National Association of Black Journalists


The National Association of Black Journalists is a 501 nonprofit educational and professional organization of African American journalists, students, and media professionals. Founded in 1975 in Washington, D.C., by 44 journalists, the NABJ's stated purpose is to provide quality programs and services to and advocate on behalf of black journalists. The organization has worked for diversity and to increase the number of minorities in newsrooms across the country.
The association's national office is on the main campus of the University of Maryland, College Park. The current president is Ken Lemon, a reporter for WSOC in Charlotte, North Carolina, and the executive director is Drew Berry. The NABJ states that it has a membership of 4,100 and is the largest organization of journalists of color in the United States. The organization was one of the four minority journalist member associations in the UNITY: Journalists of Color, Inc. until they seceded from the organization in Spring 2011.
The organization's annual Salute to Excellence Awards honors coverage of African-American people and subjects. Awards given include Journalist of the Year, Emerging Journalist and Lifetime Achievement; past honorees have included Lester Holt, Ed Bradley, Carole Simpson, Byron Pitts, Charlayne Hunter-Gault, Bernard Shaw, Gwen Ifill, and Michele Norris. NABJ also maintains the NABJ Hall of Fame, which is designed to honor black journalists.

History

The founding meeting of the National Association of Black Journalists was held on December 12, 1975, in Washington, D.C., at the Sheraton Park Hotel. The interim committee for a National Association of Black Journalists, The Association of Black Journalists in Philadelphia, Chicago Association of Black Journalists, San Francisco Association of Black Journalists and the Washington Association of Black Journalists hosted the founding to create the National Association of Black Journalists based on the work of the Black Perspective, a 1967 group of journalists. The National Association of Black Journalists saw fit its creation because at the time, there were associations of other professions including teachers, lawyers and doctors and believed journalists to be as important and other professions. A 1968 Kerner Commission Report mentioned how small a role black people held in a white media environment. The National Association of Black Journalists was founded to increase the presence of black people in mainstream media and change the misrepresentation of black people. The organization used the constitution of The Association of Black Journalists in Philadelphia. Founded on Friday, December 12, 1975, the organization explicitly stated their excitement to cover the 1976 presidential campaigns.

Founders

NABJ annually holds the nation's largest journalism convention and career fair each summer with plenary sessions and workshops for career and professional development.
Recent speakers have included former U.S. Presidents Donald Trump, Barack Obama, George W. Bush and Bill Clinton, Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, Hillary Clinton, and Senegalese President Abdoulaye Wade. The convention features hundreds of recruiters and as the largest career fair in journalism, is among the best means of finding a journalism position in the industry.
The NABJ Career Fair encompasses the nations broadcast, print, and online media including recruiters from Gannett Corporation, NBC News, CNN, Bloomberg, Google, ESPN, The Huffington Post, The New York Times, and Tribune Company.
NABJ held its first convention in October 1976 at Texas Southern University, which at the time had recently established the second school of communications at a historically black college or university in the nation.
Locations of the NABJ Convention and Career Fair include Las Vegas in 2022; Birmingham in 2023; Chicago in 2024; Cleveland in 2025; Atlanta in 2026; and Houston in 2027.
In October 2014, CNN withdrew its support for the 2015 Convention and Career Fair after the NABJ criticized the network for its lack of diversity on air and its treatment of black employees.

Scholarships

The organization also distributes more than $100,000 in scholarships to African-American college journalism students, places 14-16 students at paid internships and sponsors short courses for students at historically black colleges and universities.

Task forces

  • Arts & Entertainment Task Forces – members who cover arts and entertainment
  • Associate Member's – part-time journalists, educators, marketing and public relations professionals
  • Copy Editors – copy desk managers, news editors, design editors
  • Digital Journalism
  • NABJ Founders – NABJ Founders, past presidents, and former national board members
  • LGBT Taskforce – lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender members
  • Sports Task Force – sports reporters, correspondents and analysts
  • Visual Task Force – photojournalists, design/informational graphics
  • Young Journalists – journalists in their first few years
  • World Affairs – promotes worldwide coverage of African/African-Americans

    Presidents

Twenty-one people have served as president of the National Association of Black Journalists:
  • Chuck Stone, 1975–77
  • Vernon Jarrett, 1977–79
  • Bob Reid, 1979–81
  • Les Payne, 1981–83
  • Merv Aubespin, 1983–85
  • Al Fitzpatrick, 1985–87
  • DeWayne Wickham, 1987–89
  • Thomas Morgan III, 1989–91
  • Sidmel Estes-Sumpter, 1991–93
  • Dorothy Butler Gilliam, 1993–95
  • Arthur Fennell, 1995–97
  • Vanessa Williams, 1997–99
  • William W. Sutton Jr., 1999–2001
  • Condace Pressley, 2001–03
  • Herbert Lowe, 2003–05
  • Bryan Monroe, 2005–07
  • Barbara Ciara, 2007–09
  • Kathy Y. Times, 2009–11
  • Gregory Lee Jr., 2011–2013
  • Bob Butler, 2013–2015
  • Sarah Glover, 2015–2019
  • Dorothy Tucker, 2019–present

    Awards

During its Annual Convention and Career Fair, NABJ presents various awards at the annual Salute to Excellence Awards Gala.

Journalist of the Year

Journalist of Distinction

  • 2016 – Steve Crump, WBTV
  • 2017 – Leoneda Inge, WUNC Radio
  • 2018 – Everett Marshburn, Milwaukee PBS
  • 2019 – Mel Showers, WKRG
  • 2020 – Elaine Houston, WNYT
  • 2021 – Jenise Griffin, Florida Courier/''Daytona Times''
  • 2022 – Imara Jones, TransLash Media
  • 2023 – Jamie Nesbitt Golden, Block Club Chicago

    Legacy Award

Journalism Educator of the Year

Student Journalist of the Year

Community Service Award

Emerging Journalist of the Year

Pat Tobin Media Professional Award

Chuck Stone Lifetime Achievement Award

Percy Qoboza Foreign Journalist

Best Practices

Student Chapter of the Year

Chapter of the Year

President's Award