The Shaderoom-ification of Black-Ass Media

Let's talk about the history of, the need for, and the present state of Black media.

Welcome to This Black-Ass Life! This week, we’re discussing the history and present need for strong Black media.

l. The Facts

When the White House decided to invite Black media for an event, those groups included The Shade Room, The Breakfast Club, and Jason Lee of Hollywood Unlocked, the bird who said his homegirl told him Queen Elizabeth was dead way before that lady actually died. We are in the middle of a Media Apocalypse, with beloved institutions shuttering left and right, and this is devastating for Black people because Black media is an integral part of our collective liberation:

• Even before enslaved Black people were free, there was an understanding that telling Black stories was an important function of liberation. In 1847, abolitionist Frederick Douglass began publishing The North Star, an antislavery newspaper, which emphasized the importance of a Black-owned and run media outlet spotlighting the specific first-hand experiences of Black storytellers. The paper reached thousands of readers across the US, Europe, and the West Indies.

• And as soon as Black people could freely, they created Black-focused media. Freedom’s Journal was established by freedmen in 1827, the same year slavery was abolished in New York and reached distribution across 11 states in the US, Canada, Haiti, and the UK.

  • Other outlets founded in the late 1800s and early 1900s include The Christian Recorder from the AME Church, which expanded into politics and included an “information wanted” column where people could seek missing families separated by slavery or the Civil War; Philadelphia Tribune, the oldest continuously published Black newspaper and called the “chief news-sheet” by W.E.B. Du Bois” with coverage about politics, labor, education, and more; and Chicago Defender, which featured contributions from legends, like Langston Hughes and Gwendolyn Brooks, and helped spur the Great Migration. 

• We also had brave investigative journalists like Ida B. Wells, who, in addition to being a civil rights activist and co-founder of the NAACP, published accounts of lynchings in 1892 with Southern Horrors: Lynch Law in All Its Phases and A Red Record. Tabulated statistics and Alleged Causes of Lynchings in the United States.

• Moving forward a few decades, we also saw the creation of Ebony (1945), JET (1951), and Essence (1970) where we especially got to focus even more on stories and experiences for and from Black women. 

• These media outlets were all founded in part with the core idea that liberation is not only legal battle, it’s narrative and community-building work. Collectively, these outlets, at their height, gave Black people space to share their experiences, search for loved ones, seek safety, learn about the issues, ignite action, and expand their perspectives on what is possible.

Why does it matter?

• An understanding of the history of Black media makes the current landscape straight-up depressing. We deserve better than what’s currently offered, but let’s be honest, what’s being offered is incredibly popular. 

  • The Shade Room is the second most popular publisher on Instagram. In 2018, it received more than 1.5 billion impressions and reached about 32 million people per week. It has consistently grown at a rate of 5 million or more followers annually. 

• However, popular platforms like The Shade Room, Media Take Out, and WorldStarHipHop, frequently spread right-wing nonsense, and these platforms often dissuade Black people from voting, are openly anti-LGBTQ people, and are a hotbed of disinformation. 

  • Y’all, remember when the Shaderoom shared (and later deleted) a post saying Joe Biden was giving people crack pipes through a $30 million government program? Or when The Breakfast Club invited Gabrielle Confederate over?

    • Ida B. Wells, we are SO SORRY.

• When culture devolves from real investigative journalism and required reading lists to join movements, we make way for people to say and do whatever. Again, that light skinned man read so far into a wedding invite that he declared a monarch dead and that news FLEW through the Internet. 

• We need and deserve a strong, Black media that holds power accountable, shares real news, highlights different perspectives and experiences across Black culture (for example, rather than maligning queer and trans Black people for existing), and explains real ways people can get involved in their communities. We also deserve great fashion magazines! Entertainment! Culture! The full range of conversation because Black culture is a rich text worthy of our study.

What can my Black ass do?

• Read and subscribe. These are currently running Black-led news organizations. Even if you don’t have the funds to donate or buy a subscription, make it a point to visit Black-owned media sites. Page views mean advertising dollars. 

  • I (Jumoke) no longer live in Kansas City but subscribe to The Kansas City Defender.

• Unsubscribe. Unfollow. Block. If you think it’s dangerous to put a photo of a teenage trans child just to elicit anti-LGBTQ+ reactions and send hoards of hate toward that child. What gets your attention for whatever reason is what thrives online. 

• Share Black writers and journalists. We absolutely love Michael Arceneaux and can't wait to read his new book, I Finally Bought Some Jordans. I (Jumoke) am also finally reading The Afrominimalist's Guide to Living with Less by Christine Platt. 

• Learn more about Noname’s Book Club.

• Read Black Panther Reading List.

II. Other Things

Black-ass happeningsShout out Dawn Staley.

• Angel Reese is heading to the WNBA and announced that through Vogue. An icon. 

• Rumi has broken Blue Ivy’s record to be the youngest girl to chart on the Billboard Hot 100.

• This truly corny joke cracked me (Mitu) all the way up.

• Something very important is happening on Meg Thee Stallion’s Instagram.

• Tanner Adell, Tiera Kennedy, Reyna Roberts, and Brittney Spencer reunited at the CMT Awards. And they got matching tattoos!

Our Black-Ass song(s) of the week (Jumoke):

• What a great time for music. There is always room for a girl group, and I’m currently loving Flo’s Walk Like This; Mila J is taking me back to Summer 2016 (the last great summer in recent memory) with Kickin’ Back; and Glo and Megan?!

• And then there is the Cowboy Carter of it all. My top 4 (not in this order!): II Most Wanted; Tyrant, Riiverdance, and Yaya. 

Things we look forward to:

• I (Jumoke) recommend two sunscreens because the sun is coming for you. This $9 Trader Joe’s SPFT 40 is a great dupe, and I carry this $38 Shiseido sunscreen stick around all summer. 

• I (Mitu) recommend Traitors UK which has a perfect cast who play the game perfectly and tug at your heart strings with their pure, sweet friendships. Jumoke and I laughed and cried at the finale!

lll. Message from a Black-Ass Baby

We must honor this baby’s crystal clear priorities.

Stay Black, have a snack, and take a nap today. We'll hit your inbox next on April 23!