Radio signals go for pretty nice prices these days, but Welch refused to give in. Good for him.
Media consolidation has done more to hurt minority ownership and radio news than anything the FCC has done since. Our parent organization is part of a movement to examine media consolidation and its effects on the industry. I will you with Barbara Ciara, NABJ president, recent post on the organization's effort. It is important that we keep these airways free for the public, the not just a rich handful.
Barbara Ciara: Fellow NABJ members,
Here is what NABJ is doing that is not generating headlines:NABJ has been and still is very active regarding the issue of media consolidation. In early October, we joined with NAHJ and all of the UNITY partners supporting FCC commissioner Jonathan Adelstein's call for the creation of an independent minority broadcast ownership task force that examines policies to increase minority ownership. We also called on the FCC to refrain from issuing new broadcast ownership rules until the work of the task force is complete and minority ownership opportunities are addressed.
We have been lobbying Black Congressional Caucus members to make this issue a priority.This week we joined with Society of Environmental Journalists in challenging a 2007 Farm Bill now before the Senate. Buried within it is a new exemption to the Freedom of Information Act, and that same provision also makes it a crime for anyone to disclose or "use" anything from the National Animal Identification System. In our reading of the bill it's not at all clear that reporters or their employers can't be prosecuted for publishing or broadcasting such information--some of which is already publicly available through other means.
The Bill is scheduled for a floor debate and vote within days.NABJ was also at the forefront of making our voices heard on the Sheild Law issue.While we work to protect these freedoms and make noise on Capitol Hill, so far it's not generating any attention from the networks, cable news, or major publications.
Media consolidation has done more to hurt minority ownership and radio news than anything the FCC has done since. Our parent organization is part of a movement to examine media consolidation and its effects on the industry. I will you with Barbara Ciara, NABJ president, recent post on the organization's effort. It is important that we keep these airways free for the public, the not just a rich handful.
Barbara Ciara: Fellow NABJ members,
Here is what NABJ is doing that is not generating headlines:NABJ has been and still is very active regarding the issue of media consolidation. In early October, we joined with NAHJ and all of the UNITY partners supporting FCC commissioner Jonathan Adelstein's call for the creation of an independent minority broadcast ownership task force that examines policies to increase minority ownership. We also called on the FCC to refrain from issuing new broadcast ownership rules until the work of the task force is complete and minority ownership opportunities are addressed.
We have been lobbying Black Congressional Caucus members to make this issue a priority.This week we joined with Society of Environmental Journalists in challenging a 2007 Farm Bill now before the Senate. Buried within it is a new exemption to the Freedom of Information Act, and that same provision also makes it a crime for anyone to disclose or "use" anything from the National Animal Identification System. In our reading of the bill it's not at all clear that reporters or their employers can't be prosecuted for publishing or broadcasting such information--some of which is already publicly available through other means.
The Bill is scheduled for a floor debate and vote within days.NABJ was also at the forefront of making our voices heard on the Sheild Law issue.While we work to protect these freedoms and make noise on Capitol Hill, so far it's not generating any attention from the networks, cable news, or major publications.
Saturday, October 27, 2007
Open Letter to Toledo School Board Candidates
Before I left Toledo, I had a conversation with a long-time community leader who talked with me about the Toledo Public Schools communications position. I told him that I felt the school district time and time again misses countless opportunities to promote itself and put itself in a positive light in the media, leaving bad news as the only news the general public often hears. As a long-time journalist in Toledo, numerous experiences with TPS have been very good, but other times where painfully challenging where I was met with skepticism and indifference (and I was working on "positive stories.")
There are a lot of good things Toledo Public Schools have going for it. The school district, though, faces significant challenges as well. The Indianapolis Public School District announced this week that it was closing nine schools and virtually eliminating nearly all of its middle schools because of strinking enrollment to charter schools and the suburbs. The battle for students is a national problem facing every urban district in the country. Not a single urban district is immune.
