Let's Make Sure Black History Month Stories Go Beyond February

This year Black History Month took on a whole new meaning following last year’s murder of George Floyd and the uprising of Black Lives Matters. The awakening and attention paid to Black issues, experiences and contributions were highlighted like never before.  Some media got it right, and others got it very wrong (but that’s for another blog).  FKB Media Solutions had five clients with a Black History Month connection: The Jean Augustine Chair $25K in 25 Days Campaign, Afro Canadian Contractors Association, Canadian Association of Black Lawyers, Mark Stoddart’s Beloved Project and The Black Diamond Ball. Although they were linked to Black History Month, I would argue that all of them could be stories pitched at any time of year and deserving of coverage. Black History Month just amplified it and positioned it appropriately in the news cycle.

A few years back, when I was a news producer, I was taking part in the daily pitch meeting with our team during Black History Month. A story was suggested about a documentary being produced about the Black experience in Brampton and the assignment editor said (with some frustration in his voice), “another Black History Month story?” I responded, “We’re only on the ninth day, there are 20 days left in the month.” (It was a leap year). He felt we had met our quota by doing a couple of stories at the beginning of the month. It was as if these stories were a burden or something to check off a list. But what I was always taught in journalism school is that a good story is a good story regardless of what else is happening (barring major world events), which is why these stories shouldn’t be limited to one month of the year.

A good percentage of my clients are Black and want their stories, message and voices heard on all platforms, not just community. I help them ensure that they are packaged properly, they have a unique story angle to pitch and are ready to have the publicity they deserve. So, I hope this wave of interest in Black stories won’t stop on February 28th. I hope that new contacts have been made and will be kept and follow-ups are done on these stories. And my biggest hope is that the mindset changes about featuring and telling Black stories, that it doesn’t have be connected to the calendar, but that it’s connected to telling a story because it’s just a good story.