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Updated: Monday, December 24, 2007
Published: Wednesday, July 28, 2004 |
Foreword from the 1st Edition
By Lynn Norment
Vernon Jarrett is a walking and talking history lesson.
Over the years, I’ve heard him chastise young journalists and others he felt should know more about our history and forefathers. There were times I’d try to fade into the background so he wouldn’t put me on the spot and test my knowledge.
Vernon was my first NABJ president.
I’d recently moved to Chicago from Memphis and naturally gravitated to the small but dedicated group of journalists that was the core of the Chicago Association of Black Journalists (CABJ), which Vernon had helped found in 1976. I don’t remember the first time I saw him, but I don’t remember not knowing Vernon either.
We struck a common cord for many reasons, one being that we are both from small towns in West Tennessee not far from Memphis. More importantly, we both have a special love for our profession and our organizations.
The 1978 meeting in Chicago was my first NABJ convention. It made a lasting impression and inspired a lifelong commitment. Having chaired a media group in Memphis with former NABJ board member Myron Lowery, I was delighted to join a new national organization and intrigued by this gathering of 500 of my own people, all in my chosen profession.
The next year, at NABJ’s third convention, in Washington, D.C., I met Bob Reid. I distinctly remember his excitement and enthusiasm, how he was anxious to take NABJ’s reigns and lead the infant organization to more solid footing.
Over the ensuing years, I became more deeply involved with CABJ and NABJ. Consequently, I had the pleasure of meeting all of our presidents, and actually worked with most of them at one time or another – as a board member, as chair of a committee or through my role as CABJ president.
When current NABJ President Will Sutton asked me to chair the NABJ 25th Anniversary Committee, I initially said no, that due to other commitments I’d be glad to support someone else chairing the committee. But he soon wore me down, as is Will’s style, and I finally said yes.
As I became more and more immersed into the project and into NABJ’s history and the vision of our founders, the respect I already had for each of our presidents increased tenfold.
Leading our organization is no easy task.
We are quite diverse in our daily jobs and in our own visions of what the organization should be doing. And the president, as well as the board, must devote countless hours of personal time to conference calls (and now emails), writing and reviewing reports, strategizing, planning, worrying, pondering, and resolving disputes.
Some of our presidents have been enormously popular. Some have been more colorful. Others more adept at managing the minutia that comes with leading a far-reaching professional group such as ours.
Some NABJ presidents have been personable, some even lovable and affectionate. Others might have been perceived as more reserved. Regardless, each of the men and women who have taken the helm of NABJ has been “committed to the cause.” This phrase, coined by former President Arthur Fennell as the slogan for the 1997 convention in Chicago, best sums up the quality that is imperative for each of our presidents.
It takes a ton of commitment to lead our diverse membership. It also takes patience, organizational skills, diplomacy, courage and guts, among other traits. Each of our presidents brought to the table these qualities, and so much more.
Chuck Stone had the vision and respect that were necessary to get NABJ off the ground. Vernon Jarrett followed with his grasp of history and our place in it, not to mention his affable manner. Bob Reid had the vision and enthusiasm.
Les Payne brought a rebellious spirit. Merv Aubespin, the warm, Southern personality that made everybody want to work together to get the job done. Al Fitzpatrick, an efficient management style that led him to the upper ranks of Corporate America. DeWayne Wickham, vision, drive and preparation.
Tom Morgan had discipline and fiscal responsibility that led to greater efficiency. Sidmel Estes-Sumpter, the fire and guts that ignited passion. Dorothy Butler Gilliam, the diplomacy, decorum and strong voice that opened doors to powerful media boardrooms. Arthur Fennell, a camera-ready smile and finely honed people skills. And Vanessa Williams, the strength and determination to do the right thing regardless of adversity.
And now we have President Sutton, who is determined to take NABJ to greater heights by working hard and studying and seeking the advice of those who have served before him.
In this special book, the 25th Anniversary Committee presents profiles on NABJ’s first 12 leaders. The committee recruited authors from among our association's most respected members. We identified great writers familiar with the assigned president, and the times and circumstances in which each president led – in NABJ, the industry and America.
These profiles offer insight into the founding and development of NABJ. They show how these leaders overcame obstacles and led by example and vision to make it bigger, better and stronger for our membership. We trust you will find them celebratory, inspiring and fascinating.
Special thanks to The Associated Press for dispatching talented photographers from our nation’s newsrooms to produce the wonderful portrait matched with each profile.
Thanks also to Jack E. White for his careful editing; to Wayne Dawkins, author of “Black Journalists: The NABJ Story,” for his research; to Mira Lowe for copy editing; to NABJ Communications Director Katrina Brown for all she did, and to everyone else who helped make this project a success.
We salute our presidents.
And we hope their stories will encourage you to do more for your local chapter and NABJ.
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Foreword