My question with Toledo Public School board candidates would be what are you prepared to do to change the perception of the district with the media and how you communicate with the public? Is it a problem? I can only speak about my experience with Toledo Public Schools. Most of the people I've worked with have been very good. TPS has one communications person and from I see the workload simply not enough for one person. If school board candidates want to make a solid investment that could bring solid return in the community, it should look at hiring another person and create a media team that would initiate a plan to work with media outlets, web sites, bloggers, and others on a daily basis. Right now, a consistent plan with the media is something that's sorely missing. I look at the TPS web site and while it's nice, so much more can be done with it to engage the media and community. How many parents know TPS even has a web site?
As an organization of African-American communicators, I hope this issue can be addressed at one of the debates or at the very least the NOBMA debate on Nov. 3. How the school district honestly communicates its goals to the community could go a long way bringing people to the table to help stem the tide of students leaving. I realize there are meatier issues on the table, but I think this is something that has its place for discussion.
This discussion should not take place only when a levy is under consideration. (That's another discussion for another blog.) NOBMA and its members stand ready to assist if the school board truly wants to talk about its messages to the media and the community. The place I'm working now takes communication to the community to an entirely different level and it's been an incredible learning experience even in my short time here. Thanks for letting me rant. Please let me know if you agree or disagree.
Clyde Hughes, president
NOBMA
There are a lot of good things Toledo Public Schools have going for it. The school district, though, faces significant challenges as well. The Indianapolis Public School District announced this week that it was closing nine schools and virtually eliminating nearly all of its middle schools because of strinking enrollment to charter schools and the suburbs. The battle for students is a national problem facing every urban district in the country. Not a single urban district is immune.
My question with Toledo Public School board candidates would be what are you prepared to do to change the perception of the district with the media and how you communicate with the public? Is it a problem? I can only speak about my experience with Toledo Public Schools. Most of the people I've worked with have been very good. TPS has one communications person and from I see the workload simply not enough for one person. If school board candidates want to make a solid investment that could bring solid return in the community, it should look at hiring another person and create a media team that would initiate a plan to work with media outlets, web sites, bloggers, and others on a daily basis. Right now, a consistent plan with the media is something that's sorely missing. I look at the TPS web site and while it's nice, so much more can be done with it to engage the media and community. How many parents know TPS even has a web site?
As an organization of African-American communicators, I hope this issue can be addressed at one of the debates or at the very least the NOBMA debate on Nov. 3. How the school district honestly communicates its goals to the community could go a long way bringing people to the table to help stem the tide of students leaving. I realize there are meatier issues on the table, but I think this is something that has its place for discussion.
This discussion should not take place only when a levy is under consideration. (That's another discussion for another blog.) NOBMA and its members stand ready to assist if the school board truly wants to talk about its messages to the media and the community. The place I'm working now takes communication to the community to an entirely different level and it's been an incredible learning experience even in my short time here. Thanks for letting me rant. Please let me know if you agree or disagree.
Clyde Hughes, president
NOBMA
Wednesday, September 19, 2007
Presidential candidates run away from minorities, media
Check out the link to this Washington Post story. I have to admit, when I heard Tavis Smiley was organizing a debate on minority issues for Republican candidates at Morgan State, I said, "how in the heck did he pull that off?" Well seven days before the debate and they are dropping like addicts at a Rolling Stones concert. I'm willing to bet not even half of the Republican field will show up. Actually, Democrats haven't done much better in some respects. Remember my story at the NABJ convention where only Hilliary Clinton and Barack Obama showed up. John Edwards would only come if he was a keynote speaker at one of the night meal functions. Ha! At least Edwards replied. NABJ didn't get a response from a single Republican candidate and the other Democrats. We have had a tradition of hosting both Democratic and Republican candidates. It tells you a lot, or at least I think so. And come up with a better excuse than a "scheduling conflict." C'mon, that's not even real. You set your own schedule and when you have two things going on at the same time, you decided which one you want to attend and which one you will skip. Black folks and other minorities are getting skipped an awful lot this election cycle. When will we wake up? I know, I'm getting crabby in my old age. Enjoy the article and let me know what you think and how we ask journalists and communicators should respond to this affront? -- Clyde Hughes
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/
09/18/AR2007091801781.html?wpisrc=newsletter&wpisrc=newsletter
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/
09/18/AR2007091801781.html?wpisrc=newsletter&wpisrc=newsletter
Tuesday, September 18, 2007
The Media & the Jena 6: Are We On Board?
