{"id":2167,"date":"2015-12-25T16:07:40","date_gmt":"2015-12-26T00:07:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/journalists-org-develop.go-vip.co\/newsroom\/newsroom15\/?p=614"},"modified":"2021-06-22T18:37:56","modified_gmt":"2021-06-22T22:37:56","slug":"will-you-be-the-black-reporter","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/journalists-org-develop.go-vip.co\/newsroom\/2015\/12\/25\/will-you-be-the-black-reporter\/","title":{"rendered":"Will You Be ‘The Black’ Reporter?"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Kendall Trammell<\/b>
\nONA Newsroom<\/p>\n

Tracie Powell never wanted to be the \u201cblack reporter.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNever my goal, never my agenda,\u201d said Powell, the founder of All Digitocracy, speaking at an Online News Association panel on Thursday.<\/p>\n

But her goal changed after she saw the mainstream media neglecting to cover stories from the black community.\u00a0\u201cAfter some time in the newsroom,” she said, “I felt like it was my responsibility to cover the communities and people who weren\u2019t being covered.”<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a responsibility many journalists feel. They want to ensure the stories of their communities are told.<\/p>\n

\"Panelists<\/a>
Panelists discussed black Twitter during a Thursday session at ONA15. From left, Dexter Thomas Jr., Tracie Powell, Tanzila Ahmed, Meredith Clark and Sharis Delgadillo. (Photo by Kendall Trammell\/ONA Newsroom)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Tanzila Ahmed, co-host of The #GoodMuslimBadMuslim Podcast and another ONA15 panelist, pointed to the case of Ahmed Mohammed, who was arrested for bringing a clock to school that school officials said could have been a bomb, as an example.<\/p>\n

She\u00a0credited Anil Dash and other journalists and bloggers with bringing the story to the attention of mainstream media through social media.\u00a0\u201cThese communities are making their own news,\u201d she said. \u201cIf something is happening in that community, they\u2019re doing it. They\u2019re reporting it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Even those who are a part of the mainstream media admit there\u2019s a problem.<\/p>\n

\u201cI would love to say we are perfect, but we\u2019re not,” said David Plazas, the opinion engagement editor and editorial board chair for The Tennessean. “If we were, we wouldn\u2019t have mixed competitors.\u201d<\/p>\n

He cited\u00a0The Root and other niche sites as good examples, saying, \u201cWe have to do a better job of entering and going into these communities and building these relationships.”<\/p>\n

These stories from underreported communities become more personal for the journalists who represent them. Personal narratives from reporters, like Wesley Lowery of The Washington Post and Gene Demby from NPR, became critical as they reported from the front lines of Ferguson, Missouri. As mainstream news paid closer attention to cases of police brutality across the country, several journalists shared a similar narrative.<\/p>\n

When the police released the Sandra Bland dash cam video, Renee Graham thought back to when a police officer pulled her over.\u00a0The blue lights from the cop car scared Graham, who was\u00a0then 22 years old. She reached down to give the officer her license and registration. Before she could sit up straight, she saw his hand reaching for the gun in his holster.<\/p>\n

\u201cI almost burst into tears, I was so scared,\u201d said Graham, a contributor at The Boston Globe. \u201cYou don\u2019t just write about it. You\u2019re living it.\u201d<\/p>\n

After the Supreme Court\u2019s ruling on same-sex marriage, Plazas lived the story of a gay man whose marriage with his spouse Darren Bradford was recognized in all 50 states. He wrote about it in a column<\/a> and prepared for hate mail to flood his inbox.<\/p>\n

It didn\u2019t come.<\/p>\n

Plazas brought authority to a story that resonated with many people, he said, which made the difference when sharing the coverage of that historic day.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen you\u2019re in the media, people think you\u2019re some superman or superwoman,\u201d he said. \u201cYou\u2019re really not. But you reach masses and masses of people.\u201d<\/p>\n

Covering the stories that you\u2019re living isn\u2019t easy.\u00a0It can be fatiguing, especially when there\u2019s only a few or sometimes just one reporter to cover the story.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt happens with any kind of reporter that becomes a specialized reporter,\u201d said Sharis Delgadillo, co-host of Latino Rebels Radio. \u201cPeople burn out in journalism.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mental stress comes from covering some of the most dramatic stories of shootings in churches and police using excessive force for a woman not stubbing out her cigarette.\u00a0But it\u2019s not just the facts of the story that weigh on the psyche, Powell said. It\u2019s the pressure that comes from your community.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you get something wrong, they\u2019re looking at you,\u201d she said. \u201cIf you missing something, they\u2019re looking at you. And if something doesn\u2019t get told the way it\u2019s supposed to get told, because you have an editor above you who\u2019s diluting your story, the community is looking at you. You\u2019re going to carry that burden.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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