(NEXSTAR) – The National Association of Black Journalists is gearing up to celebrate its 50th anniversary in 2025, marking five decades of championing diversity in newsrooms.
Founded on Dec. 12, 1975, in Washington, D.C., the NABJ set out to advocate for the fair representation of Black journalists in the media industry.
Among its 44 founders were trailblazing figures like Chuck Stone, a fiery editor and professor who served as the NABJ’s first president; Maureen Bunyan, one of the first Black women to anchor the evening news on local television; and Max Robinson, who later became the first Black co-anchor of a network evening news broadcast on ABC’s “World News Tonight.”
The creation of the NABJ came at a pivotal time, following the release of the 1968 Kerner Commission Report, which highlighted biased depictions of Black Americans in the press.
The report, commissioned by President Lyndon B. Johnson and led by Illinois Gov. Otto Kerner Jr., was released after civil unrest erupted in cities across the U.S. in the late 1960s. It found that media coverage often reinforced harmful stereotypes about Black Americans while overlooking systemic inequities – such as poverty, inadequate housing, and police misconduct.
These findings underscored the urgency of the NABJ’s mission. As Stone previously said, the goal was not just to diversify newsrooms but to hold them accountable for how they portrayed – and failed to portray – Black lives and stories.
“The challenge we faced was on two levels. Creating NABJ was black journalists’ response to the Kerner Commission’s call for improving the coverage of the black community,” Stone recalled in an essay written by the NABJ’s founding executive director Paul Brock. “We set out to both increase black employment in the mainstream media and, just as importantly, to examine and analyze the institutionalized racism that plagued the reporting about black people in the mainstream media.”
This ambitious mission was met with significant resistance as founders faced pushback from the very institutions they sought to reform.
“We were not welcomed with open arms by the mainstream media,” Bunyan said in a 2015 video reflecting on the organization’s history. “As a matter of fact, our first members, our founding members, were told by their mainstream media employers, if you join this organization, you may lose your job.”
While affiliating with the NABJ came with professional risks, the challenges didn’t end there. Another hurdle was the lack of opportunities for Black journalists to advance into leadership roles.
“We were constantly asking top management when will there be an African American news director? When will there be African American writers and producers? When?” NABJ co-founder and former television executive Allison J. Davis said in the video.
Despite these obstacles, the NABJ has since grown into one of the most influential organizations in the media industry. Over the years, it has provided scholarships, internships and training programs to support Black journalists entering the field. Its annual convention, which now attracts thousands of attendees, has become the largest gathering of journalists of color, offering networking opportunities, workshops and job fairs.
The NABJ’s reach extends far beyond its annual events. The organization has established numerous chapters across the country, allowing members to connect locally. Additionally, the NABJ maintains a strong presence on college campuses, fostering the next generation of Black journalists through student chapters.
As its golden anniversary approaches, plans are already in motion for celebrations during the NABJ’s 2025 convention, scheduled for Aug. 6-10 in Cleveland. The theme for the milestone is “Resilience. Advocacy. Excellence.”
Ken Lemon, the NABJ’s current president, described the anniversary as a chance to reflect on the organization’s achievements while looking toward the future.
“We are excited to begin preparations to honor our 44 founders and the realization of their vision 50 years later,” Lemon said in a statement.