Dissertation FINAL

The African-American Media ___________ An investigation into the coverage of the cases of Emmett Till and Trayvon Martin by the African-American and mainstream media Myriah Towner BA (Hons) Journalism London College of Communication, University of the Arts London, Andrea Mason May 2013 2 Acknowledgements I am so grateful for the help of many who have assisted with further developing my dissertation. From the early stages of development, I have to thank Courtney Towner, Auriell Towner, Courtney Cook, and Andrea Mason for their conversations and discussions which assisted me in choosing and furnishing the subject of my dissertation. I also would like to thank the many academics who willingly allowed me to ask them extensive questions about the books they have written, and who without I would not have extended my knowledge on the subject of race and media, and the African-American media. I extend a grateful thanks to Stephen Tuck, Hank Klibanoff, Davis Houck, and Devery Anderson. A very special thanks is also in order to Dr. Houck for graciously giving me access to the recently discovered St. Louis Argusʼs coverage on the Emmett Till case. I would like to thank both my parents, Sharon and Greg Towner, as well as my entire family, for their support over the past three years. It is for our faith in God, prayers, and encouragement that have seen me through to the completion of this study. Thanks also to the faculty and staff of the journalism department at London College of Communication for their encouragement and support throughout my three years on the course. Lastly, I am indebted to Andrea Mason, who without her accessibility, many meetings, resources, time and guidance, I would not have had the courage to take on and shape such a big project which I am so passionate about. Thank you Andrea for your encouragement, thoughtful criticism, time and understanding during the past eight months. It has been an honour working with you. 3 Declaration of Authenticity I, Myriah Towner, confirm that this dissertation is all my own work, that all material from other sources has been fully referenced and acknowledged and that none of the essay has been submitted in whole or in part for any previous assessment at this university or elsewhere. 4 Contents Acknowledgements 2 Declaration of Authenticity 3 Preface 5 Introduction 6 Literature Review 10 Methodology 13 Chapter 1 Murder in the Delta: The Story of Emmett Till 18 Chapter 2 How the media told Trayvon Martin’s Story 28 Chapter 3 Race and the Media 36 Conclusion 40 Bibliography 42 Appendix 54 5 Preface This dissertation examines the way the American national and African-American media covered two of the most widely reported and racially sensitive stories in the United States: the deaths of Emmett Till and Trayvon Martin. By drawing comparisons from the coverage produced by the national and African-American media on the two cases - the death of the 14-year-old African-American teenager, Emmett Till from Chicago, who was lynched by two white men for whistling at a white woman in Mississippi in 1955; and the 17-year-old African-American Trayvon Martin, who was shot dead by a man in March 2012 while walking home, unarmed in a gated community - this study reveals the African-American media has a crucial function when covering race related stories. The African-American media is argued to be essential for: 1) Identifying stories that are overlooked entirely by the mainstream media; 2) Correcting inaccuracies and providing various angles on stories from resources within the African- American community on race related stories; 3) Situating stories in a particular context, often serving to show how a particular incident is one example of a much more widespread problem. This assertion is supported through an analysis of the reporting on the deaths of Till and Martin by the African-American media, the national media, and examinations of research on how the media covered both cases. This dissertation draws on Ronald Jacobsʼ adaptation of the idea of public spheres and focuses on the role of the news media in a civil society consisting of multiple public spheres. By doing so, it shows how the African-American press has an important role to play in the cases of Till and Martin, and the creation of a more open and inclusive society (Jacobs, 2000, p.4). 