Launch of Jim Vance Media Academy

Launch of Jim Vance Media Academy

STRONG LEGACY — I’m honored to be on the board of the new Jim Vance Media Academy at Archbishop Carroll High School in Washington, D.C. The Vance Scholars show great promise, and it gave us chills to hear them recite their journalism pledge of ethics. Our future is...
Evelyn Cunningham: The Pittsburgh Courier’s “Lynching Editor”

Evelyn Cunningham: The Pittsburgh Courier’s “Lynching Editor”

Under review by Journalism, Sage Publishing  Abstract From 1943 to 1962, Evelyn Cunningham was a reporter and columnist for the Pittsburgh Courier, a leading black newspaper. She also spent five years as a radio host, interviewing newsmakers ranging from Malcolm X to Sammy Davis Jr. Known as the “lynching editor,” Cunningham was among the few women who covered the hot spots of the Civil Rights Movement. She chronicled an important chapter in U.S. history, not only as a correspondent for the black press but also as a stringer for New York dailies. However, little is known about Cunningham’s role as a journalist and witness to history. My ongoing research attempts to correct this through in-depth interviews with Cunningham, her peers, and observers, as well as a review of her work, papers, and articles about this pioneer. Literature Review Unlike black journalists Ida B. Wells, Mary Shadd Cary, Charlotta Bass, Alice Dunnigan, Evelyn Payne, Ted Poston, and John H. Johnson, no books and few articles have been devoted to Evelyn Cunningham’s career. She considered writing an autobiography, but even at the age of 94 she was still reluctant to betray confidential sources long dead and took many secrets to her grave. However, some of her papers have been archived at the Amistad Research Center at Tulane University in New Orleans, and her oral history is part of the National Visionary Leadership Project, established by Camille Cosby and Renee Poussaint. Cunningham was also featured on TheHistoryChannel.com, an online video for “Democracy Now!” and Soldiers Without Swords, a PBS documentary on the black press by Stanley Nelson. Some of her articles were digitized...
Born to Win: The Authorized Biography of Althea Gibson

Born to Win: The Authorized Biography of Althea Gibson

“I knew that I was an unusual, talented girl through the grace of God. I didn’t need to prove that to myself. I only wanted to prove it to my opponents.” –Althea Gibson Born to Win is the first and only fully authorized biography of the late great Althea Gibson, the first African American to break the color line in tournament tennis. Cowritten by Frances Clayton Gray, who was Gibson’s confidante and caretaker and is now executor of her estate, and journalist Yanick Rice Lamb, this authorized biography sheds new light on Gibson, from her childhood in Harlem and her ten-year reign as champion of the all-black American Tennis Association to her historic 1950 debut at Forest Hills and her momentous victories of 1957 and 1958, when she swept both Wimbledon and the U.S. Open. This riveting account reveals how Gibson distinguished herself as a champion in a long and diverse athletic career, helping to pave a path for such modern-day sports phenomena as Tiger Woods and Venus and Serena Williams. A strong-willed child who skipped school frequently and had a reputation for being a tough girl, Gibson nevertheless developed a solid work ethic and a desire for independence–and was a natural athlete to boot. You’ll follow her as she picks up a tennis racket for the first time and goes on to compete in her first tournament, setting the stage for a remarkable journey. At 5 feet 11, Gibson had the height, speed, and reach to dazzle a crowd by returning shots that seemed guaranteed to get away, and she devised brilliant strategies to zero in on her...