Black Journalists Aren’t Everywhere, Like They Should Be

The lack of Black representation in the media industry, specifically journalism, has been a pressing issue for decades. Black journalists are often asked to cover social issues instead of fashion week at non-diverse publications. Although imperative, Black journalists are more than reporters for the Black Lives Matter movement, or educating your staff about traumatizing events in the Black community.

As I watched the 2002 film, “Brown Sugar”, I realized how rare it was to see a Black journalist, critic, or creative covering affairs related to art and culture. Whether that be in films or in actuality. So, to see Ibrahim Kamara be appointed Editor-in-Chief and Lynette Nylander become the Editorial Director at youth culture magazine, DAZED, is exciting. 

Black journalists, critics and creatives are most needed in the industries of art and culture. When the Louis Vuitton F/W 2021 Men’s Ready-to-Wear collection by Virgil Abloh debuted, this became very clear. As the traditional fashion journalists issued their analyses of the collection, it was common to describe it as a reference to Abloh’s racial identity. But, the assessments lacked true knowledge of Black culture and where the references in the collection derived from. 

The issue of Black representation and acceptance in the fields of art and culture is not just limited to journalism and criticisms. The chair of fashion at Ryerson University, Ben Barry, observed the lack of support given to Black students at the university. “In my own conversations with Black students at the fashion school where I am chair, I learned firsthand how fashion education undermined their love of fashion,” said Barry (via the Business of Fashion). “These students said they learned about white fashion history in classes that ignored or trivialised Black fashion histories; they said faculty questioned the relevance of their designs when they were grounded in Black narratives or assumed they were creating work about their experiences as Black people.”

The work of Black journalists, critics and/or creatives should not be limited to exploring trauma. Our culture is more than police brutality and racism. 

A few of the Black journalists and critics whose work I enjoy and appreciate includes Pam Boy (fashion critic at PERFECT MAG), Nandi Howard (Fashion editor at ESSENCE magazine), Odunayo Ojo (fashion and culture writer at The Fashion Archive) and Taylor Renee (art critic at Arts.Black).

Listen to the playlist “no limits…” on Apple Music or Spotify.

• art
• Black
• creative
• critic
• culture
• journalist