The Black Press, The Black Vote And Media Dollars

By: Dr. John E. Warren, Publisher
San Diego Voice & Viewpoint Newspaper

This November, in addition to the Presidential election, there are thousands of political campaigns in motion. Those running for office will vary from local school boards and city council races to county, state and national offices such as Congressional seats and the U.S. Senate. This is a time when the nation is being told that every vote counts. Billions of dollars will be spent to get out the vote. Most of that will go to radio, television, and social media platforms. Already, there is much radio and television emphasis on the Latino vote and concern about the Arabic vote sitting out the election because of their anger over the Israeli /Palestinian conflict. Already, the Black vote is being taken for granted because the Presidential candidate is Black, and Black people have demonstrated commitment in dollars and volunteers.

All this being said, the usual trend has been for political campaigns, with a few exceptions, to put their dollars into other markets, assuming the Black vote is “in the bag”. SPOILER ALERT! Black support does not excuse the need to spend dollars in the Black political marketplace. While we know the Vice President has always been a supporter of the Black Press in all her political campaigns, the Democratic National Committee has not.  However, in all fairness, there was a 1.5 million dollar commitment made to the Black Press by the Biden/ Harris Campaign before Vice President Harris replaced President Biden on the ticket.

For all those running for office who are not a part of that commitment, this is a reminder that wherever Black votes are, it is a “Battleground” location for the Black vote. The Black Press, as the trusted messenger for over 197 years, remains the key to that vote. The Black Press is no longer “Your Grandpa’s newspaper”. We are digital, we are social media, we are print, we are podcast, and we are radio and television. We must be included in the billions of dollars about to be spent.

The real measure of respect for our vote can be found in the  paraphrased statement, “where the heart is, the dollars are also”. The Black vote requires the Black Press and the Black Press, with all love and respect, requires inclusion on campaign dollar expenditures in support of the Black vote.