Considering the challenges facing Black Businesses and the Black Press because of COVID-19, the National Newspaper Publishers Association Fund Black Press Week will zero in on the theme “BLACK BUSINESS Challenges, Responsibilities, and Opportunities Amidst COVID-19 Pandemic.” The two-day virtual activities get underway on Thursday, March 18, and Friday, March 19, from 10 a.m. – 12 noon.
NNPA Fund Chair Pluria Marshall Jr., CEO of the Wave Publications based in California, stated, “As a business owner, I recognize the plight of Black businesses today from reducing expenses to generating payroll to managing the bottom-line. During Black Press Week, our objectives are to empower our community and our NNPA members with information that will give them insight into opportunities for funding and resources.”
Reportedly, 40% of Black-owned businesses have closed their doors permanently because of the pandemic. The challenge now is to sustain the remaining 60% struggling to survive during these uncertain times. Black newspapers are Black businesses, who share some of the same obstacles created by COVID-19.
Because of this shared burden, the NNPA Fund’s first workshop on Thursday will feature U.S. Congressman and House Majority Whip James E. Clyburn (D-SC) and U.S. Congressman Dwight Evans (D-PA), a member of the Small Business Committee and ranking member of the Subcommittee on Economic, Growth and Capital Access. The panel moderated by Real Times Media Publisher and CEO Hiram Jackson, owner of The Michigan Chronicle, the Chicago Defender, The New Pittsburgh Courier, and The Atlanta Daily World, will address the plans Congress is developing to help Black-owned businesses cope with a range of economic issues. On Friday, the second workshop hosted by Atlanta Voice Publisher and CEO Janis Ware will concentrate on alternative funding for Black newspapers, featuring representatives from the Democracy Fund, Media Impact Funders and Knight Foundation that invest in nonprofit and for-profit media organizations.
Two cornerstones of Black Press Week are the Enshrinement Ceremony and the Newsmakers Award. This year, Carter Walker Wesley (1892-1969), an American lawyer, newspaperman, and political activist from Houston, Texas, will be enshrined in the Black Press Archives housed at the Moorland Spingarn Research Center at Howard University. The NNPAF 2021 Newsmakers of the Year include two men who had a monumental impact on America’s trajectory and made a significant difference for African Americans: George Floyd and his family, and U.S. Congressman and House Majority Whip James E. Clyburn (D-SC). Previous NNPAF Newsmakers of the Year include Attorney Ben Crump, Civil Rights Activist Al Sharpton, Senator Kamala Harris, Senator Barack Obama, the Trayvon Martin family and many more.
*To attend Black Press Week activities, go to: https://virtualnnpa2021.com/.
George Floyd Family and House Majority Whip James E. Clyburn (D-SC) receive the NNPAF 2021 Newsmaker of the Year Award
The National Newspaper Publishers Association Fund (NNPAF) BLACK PRESS WEEK will honor the George Floyd Family and House Majority Whip James E. Clyburn (D-SC) with the Newsmaker Award for Leadership during its two-day virtual conference on Thursday, March 18 at noon.
The NNPAF is honored to recognize the George Floyd Family for their collective effort for social justice, and their leadership on the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act recently passed in the U.S. House of Representatives. Majority Whip James E Clyburn, a former publisher and the highest-ranking African American in Congress, will be awarded the Newsmaker of the Year Award for his pivotal role in galvanizing the Black vote across America.
NNPA Fund Chair Pluria Marshall Jr., CEO of the Wave Publications, based in California, stated, “These two awardees are dedicated to advancing the progress of Black people. The Black Press of America is honored to recognize their achievements and express our gratitude for their heroic efforts to improve the quality of life of all Americans.”
This year’s virtual Black Press Week theme is “BLACK BUSINESS Challenges, Responsibilities, and Opportunities Amidst COVID-19 Pandemic.” The two-day conference will be held Thursday, March 18, and Friday, March 19, from 11:00, am (EST) to 1:00 pm (EST).
Reportedly, 40% of Black-owned businesses have closed their doors permanently because of the pandemic. The challenge now is to sustain the remaining 60% struggling to survive during these uncertain times. Black newspapers are Black businesses that are experiencing similar obstacles created by COVID-19.
Because of this shared burden, the NNPA Fund’s first workshop on Thursday will feature U.S. Congressman and House Majority Whip James E. Clyburn (D-SC) and U.S. Congressman Dwight Evans (D-PA), a member of the Small Business Committee and ranking member of the Subcommittee on Economic, Growth and Capital Access. The two high-ranking legislators will address the plans Congress is developing to help Black-owned businesses cope with various economic issues.
On Friday, the second workshop will concentrate on alternative funding for Black newspapers, including representatives from digital companies including Google, Facebook, and Borealis, that invest in nonprofit and for-profit media organizations.
The cornerstone of Black Press Week is the Enshrinement Ceremony. This year, Carter Walker Wesley (1892-1969), an American lawyer, newspaperman, and political activist from Houston, Texas, will be enshrined in the Black Press Archives housed at the Moorland Spingarn Research Center at Howard University.
Black Press Week is held annually to honor the nation’s first Black-owned newspaper – Freedom’s Journal –on March 16, 1827. Previous NNPAF Newsmakers of the Year include Attorney Ben Crump, Civil Rights Activist Al Sharpton, Senator Kamala Harris, Senator Barack Obama, the Trayvon Martin family and many more.
To attend Black Press Week activities, go to: https://virtualnnpa2021.com/.
For more information contact Claudette Perry at (202)-588-8764.
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