(January 9, 2024) — The long-anticipated day has finally arrived for 10 of the nation’s most
innovative Black publishers, who have worked hard over the past three years to grow Word In
Black into a national news site focused on solutions to racial inequities in America. As of Jan. 1,
Word In Black has officially incorporated as a public benefit company.
Word In Black is the only media startup of its kind and serves as a future model for the industry.
It was incubated inside Local Media Foundation, a 501(c)(3) organization affiliated with Local
Media Association. The incubation period allowed for significant testing and experimentation
which in turn led to rapid growth. The 10 publishers and the LMF team worked hand-in-hand
throughout the last three years to drive this growth. As part of this transition envisioned in the
original 2020 business plan, LMF sold the assets to Word In Black, PBC, and will continue to
provide support as a shareholder in the new company.
What makes it so successful is combining the large and loyal audience of the 10 publishers with
the new national brand, along with third-party management services that don’t drain local
resources. Almost all of the support, both commercial and philanthropic, includes all 10
publishers and the national brand, reaching a combined audience of more than 1 million. All 10
publishers have been able to add mini-beats to their newsrooms focused on health and
education, along with access to content developed by the national reporting team. It’s a winning
formula that has not been tested anywhere else.
The public benefit corporation will be supported by the Word In Black Racial Equity Fund, a
component fund of LMF. This support will ensure the great journalism funded by philanthropy
continues to grow. Word In Black employs a newsroom of 10 FTEs along with contracted
freelancers. The staff includes reporters and data journalists focused on health, education,
finance, climate justice, religion and more. Read the 2023 Impact Report to learn more.
The new corporation has 22 shareholders including the 10 publishers and their companies, LMF
and Nancy Lane. All shareholders contributed to a capital raise to strengthen the infrastructure
on the business side. The company will continue to be managed by LMA and LMF for at least
the next three years to ensure a smooth transition and manage the growth.
The shareholders elected the first board of directors, as follows: Dr. Frances Toni Draper, CEO,
The AFRO American, board chair; Elinor Tatum, CEO, New York Amsterdam News, first vice
chair; Patrick Washington, publisher, Dallas Weekly, second vice chair; Denise Rolark Barnes,
CEO, The Washington Informer, treasurer; and Nancy Lane, CEO, Local Media
Association/Local Media Foundation, secretary.
“This is a day to celebrate an important step in the evolution of Word In Black,” said Dr. Draper.
“Launching a digital news site focused on racial inequities in America, in collaboration with nine
other leading Black publishers, has been game changing for all of us. The transition to a public
benefit corporation allows us to take Word In Black out of the pilot phase and develop it into a
much larger national brand that is unapologetically Black.”
In the future, the group believes there will be opportunities to include more of the nation’s
leading Black publishers. “We are already working with other like-minded local Black publishers
on content campaigns involving large brands,” said Dr. Draper. “We look forward to casting a
wider net as opportunities arise. Publishers that want to be involved are encouraged to contact
us.”
“As chair of the board for Local Media Foundation, I could not be more proud of the work that
has been done over the past three years,” said Larry Lee, publisher, The Sacramento Observer,
and a shareholder in Word In Black. “We have been sharing our learnings with many others in
the industry which has led to the formation of several new collaborations including News Is Out,
a queer media collaborative. We believe this model is scalable and important to the long term
sustainability of local media.”
As part of the transition, Word In Black is hiring a director of business development to cultivate
sponsorships, events, reader revenue and branded content opportunities.
Without the support of corporations, foundations and individuals, Word In Black would not exist.
The board of directors would especially like to thank Google News Initiative, Conrad Hilton
Foundation, Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, Commonwealth Fund, Deloitte, Robert Wood Johnson
Foundation, W.K. Kellogg Foundation, McKinsey, Henry Luce Foundation, Walton Family
Foundation, Wells Fargo, AARP, Biogen, Meta Journalism Project and many others.
For more information about Word In Black and the WIB Racial Equity Fund, visit:
www.wordinblack.com/aboutus and www.wordinblack.com/racial-equity-fund.