The influence of bloggers and the internet has been realized again with the coverage of the Jena 6. In the past, it would have been difficult for the mainstream media to pick up a story like this in the tiny town of Jena, La. if it wasn't for internet writers informing (and many times pushing) the mainstreamers along. The case of six blacks who are (grossly over) charged in the beating of a white youth is making national headlines.
The question remains if the mainstream media "really" is on board with the coverage of this case? What does the Jena 6 mean to us in Toledo, Lafayette, Ind., and African-Americans in general. Since I'm not in Toledo, so how has The Blade, television and radio handled the Jena 6??? If you don't know what I'm talking about when I say "Jena 6," then, uh, we need to talk. LOL. NABJ national president Barbara Ciara has already sent a note to all members asking them to give coverage to what's happening there. How about you? Here is a plea from another blogger. -- Clyde Hughes
The Afrosphere Jena 6 Coalition “ask that the mainstream traditional media step forward and discharge their duty to provide coverage of this vitally important event to their viewers and readers and act as “the fourth institution" of governmental "checks and balance” that constitutional framers intended the press to be.” To further this effort the Afrosphere Jena 6 Coalition will embark on a ‘Day of Blogging for Justice’ on Thursday August 30th.
Jena, LA, August 29, 2007 --(PR.com)-- There is growing concern surrounding the Jena Six case in Jena Louisiana. Yet, inexplicably, the national media, most particularly on television, has been abysmally silent on an occurrence of grave social, political and legal importance.
The 'common folk' media of the blogosphere, has stepped up to the plate in the absence of adequate traditional media coverage. Bloggers have taken to hanging banners to blog side-bars and placing them in blog entries at an increasing rate; displaying the words 'Free the Jena 6' accompanied by the evocative symbolism of a noose hanging from a tree. On these blogs strategies that can assist in bringing awareness to these young targets of racist psychological abuse are finding willing participants in discussion, and action; but they need the media’s help.
This issue, like Katrina, highlights how some people receive deference in treatment over others. “The Jim Crow style racism and government negligence, reflected in the Jena 6 case, are both quite worrisome. Unfortunately, the case is another incident that points to the entrenched racial and socio-economic disparities in the South, which this country has yet to fully confront,” says political scientist Dr. Sekou Franklin of Middle Tennessee State University. As the Congressional Black Caucus has noted “…we must speak out against injustice and inequality. This tale of two standards depicts a pattern of gross violations.”
The Afrosphere Jena 6 Coalition “ask that the mainstream traditional media step forward and discharge their duty to provide coverage of this vitally important event to their viewers and readers and act as “the fourth institution" of governmental "checks and balance” that constitutional framers intended the press to be.”
In furtherance of this effort the Afrosphere Jena 6 Coalition will embark on a ‘Day of Blogging for Justice’ on Thursday August 30, where dozens of the coalition’s members (and all else who wish to join with them) will write entries in their blogs on behalf of these six young men who are victims of racially motivated civil rights abuses. A list of bloggers who’ve signed on to participate can be seen here: http://www.blackperspective.net/index.php/day-of-blogging-for-justice/
Along with blogger support, a united front of more than 300 concerned community members gathered at the steps of the courthouse in Jena on July 31, 2007, in a show of support for the African-American youth civil rights victims who were imprisoned after reacting to the provocation of Caucasian students who received only a school suspension of 3 days for hanging nooses from a ‘whites only’ tree in the schoolyard that all students share.
