African American Journalists: Autobiography as Memoir and Manifesto

by Calvin L. Hall

Overview

In the last decade of the 20th century, during a time when African Americans were starting to take inventory of the gains of the civil rights movement and its effects on the lives of black professionals in the public sphere, the memoirs of several journalists were published, a number of which became national bestsellers. African American Journalists examines select autobiographies written by African American journalists in order to explore the relationship between race, class, gender, and journalism practice.

At the heart of this study is the contention that contemporary memoirs written by African American journalists are quasi-political documents—manifestos written in reaction to and against the forces of institutionalized racism in the newsroom. The memoirs featured in this study include Jill Nelson's Volunteer Slavery: My Authentic Negro Experience, Nathan McCall's Makes Me Wanna Holler: A Young Black Man in America, Jake Lamar's Bourgeois Blues: An American Memoir, and Patricia Raybon's My First White Friend: Confessions on Race, Love, and Forgiveness. The exploration of these works increases our understanding of the problems that members of other underrepresented groups may face in the workplace.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780810869301
Publisher:	Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.
Publication date:	07/01/2009
Pages:	146
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.40(h) x 0.50(d)

About the Author

Calvin L. Hall is assistant professor and faculty fellow in the Department of Communication at Appalachian State University.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments vii

Introduction: "Unexamined Lives": The Study of African American Journalism Autobiography ix

1 Journalism: Memory, History, and Context 1

2 Form, Function, and the Public Sphere in Jill Nelson's Volunteer Slavery 14

3 Volunteer Slavery and the Speech Aspects of the Autobiographical Manifesto 35

4 Surveillance and Performance in Nathan McCall's Makes Me Wanna Holler 46

5 Jake Lamar, Patricia Raybon, and the Autobiographical Manifesto Form 58

6 Memoir and the African American Newsroom Experience: Themes and Considerations 74

Conclusion: The Synergy between Race, Class, Gender, and Profession in African American Journalists' Autobiographies 91

Appendix An Annotated Bibliography of Selected Memoirs Written by African American Journalists and Broadcasters 101

Bibliography 107

Index 113

About the Author 117

Editorial Reviews

African American Journalists is highly recommended for upper level undergraduates, graduate students, and those who are contemplating a career in journalism or communication studies.

College & Research Libraries

Although the form, organization and vocabulary reveal this work as a lightly edited dissertation, its point is strong. These autobiographical narratives with their intense personal feelings, do speak truth to power and can change the culture in newsrooms, offices and classrooms. They also should change what it viewed as newsworthy and what is missing from coverage.

American Journalism: A Media History Journal

Calvin L. Hall argues that autobiography may be even more important for African Americans because 'the genre has been recognized and celebrated as a powerful means of speaking publicly about. .. what it means to be black in America'.. .. It builds on the idea that Ida B. Wells-Barnett, Frederick Douglass, W.E.B. Du Bois, and other journalists used autobiography as another forum for advocacy.

Journalism History

African American Journalists is highly recommended for upper level undergraduates, graduate students, and those who are contemplating a career in journalism or communication studies.

May 2010 College & Research Libraries

African American Journalists is highly recommended for upper level undergraduates, graduate students, and those who are contemplating a career in journalism or communication studies.--College & Research Libraries, May 2010

Calvin L. Hall argues that autobiography may be even more important for African Americans because 'the genre has been recognized and celebrated as a powerful means of speaking publicly about . . . what it means to be black in America'. . . . It builds on the idea that Ida B. Wells-Barnett, Frederick Douglass, W.E.B. Du Bois, and other journalists used autobiography as another forum for advocacy.--Journalism History, Winter 2010

Although the form, organization and vocabulary reveal this work as a lightly edited dissertation, its point is strong. These autobiographical narratives with their intense personal feelings, do speak truth to power and can change the culture in newsrooms, offices and classrooms. They also should change what it viewed as newsworthy and what is missing from coverage.--American Journalism: A Media History Journal

From the Publisher

Calvin L. Hall argues that autobiography may be even more important for African Americans because 'the genre has been recognized and celebrated as a powerful means of speaking publicly about . . . what it means to be black in America'. . . . It builds on the idea that Ida B. Wells-Barnett, Frederick Douglass, W.E.B. Du Bois, and other journalists used autobiography as another forum for advocacy.

Winter 2010 Journalism History

African American Journalists is highly recommended for upper level undergraduates, graduate students, and those who are contemplating a career in journalism or communication studies.

College & Research Libraries (C&RL)

Although the form, organization and vocabulary reveal this work as a lightly edited dissertation, its point is strong. These autobiographical narratives with their intense personal feelings, do speak truth to power and can change the culture in newsrooms, offices and classrooms. They also should change what it viewed as newsworthy and what is missing from coverage.

American Journalism

African American Journalists is highly recommended for upper level undergraduates, graduate students, and those who are contemplating a career in journalism or communication studies.

May 2010 College & Research Libraries (C&RL)