From Russwurm's Courage to Today's Challenges, Black Newspapers

ST. LOUIS AMERICAN MARCH 14 – 20, 2013 D5 From Russwurm’s courage to today’s challenges, black newspapers press on

American Staff Report The St. Louis American was founded in 1928 by a group of Freedom’s Journal, the first several area businessmen, led black newspaper in the United by Judge Nathan Young, States, started as a weekly abo- A.N. Johnson (from litionist journal in 1827. It was Baltimore), and John the result of a meeting of black Procope. Other shareholders leaders in New York City. The were Homer G. Phillips, leaders realized that such a Charles Udell Turpin and publication was important in Richard Kent, owner of the the struggle to unite free St. Louis Stars world champi- blacks in efforts against slav- on Negro baseball team. The ery. Editors Samuel Cornish original masthead in 1928 stat- and John Russwurm advocat- ed the American was “The ed education and stressed the Paper for the Rank and File.” importance of civil rights for N.A. Sweets later changed the free blacks. masthead to say “A newspaper However, Russworm and for all Americans” in 1932, Cornish disagreed on editorial after taking ownership of the policy, and the newspaper, paper. By 1950, there were after it changed its name to actually more than 30 black The Rights of All, only lasted newspapers in the St. Louis until 1829. Other black news- area. papers, most of them similarly During World War II, the short-lived, appeared in New black press faced a dilemma York City, Albany, similar to the one they faced Philadelphia, Pittsburg, and during the Great War. Most Columbus, Ohio. Almost 50 black newspapers supported black newspapers were pub- the war effort, encouraging lished between 1827 and 1861. blacks to enlist and writing Willis Hodges started his stories about the African- own newspaper, the Ram’s American accomplishments on Horn, in New York in 1847 in both the battlefield and the response to the New York’s home front. But, they also crit- Sun’s stance against black vot- icized discrimination in the ing rights – the Sun’s famous armed forces and editorialized motto ‘The Sun shines for all” on the inefficiency of segregat- did not include black men and ed military forces. For women. The Ram’s Horn lasted instance, the Pittsburgh about a year. Enjoying greater Courier instituted the “Double longevity, however, was V” campaign, calling for victo- Frederick Douglass’s newspa- ry overseas against Germany per the North Star, which and Japan as well as victory at appeared in Rochester the home against Jim Crow. Many same year as the Ram’s Horn newspapers joined the popular and lasted, despite financial Frederick Douglass’s newspaper the “North Star,” which started in 1847 in Rochester, lasted until 1860 despite campaign and circulation troubles and a name change, financial troubles and a name change. soared, with the Courier top- until 1860. ping 270,000. Typically, the early black In the late 1940s and early newspapers rarely lasted more Washington. As before, many Trotter criticized the slow founded in 1912 by Joseph E. three other area black papers in 1950s, black newspapers than a year or two for several black newspapers did not last progress in Negro social Mitchell, William Mitchell existence when the Argus was helped lay the groundwork for reasons. First, the target audi- more than a few years – some- advancement in the face of and Nannie Mitchell-Turner. founded, including the St. the Civil Rights Movement. ence, the base population of times, they lasted only a few America’s racist institutions The Argus is considered one of Louis Palladium, which was Ironically, the black press’s educated free blacks, was sel- months—but growing literacy and customs. In the face of Du Missouri’s oldest black busi- published from 1884 to 1912. greatest achievements in this dom large enough to financial- among the readership, a Bois’ and Trotter’s criticism, nesses and one of the oldest in The Central African American ly support a weekly newspa- stronger economic base, more Washington responded with a the country. There were at least went out of business in 1915. See PRESS, D10 per. Second, most of these experienced journalists, and series of short-lived newspa- newspapers ignored the many more concentrated black popu- pers espousing his accommo- literate, but uneducated, free lations all helped to support dationist views. blacks that lived in the North. the successful newspapers. In 1905, Robert S. Abbott A third reason was that the William Monroe Trotter started the Chicago Defender, publishers usually lacked ade- possibly the nation’s most quate funds to weather the dif- important and influential black ficult early