6 Introduction The African-American media offers something not found in the white press, Gunnar Myrdal explained in his book An American Dilemma: ʻThrough all the Negro press there flows an undercurrent of feeling that the race [African-Americans] considers itself a part of America and yet has no voice in the American newspaper. Members of this group want to learn about each other, they want the stories of their success, conflicts, and issues toldʼ (Myrdal, 1944, p.908). The African-American press was a platform for African-Americans to have these discussions. The establishment of the African-American media was essential because of its reporters interest in the advancement of African-Americans. This allowed African-American reporters to cover stories involving race from a proactive position leading to change that positively affected the African-American community (Myrdal, 1944, p.908). Established in 1827, the African-American press allowed for a ʻsecure space of self representationʼ to craft common identities and solidarities, and develop arguments ʻwhich might effectively engage white civil societyʼ (Jacobs, 2000, p.5). These ideas are still important in the coverage of the Martin and Till cases. The mediaʼs inquiries into the Till case made it an important story sparking discussions about the implications behind segregation and Jim Crow laws. Jim Crow laws were customs used to keep African-American and white people segregated, such as: African-American men avoiding physical and eye contact with white women; laws forbidding intermarriage; and private businesses and public institutions keeping African-Americans and whites separate. The news of 7 Tillʼs murder and the ʻsham of a trialʼ that followed it, outraged many Americans across the U.S because the jury chose to acquit Tillʼs murderers in favor of honoring the white supremacist attitudes in Mississippi. Through the coverage of Tillʼs case, the African-American media used their voice to situate Tillʼs murder into the context of racial inequality prevalent in America; Tillʼs case brought to light the structural flaws of racial prejudice for the world to see. The African-American media in the case of Martin provided a perspective to express largely what his death meant for race relations in America. African-American reporters diligently covered Martinʼs death and brought awareness to racial profiling. Till and Martin became ʻmass media spectacles of race and violenceʼ (Markovitz, 2011, p.3). For example, newspapers outside of Mississippi were appalled that Till was murdered because he violated an unwritten racial code of expressing interesting in a white woman; people were shocked that a harmless, trivial action could result in such a horrible consequence. News of Tillʼs murder was followed by outrage from citizens, especially those in the northern states, who condemned the killing and racist attitudes that led to itʼ (Crowe, 2003, p.15&19). In Martinʼs case, the news of his death was one of the most followed stories during 22-25 March 2012, and ignited conversations about racial injustices still present in America, including the treatment of African-Americans in press coverage. The first chapter of this dissertation analyses the press coverage of the Till case. Analysing the coverage by both African-American (St. Louis Argus) and national (New York Times) newspapers, this chapter examines the coverage from Tillʼs abduction to after the murder trial. 8 African-American publications such as the Pittsburgh Courier, Chicago Defender and St. Louis Argus devoted efforts to keep information available on the story long after the trialʼs end. In some cases, the African-American press and its reporters were essential in getting exclusive interviews to which white reporters were unlikely to have access, and in searching for key missing witnesses. This was important because the first half of the century was when mainstream newspapers filtered stories through ʻwartime narratives that pushed racial concerns to the sidelinesʼ (Jacobs, 2000, p.47). As African-Americans following Tillʼs story sought out the ʻAfrican-American perspectiveʼ, the African-American press secured the existence of an independent black public sphere for conversations about common concerns (Jacobs, 2000, p.52). The African-American press developed a platform for African-Americans to discuss issues presented in the mainstream media and how it affected those within the African-American community. Myrdal confirms this: ʻThe Negro press is far more than a mere expression of the Negro protest. By expressing the protest, the press also magnifies it, acting like a huge sounding boardʼ (Myrdal, 1944, p.911). # Chapter two of this study tells the story of Martin"s death. Martin"s killing drew attention to the racial profiling of African-Americans, while also bringing awareness to inequalities of institutions meant to serve all Americans. This chapter reveals the importance of the African-American perspective in coverage of Martin"s case. This perspective was offered most prominently in opinion editorials written by influential African-American reporters for mainstream publications including the New York Times, CNN, Washington Post, and the Huffington Post. From the analysis of reporting by the African- 9 American and mainstream media, it is clear how central of a role the African-American perspective plays when discussing race-related stories. Chapter three focuses on the similarities and differences between the two cases, and how important the race element, both victims being black, was when reporting the cases.

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