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Black College Papers Face Problems of Interference, Lack of Commitment

Photo credit: Mike McCray/A&T Register Justin Thompson of Hampton University networks before a workshop at the HBCU Newspaper Conference, which drew 162 students, primarily from historically black colleges and universities.

By Jameya Porter and Ayesha Rascoe
Black College Wire

Uncommitted staffers, interference by the administration and infrequent publishing are among the primary problems faced by newspapers at historically black colleges, according to editors and advisers who discussed those issues Feb. 8 to 11 at the 2006 HBCU Newspaper Conference and Job Fair.

Those factors can impede student journalists as they prepare for their careers. The conference drew 162 students from 20 schools to North Carolina A&T State University in Greensboro. Media professionals and students shared ideas there for improving the newspapers and confronting those obstacles.

"We have to tell the truth, whether it's ugly or whether it's pretty," said Jennifer Jiggetts, editor in chief of Norfolk State University's Spartan Echo newspaper. "They think we're supposed to be a [public relations] tool," Jiggetts said, referring to officials at the Virginia school.

While she said the Spartan Echo staff might be a little more "fortunate" financially than those at other historically black colleges -- some cannot afford to publish weekly and have little equipment -- Jiggetts said some members of Norfolk State's administration tend to be uncooperative and apprehensive when asked to provide information for the stories in the paper.

"The newspaper's purpose is to inform people," she said. "They don't understand the dynamics of the paper," such as the difference between opinion and news articles.

Students related several examples.

• A front-page note in the Feb. 8 issue of the A&T Register alerted readers that a school official insisted on approving quotes to be used. The official also asked to read the reporter's story in advance of publication; the note told readers that this would violate newspaper policy.

• At a session about the First Amendment, student editors from Lincoln University of Missouri alleged that an administrator there threatened the newspaper's funding if she continued to be questioned for a popular opinion feature called "21 Questions."

• At Hampton University this month, officials tried to convince the Hampton Script that it did not have a story when a site team visit resulted in a recommendation of a two-year provisional accreditation for the Scripps Howard School of Journalism and Communications. The Script wrote the story anyway.

• Some student reporters said officials refuse to talk to them about stories of interest to students. "How are you going to talk to the local paper and not talk to us -- the students -- and we're the ones paying you?" Jiggetts asked.

The A&T Register of North Carolina A&T faces a different conflict.

The Register's editor in chief traditionally has been chosen by a board of people within the university's journalism department or connected with it. However, a proposed new selection process would make the choice part of student government elections.

That would give the entire student body an opportunity to choose the editor. Erica Franklin, the A&T Register's interim editor in chief, said it might also be a way for the student government to control the paper, as a popularly elected editor would be a representative of student government.

In addition to administration-related controversies, some newspapers at historically black colleges wrestle with putting the paper out in a timely manner.

This affects the students' education: With most historically black college newspapers publishing only monthly, bimonthly, weekly, or inconsistently, students' lack of experience in daily news coverage becomes an issue, said Marquita Smith, faculty adviser to the Spartan Echo. This puts HBCU students at a disadvantage when competing with students at predominantly white institutions for internships and jobs.

Among HBCU newspapers, the most frequently published are the Hilltop at Howard University, a daily, the Famuan at Florida A&M University, which publishes three times a week; and the Southern Digest, a twice-weekly.

Many factors prevent daily publishing, including a shortage of staff, as in the case of the Tiger's Roar, the newspaper of Savannah State University.

Last semester, Oneisha Freeman and two other students took on the responsibility of producing the Tiger's Roar after the paper went on a hiatus attributed to lack of student participation. The publication has had only two issues for the 2005-06 school year, one per semester, said Freeman, the paper's photo editor.

"We're in a really great place to have a great newspaper; we just have to do it," Freeman said.

The staff of Dillard University's Courtbouillon, silenced when the school suffered almost $400 million in damages from Hurricane Katrina last year, faces even greater adversity.

Fortunately, the newspaper office and computers were spared, according to Rebecca K. Roussell, the new editor in chief. Roussell temporarily attended Southern University while Dillard was closed during the fall, and at Southern she was business and technology editor of the Southern Digest. Roussell decided to return to Dillard in the spring. After assessing the severity of the situation and attending a professor's session on the media's role in covering Hurricane Katrina, Roussell decided the students needed a voice.

"I came back to Dillard because I felt that it was part of my duty in rebuilding New Orleans," she said during a workshop on the hurricane at the newspaper conference.

Roussell, the only representative of Dillard's paper at the assembly, said the Courtbouillon -- which used to publish bimonthly -- will return initially with two issues per school session. Dillard reopened in January on an accelerated-semester schedule, fitting in two sessions between January and June to help seniors catch up who could not attend school in the fall.

Another newspaper still feeling the backlash of Katrina is the Gramblinite of Grambling University. Wendell Graves, editor in chief, said Katrina-related budget cuts affect his newspaper staff's ability to attend more journalism-related conferences and other events, and to have more of the equipment needed to keep the paper running smoothly.

Many student newspapers also struggle to recruit staff. Reporters who are uncommitted or inconsistent present a problem, editors said.

"You have students who like journalism and want to be in the field," said Graves, "but they don't like to work -- they don't have the work ethic it takes to be a journalist."

Despite the publishing issues, student journalists can still succeed, said Derick Hackett, student media director and adviser for the Southern Digest at Southern University in Baton Rouge.

"You have to take advantage of what your school offers," said Hackett. For example, the Southern Digest is printed only twice a week, so the staff publishes stories online as events occur. According to Hackett, the Southern Digest often beats the local news media in sports coverage by posting its stories immediately after the event.

Smith, the Spartan Echo adviser, also suggested students make the most of their resources.

"If you're going to be biweekly, you have to make it special. Go beyond the basics," she said. Specifically, Smith suggested that students write more investigative and second-day stories.

The challenges are not unconquerable. Several newspapers collected awards during the conference's "Excellence in Journalism" awards banquet.

The Southern Digest and the Meter at Tennessee State University collected Best Student Newspaper honors in the contest, which is sponsored by the Black College Communication Association. The newspapers' accomplishments in 25 categories, including outstanding news coverage, layout and design, photography and online journalism, served as evidence that success is possible .

At workshops on writing, media convergence and other topics, participants exchanged ideas for solving their newspapers' problems. Students also networked with newspaper professionals and recruiters, and applied for internships at a job fair held by the American Society of Newspaper Editors.

"As HBCU newspapers, we have a responsibility to a legacy and it seems our voice has been stifled," said Solomon Lincoln Jr., editor in chief of the Spokesman of Morgan State University. "We have to renew that pride by working together and forming alliances: sharing ideas, looking at what makes each paper strong, sharing our best practices so that we all shine."

Jameya Porter is a print journalism senior at North Carolina A&T State University and online editor of the A&T Register. Ayesha Rascoe is a print journalism junior at Howard University and campus editor of the Hilltop.

Posted Feb. 13, 2006