years. newspaper of all time. Where Nonetheless, the black press black newspapers had previ- spread westward, as far as ously tended towards a sober Kansas by 1855 with the start tone, Abbott adopted a sensa- of the Kansas Herald of tional style of reporting, mim- Freedom in Lawrence. The icking the yellow journalism of earliest black newspaper on the William Randolph Hearst’s west coast, San Francisco’s newspapers empire. Mirror of the Times appeared Flamboyant stories about the same year. All of them crime and violence, some of protested the lack of civil them allegedly fabricated by rights for blacks in the North Abbott’s writers, attracted a and protested against the inhu- large number of regular read- manity of southern slavery. ers within the black population In 1864, T. Thomas that had seldom before read Fortune founded the New York newspapers. Freeman, which spoke out By 1920, the Defender against lynching. Ida B. Wells, claimed a circulation of almost an editor, teacher and publish- John Russwurm 300,000. More than two-thirds er, accused white capitalists of of the circulation came from killing a black man. Upset by founded the Boston Guardian outside Chicago and the her accusations, whites in 1901. Trotter, a successful Defender enjoyed great popu- destroyed her printing press. businessman who graduated larity in the South. Along with Wells became afraid for her magna cum laude from lurid tales to attract readers, life and fled to England where Harvard, started the paper the Defender also raised she began The Red Record, a because he felt the general awareness with articles on publication that told England advancement of all African lynching, segregation, and about the atrocities occuring in Americans was a vital goal for black achievement. Abbott also America. successful individuals like editorialized on white The Civil War saw the start- himself. hypocrisy and offered advice up of an abundance of black He strongly opposed on the advancement of the newspapers. After the war in Booker T. Washington’s con- race. The newspaper’s most 1865, America suddenly had servative philosophy of accom- famous crusade, “the Great more than 115 black publica- modation and meek acceptance Northern Drive,” started dur- tions. Most of them lasted less of white institutional domi- ing World War I and urged than two years, but, as a larger nance. Trotter felt that southern blacks to move north number of former slaves Washington impeded black to take advantage of war jobs learned to read, formed com- in the northern cities and munities, and became active in  At one time there escape southern brutality. political activities, more news- Thousands of blacks, encour- papers took advantage of a were more than 3,000 aged by the Defender and secure financial base to print black newspapers other newspapers, left the successful, long-lived newspa- throughout the country. South and went to northern pers, especially in the 1880s Today there are just industrial cities; this constitut- and 1890s. For example, the ed the largest movement of Colored Tribune of Savannah, over 200 in the people in the nation’s history. Georgia which started in 1875, National Newspaper In 1940, John H. survived until 1960. And, a Publishers Association. Sengstacke, Abbott’s nephew Tennessee newspaper, the and heir, assumed editorial Jackson Index, lasted from control of the Defender and 1870 to 1937. continued to champion for full The last two decades of the progress and hurt African equality. He founded and 19th century experienced an Americans as a group for self- became the first president of explosion in black newspapers ish reasons, mainly the contin- the National Negro Publishers across the nation. More than ued white support for Association, now known as the 500 appeared between 1880 Washington’s Tuskegee National Newspaper Publishers and 1890. In 1902 alone, 101 Institute. Association. (Sengstacke black newspapers started. Trotter’s editorials, often served as publisher of the Further, in the two decades directed against Booker T. Defender until his death in from 1895-1915, over 1,200 Washington, generated spirited 1997). black newspapers served debate among the paper’s read- Locally, Missouri became African Americans nationwide. ership. The conflict turned into the last of the former slave They also appeared in states a full-scale feud, as the states to have a black newspa- that had never had black news- Guardian increased its attacks per. The Negro World was the papers before, from Indiana to on Washington and his first in 1875, followed by St. Colorado to Wisconsin, and as “Tuskegee Machine.” Louis Advance in 1881. far west as Montana, Utah, and Like W.E.B. Du Bois, The St. Louis Argus was