In addition to online and in-person support, those who could not travel to join others at the steps of the courthouse have added their signatures and comments, some 45,000, to petitions generated by individuals globe-wide who are appalled enough to take action.
A coalition of civic groups has formed www.freethejena6.org as a standing central location, providing solutions for those who are seeking information with intent to take action.
Afrosphere Jena 6 Coalition Advisory Group:
Wayne Hicks electronicvillage.blogspot.com
D. Yobachi Boswell www.BlackPerspective.net
Francis Holland afrospear.jconserv.net/
Daz Wilson http://purplezoe.blogspot.com/
The question remains if the mainstream media "really" is on board with the coverage of this case? What does the Jena 6 mean to us in Toledo, Lafayette, Ind., and African-Americans in general. Since I'm not in Toledo, so how has The Blade, television and radio handled the Jena 6??? If you don't know what I'm talking about when I say "Jena 6," then, uh, we need to talk. LOL. NABJ national president Barbara Ciara has already sent a note to all members asking them to give coverage to what's happening there. How about you? Here is a plea from another blogger. -- Clyde Hughes
The Afrosphere Jena 6 Coalition “ask that the mainstream traditional media step forward and discharge their duty to provide coverage of this vitally important event to their viewers and readers and act as “the fourth institution" of governmental "checks and balance” that constitutional framers intended the press to be.” To further this effort the Afrosphere Jena 6 Coalition will embark on a ‘Day of Blogging for Justice’ on Thursday August 30th.
Jena, LA, August 29, 2007 --(PR.com)-- There is growing concern surrounding the Jena Six case in Jena Louisiana. Yet, inexplicably, the national media, most particularly on television, has been abysmally silent on an occurrence of grave social, political and legal importance.
The 'common folk' media of the blogosphere, has stepped up to the plate in the absence of adequate traditional media coverage. Bloggers have taken to hanging banners to blog side-bars and placing them in blog entries at an increasing rate; displaying the words 'Free the Jena 6' accompanied by the evocative symbolism of a noose hanging from a tree. On these blogs strategies that can assist in bringing awareness to these young targets of racist psychological abuse are finding willing participants in discussion, and action; but they need the media’s help.
This issue, like Katrina, highlights how some people receive deference in treatment over others. “The Jim Crow style racism and government negligence, reflected in the Jena 6 case, are both quite worrisome. Unfortunately, the case is another incident that points to the entrenched racial and socio-economic disparities in the South, which this country has yet to fully confront,” says political scientist Dr. Sekou Franklin of Middle Tennessee State University. As the Congressional Black Caucus has noted “…we must speak out against injustice and inequality. This tale of two standards depicts a pattern of gross violations.”
The Afrosphere Jena 6 Coalition “ask that the mainstream traditional media step forward and discharge their duty to provide coverage of this vitally important event to their viewers and readers and act as “the fourth institution" of governmental "checks and balance” that constitutional framers intended the press to be.”
In furtherance of this effort the Afrosphere Jena 6 Coalition will embark on a ‘Day of Blogging for Justice’ on Thursday August 30, where dozens of the coalition’s members (and all else who wish to join with them) will write entries in their blogs on behalf of these six young men who are victims of racially motivated civil rights abuses. A list of bloggers who’ve signed on to participate can be seen here: http://www.blackperspective.net/index.php/day-of-blogging-for-justice/
Along with blogger support, a united front of more than 300 concerned community members gathered at the steps of the courthouse in Jena on July 31, 2007, in a show of support for the African-American youth civil rights victims who were imprisoned after reacting to the provocation of Caucasian students who received only a school suspension of 3 days for hanging nooses from a ‘whites only’ tree in the schoolyard that all students share.
In addition to online and in-person support, those who could not travel to join others at the steps of the courthouse have added their signatures and comments, some 45,000, to petitions generated by individuals globe-wide who are appalled enough to take action.
