As the nation navigates racial disparities, war in the Middle East and federal attacks on African American media makers, journalists, students, educators and justice leaders gathered on March 18 at Howard University’s Blackburn Center for Black Press Day 2026, an event that highlighted excellence, honored legacy and offered a charge to preserve the power of truth-telling.
Hosted in collaboration with the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA) Fund and Howard’s Moorland-Spingarn Research Center, the convening in Northwest D.C. commemorated 199 years of the Black Press, examined current challenges, encouraged action, and provided hope for the future.
“We gather in celebration and reflection, honoring the enduring legacy of the Black Press, which for nearly two centuries has served as the voice of our communities, the champion of our stories and a steadfast contender of truth and justice,” said Karen Carter Richards, chair of the NNPA Fund and publisher of Houston Forward Times. “Today, we pay tribute to those whose contributions have shaped and strengthened the Black Press across our nation. Their leadership, courage, and commitment inspire us and remind us of the critical role we all play in carrying this mission forward.”
The March 18 event was one of many Black Press Week celebrations, including a Sunday service at Metropolitan A.M.E. on March 15, a reception at Kitchen + Kocktails in Northwest D.C. on March 17, and virtual programming through March 20.
An intergenerational gathering — featuring panel discussions, presentations from Howard University students, an enshrinement in the Gallery of Distinguished Black Publishers, and speeches from various leaders, including NNPA President and CEO the Rev. Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis — fostered community, focused on growing NNPA publications across the nation, and encouraged working toward strengthening society through storytelling.
“The Black Press of America has never been just about news. It has always also been about freedom, justice, dignity, and self-determination,” said Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis, president and CEO of the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNNPA) during the “State of the Black Press” address as part of the Wednesday gathering. “In our era of misinformation, political division, and technological disruption, the role of the Black Press is more vital today than ever before.”
For students like Stephanie Collins-Stewart, a third-year journalism major and history minor, being in a room celebrating 199 years of strength, bravery and resilience provided inspiration as she continues her studies at Howard University.
“It’s very vital to show up to these spaces” she told The Informer. “I feel like sometimes, the press can try to look marketable for the white corporate side, but at the end of the day, this is who we are. We are creating stories for each other, so we need to make sure that Black people are up front and the receivers of all the fruits of our labor.”
Honoring Heritage, Preserving Black Media
While African American-owned media companies face challenges in the wake of federal threats to civil rights and attacks on diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI), the March 18 program highlighted the historic bravery associated with the Black Press, which started with John B. Russworm and Samuel Cornish publishing Freedom’s Journal on March 16, 1827.
“From its birth in the early 19th century to its present-day digital evolution,” Chavis told the crowd, “the Black Press has stood as a prophetic voice in the wilderness of American democracy — challenging injustice while affirming the humanity and aspirations of African people in the United States and throughout the world.”
Dr. Benjamin Talton, executive director of the Moorland-Spingarn Research Center, which houses the Black Press Archives, discussed the history, power and preservation of African-American owned media.
A Howard University history professor, Talton described the Black Press as a “connected tissue” unifying African Americans to the greater African diaspora through sharing stories, community engagement and truth-telling. He said the Black Press led to the rise of Pan African solidarity and the popularity of publications produced by freedom fighters such as Frederick Douglass’ North Star and Marcus Garvey’s The Negro World.
“This transnational breach was not incidental. It was the point,” Talton said. “The Black Press gave voice to a diaspora of people who had been severed from a continent. Instead, week after week, that severance was never final, nor defining.”
Further, the Moorland-Springarn executive director highlighted how student journalism also played a role in furthering the Black Press.
“At the center of this tradition, literally and institutionally, stood Howard University. And at the center of Howard’s contributions to the Black Press tradition, stood The Hilltop,” highlighting the 102-year-old publication founded by Howard alumni Zora Neale Hurston and Louis Eugene King. “The Hilltop reflected and reinforced that identity. It covered campus life, yes, but it also tracked the wider world, colonialism and independence, Pan-African thought, the struggles of Black people and brown people everywhere in the world, particularly on the continent. It was a student paper that understood its readers as citizens of the broader African world.”
Marking 199 years of the Black Press and looking toward the future, John King Warren, publisher of the San Diego Voice and Viewpoint and chair of the NNPA Board, said the work of people like Russworm, Cornish, Hurston and King continues to this day with the more than 200 publications part of the National Newspaper Publishers Association.
Despite concerns about declining interest in newspapers in the age of digital media, Warren emphasized the power in furthering the Black Press as it nears 200 years and beyond.
“At 80 years old, I find that a lot of us are not reading anymore. We hear all about newspapers, and newspapers are not dead. If they were, billionaires would not be buying them,” Warren said. “So we thank you for being here, we ask for your continued support, and we are excited for everything that’s about to take place.”
Third-year Howard student Zion Williams, a broadcast journalism major and political science minor, said she has noticed a great deal of romanticization surrounding mainstream media, and calls on her peers and others to support the Black Press.
“I think that it’s just important to keep that in mind as a young journalist: Don’t ignore the Black Press or the Black media,” Williams told The Informer, offering advice to fellow student journalists. “Understand the significance and importance of the legacy of where you’re going and how you need to contribute to the Black community and tell our stories.”