A coalition of civic groups has formed www.freethejena6.org as a standing central location, providing solutions for those who are seeking information with intent to take action.
Afrosphere Jena 6 Coalition Advisory Group:
Wayne Hicks electronicvillage.blogspot.com
D. Yobachi Boswell www.BlackPerspective.net
Francis Holland afrospear.jconserv.net/
Daz Wilson http://purplezoe.blogspot.com/
Saturday, May 19, 2007
Toledo's Don Imus?
I sporadically listen to talk radio in Toledo. I usually have talk radio on when I'm driving and since most (all) of the talk radio is conservative around here, I find myself screaming at the radio half the time. There's nothing wrong with conservative talk radio except when they claim to be mainstream. Is there a Toledo Don Imus out there? Not since the guy from WSPD-AM left (I can't even remember his name) there has been little uproar -- racially speaking -- about what's been going on in radio. I don't know if it's because talk radio here is better or fewer people are listening. I kind of think it's the latter. I hardly think Toledo talk radio has become warm and fuzzy all of the sudden.
Why don't we have more talk radio on African-American issues. Beyond Juice Talk on WJUC-FM, there is no radio outlet for African-American issues. I have to applaud WTVG-TV for making an effort in this area with the public affairs show Bridges and including Fletcher Word on Conklin and Company. It's strange that the other stations have not been as forthcoming with public affairs shows. Surely, they all need the programming. Maybe this should be the next NOBMA project, to look at TV and radio and see if we can encourage opportunities for African-American public affairs shows. I believe Buckeye CableSystem provides slots for public affairs shows, but those shows need to be produced elsewhere. Something to think about. Let me know what you think.
Why don't we have more talk radio on African-American issues. Beyond Juice Talk on WJUC-FM, there is no radio outlet for African-American issues. I have to applaud WTVG-TV for making an effort in this area with the public affairs show Bridges and including Fletcher Word on Conklin and Company. It's strange that the other stations have not been as forthcoming with public affairs shows. Surely, they all need the programming. Maybe this should be the next NOBMA project, to look at TV and radio and see if we can encourage opportunities for African-American public affairs shows. I believe Buckeye CableSystem provides slots for public affairs shows, but those shows need to be produced elsewhere. Something to think about. Let me know what you think.
Monday, March 5, 2007
City's Office of Affirmative Action shutting down?
Mayor Carty Finkbeiner is proposing numerous cuts in the upcoming city budget, none more telling than the closure of the city's affirmative action/contract compliance office. Find Clyde Hughes' story here: http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070302/NEWS16/703020356
What do you think? Is this a terrible loss or will we miss it at all?
What do you think? Is this a terrible loss or will we miss it at all?
Welcome!
To: Members of the Northwest Ohio Black Media Association
From: Clyde Hughes, President
RE: Toledo Black Blog: Hosted by NOBMA
This is another step in our evolution with our new Blog dedicated to members and those who wish to comment on journalism, communications, or just about anything else. I went the cheap route with blogspot.com to get this started. I figured why reinvent the wheel. A link to this blog will be on the front page of our web site once that is up and running again. This will give members and the public immediate access to comment on what's going on in Black Toledo today. I hope this will also become a vehicle for members to do what we do best, which is communicate to the public and open up the forum of ideas. Please use as you wish and I'm looking forward to hearing from all of you.
From: Clyde Hughes, President
RE: Toledo Black Blog: Hosted by NOBMA
This is another step in our evolution with our new Blog dedicated to members and those who wish to comment on journalism, communications, or just about anything else. I went the cheap route with blogspot.com to get this started. I figured why reinvent the wheel. A link to this blog will be on the front page of our web site once that is up and running again. This will give members and the public immediate access to comment on what's going on in Black Toledo today. I hope this will also become a vehicle for members to do what we do best, which is communicate to the public and open up the forum of ideas. Please use as you wish and I'm looking forward to hearing from all of you.
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