Examining the Current State of Media: AI and Navigating Challenges
During the programming, Phil Lewis, deputy editor at HuffPost and Washington Association of Black Journalists (WABJ) president, conducted a panel about artificial intelligence (AI), highlighting its tools and benefits, discussing areas of concern, and promoting how the technology can shape content produced by the Black Press.
There is so much talk about AI right now and how we use [it]. I think of AI as a partner, but a very unreliable partner,” Lewis said.
In a robust conversation that included a question and answer session, panelists Paris Brown, publisher of The Baltimore Times, Ra-Jah Kelly, Washington Informer chief officer of technology and grants, Ingrid Sturgis, associate dean of Howard University’s Cathy Hughes School of Communications, and Alexandria Green Jones, CEO of AG Media Agency and co-publisher of Bayou Beat News, discussed how AI aids in completing tasks, content creation and business operations.
“As a media professional, I use AI pretty much everyday, all day. If I’m working on multiple client platforms, and someone says ‘Hey, I need a flyer out tomorrow’, I know I can go into Reguly and knock it out really quick, as well as if I need video,” said Green Jones.
Further, the group of media professionals also addressed points of vulnerability in using AI such as overreliance, accuracy and credibility.
“The guidelines are important. I think it’s transparency. You have to let your readers, your users know exactly how you’re using [AI],” Sturgis explained. “Label things properly to say, ‘This was created with the use of artificial intelligence.’”
In acknowledging the importance of keeping a pulse on ever-evolving digital innovations, Bell “Totally Randie” White, national social media correspondent for Black Press USA, also advocated for using African American-owned technology and AI resources.
“Blacks in technology need to be amplified,” she told The Informer. “ We say ChatGPT, but we don’t say Aisha, [which] is produced by Onyx Impact. We say Claude, and OpenAI and Anthropic, but where are the other Black owned technologies?”
Clint C. Wilson II, former journalism professor and associate dean of Howard University’s School of Communications, underscored the dual nature of AI in shaping the Black Press.
“It can harm the same way it can harm the mainstream media. You always have a concern about having your information being used and distorted in another way than it’s intended for our audience,” he told The Informer. “That’s always going to be an issue…[However], the Black Press will never die as long as we have our own needs and purposes to pursue.”
Howard University senior Morghan Langston said the AI discussion offered a sense of relief as she prepares to enter into the professional media world.
“As students, we hear [about] AI from the youth’s perspective and we see how [and why] they use it,” she said. “I think seeing [AI] as a positive thing, and as a resource and a tool that can help us in our industry and in our career was really interesting.”
For Chavis, embracing AI is critical to the preservation, progress and future of the Black Press.
“Emerging technologies, including artificial intelligence, offer powerful tools for growth and sustainability. We need a strategic grasp of how we’re going to innovate,” the NNPA president said in his address. “AI assisted journalism enhances research, data analysis, content production, [and] audience analytics. We need to better understand not only who our audiences are, but how we can represent those audiences.”
Looking Toward the Future
In his annual State of the Black Press address, Chavis issued a strong call for action centered around history, identity and looking toward the future.
He discussed the history of African American enslavement, oppression, resilience and the critical work the Black press played in liberation, leaning on faith, hard work, and truth-telling to combat injustices.
“The God of all creation is the God who has been with us for centuries,” Chavis declared, “and that God will not forsake or leave us in the captivity of non-truths, lies, stereotypes, and fake ideologies that are running rampant in what is viewed as the houses and places of power, might, and unlimited greed and avaricious conduct.”
Chavis offered a three-part strategic plan to uphold the Black Press, which includes allocating resources and time into journalism development programs and HBCUs, creating membership pipelines and connecting experienced publishers with the next generation of leaders; and promoting youth engagement, digital media involvement and investigative reporting and storytelling.
“We have an opportunity, as well as a responsibility to raise up a new generation of freedom fighters,” Chavis said.
In addition to the National Newspaper Publisher Association’s work with the Moorland-Spingarn Research Center and other partnerships, the NNPA Fund is also working to uplift young storytellers.
“The NNPA Fund remains committed to preserving [the legacy of the Black Press], while investing in the future through scholarships, training, and initiatives that ensure the next generation of journalists and publishers continue this vital work,” Carter Richards said.
As Black Press leaders turn their gaze to their successors, student journalists are navigating their role in preserving legacy and telling authentic stories in a constantly evolving industry.
For Langston, Black Press Day offered an immediate call to action that relies on intergenerational collaboration and planning.
“If people aren’t reading the press, and especially if they’re not reading the Black Press, [we have to] figure out what we have do to connect to the next generation up and coming to be more relevant,” the senior journalism student said, “whether that is [using] more social media channels, changing your content from written form to video form, things that can just help bridge the gap.”
With junior year winding down, senior year around the corner, and hopes for a long career in journalism, Collins-Stewart said that she considers herself a “trainee” in the Black Press.
“I’m just a learner,” Collins-Stewart told The Informer. “I can’t speak on a Dr. Chavis level of being a pillar in the community, but I can say that I’m a student of the game, quite literally. Even when I graduate, I will continue to be… I take note of everybody around me because I know that their experience is only going to help me in my journey as well.”