April 28, 2013

African-Americans Shift Spending in Tight Economy
Report Breaks Down Black American Economy Dollar-by-dollar

Special to the Trice Edney News Wire from Target Market News

(TriceEdneyWire.com) - According to the data found in a new report, "The Buying Power of Black America," now may be the most opportune time ever for businesses to develop a strategy for increasing their share of the Black American market. With the nation slowly recovering from recession, Black consumers represent the margin of profitability in most consumer product categories.

"What the recession did to Black America's buying habits is to give them a reason to re-evaluate how they spent the billions of dollars they earned collectively," said Ken Smikle, president of Target Market News and editor of the report. "Before tight economic times, companies felt they could afford to take their loyalty -- especially to top brands -- for granted. That changed during the downturn. Price was a bigger factor driving purchasing decisions. Now brands have to earn the loyalty of Black consumers all over again. Black consumers are asking brands, 'what have you done for me lately.'"

For the past 17 years, Target Market News has published the only report that breaks down in dollars the impact of the Black Consumer Market. Now approaching a trillion dollars in spending, the earned income of Black America is already the 16th largest market in the world, and is on the verge of surpassing the gross national income of Mexico.

This 105-page report breaks down how much of Black consumers' $836 billion in income was spent during 2011 on clothing, entertainment, food, beverages, toys, consumer technology, cosmetics, autos, travel and dozens of other categories.

Another factor causing a shift in the loyalty of Black consumers is social media and increased access to business information. The new edition of "The Buying Power of Black America" includes a section detailing the dollars spent by major companies on advertising in Black media. It also compares the ad spending of companies by categories.

"African-Americans can now rely on their own research about brands," said Smikle. "This is one of the reasons why we added a section that tracks how much leading advertisers spent in Black-oriented media. There is a correlation between building and sustaining Black consumers' patronage and the dollars spent to reach them through advertising. That fact has not changed in this diverse media environment -- it has become an imperative for brands that want success."

Additionally, advertising is a key measurement of the economic relationship companies have with Black consumers. "The largest single investment that Corporate America makes in the Black community is in advertising," said Smikle. "That investment is about $2 billion a year, but it should be at least twice that amount given the importance of the market and the role these consumers play in any company's bottom line."

The spending of the top 80 advertisers in Black media are detailed in the report. The No.1 company, Procter & Gamble, spent $78.9 million in 2011, while the No.80 company, Apple, just spent $1.6 million. 

April 21, 2013

CNN Blasted Over Erroneous “Dark-Skinned” Bomber Report
By Hazel Trice Edney

Tamerlan Tsarnaev (left) was killed during a gun battle with police; his brother, Dzhokhar, 19, was captured, but remains hospitalized with a gunshot wound to the throught. Authorities have said he has been unable to speak.

(TriceEdneyWire.com) – CNN, which has prided itself as a world leader of news and information, has come under scorching criticism after reporter John King, a senior correspondent for the station, erroneously described the Boston Marathon bombing suspect as a “dark-skinned male”.

Both suspects, Tamerlan and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, brothers of Chechnyan descent, turned out to be white-complexioned, a fact that has drawn scorching criticism from civil rights leaders and even fellow journalists who described King’s reporting as irresponsible and racially inflammatory. Dzhokhar is now hospitalized with gunshot wounds. Tamerlan died amidst a gun battle while running from police.

“The false reporting by the media in the Boston bombing case was offensive and inflammatory, including specific references by CNN’s John King who labeled the alleged suspect as a “dark-skinned male” perpetuating a stereotypical characterization devoid of relevant facts about the suspects identity,” said the Rev. Al Sharpton in a statement after criticizing King on his MSNBC show, PoliticsNation. “It was irresponsible and misleading to characterize the suspect by his race and it made every dark skinned male in Boston a suspect. If I reported that a “white skinned male” was being sought after, I would be publicly maligned as a “racial agitator.” The media must be responsible and put facts in proper context.”

The two bombing blasts that took four lives, wreaked havoc in Massachusetts, causing rippling affects across the nation. Memories of Sept. 11, 2001 were quick to return; especially with the uncertainties of the motive for the blast and who exactly had committed the attacks. Also similar was the tendency to falsely accuse people of color even before there is evidence or proof. 

The NAACP piled piled on the "inflammatory" reporting.

“The fact that this information was false is only part of the problem,” said NAACP President and CEO Benjamin Todd Jealous in a statement. “Our concern is that CNN used an overly-broad, unhelpful and potentially racially inflammatory categorization to describe the potential suspect. History teaches us that too often people of color are unfairly targeted in the aftermath of acts of terrorism.”

In the NAACP statement, which described the reporting as “irresponsible, reckless, and counterproductive”, Jealous concluded, “We ask that CNN and all media outlets exercise caution and weigh the potential implications of such categorizations in future reports.”

On Monday this week, CNN had issued no statement in response to the criticism. But King has vehemently defended himself, according to Twitter posts reported by Richard Prince’s Journal-isms. " 'Source of that description was a senior government official. And I asked, are you sure? But I'm responsible. What I am not is racist,' the anchor wrote Thursday," according to Prince’s report, quoting a story by Erick Hayden of the Hollywood Reporter.

Though King has been apologetic for the error, some of his own colleagues say that doesn’t goes far enough. Donna Brazile, a CNN contributor, said the network; not just King, should apologize for the report.

"I cringed when I heard it," Brazile was quoted in a Prince story covering her during a forum at George Washington University, where she was speaking on "Race and the Race for the Presidency." She continued, "Without a picture. . . . just putting that statement out. It brought me back to my childhood, when they would always describe the color of a person's skin …I believe an apology is owed, not just to dark-skinned people," she added.

Typically, when a reporter makes an extreme mistake, the station or news agency will take responsibility for issuing an apology. CNN has not said why it feels exempt from the professional protocol.

Among others, the National Association of Black Journalists also weighed in on the criticism, giving a bit of advice:

“NABJ in no way encourages censorship but does encourage news organizations to be responsible when reporting about race [and] to report on race only when relevant and a vital part of a story,” the organization said in a statement. “Ultimately this helps to avoid mischaracterizations which might encourage potential bias or discrimination against a person or a group of people based on race or ethnicity.”

April 23, 2013

Boston Attack to Prompt ‘Larger Dialog’, Rights Leader Predicts
By Hazel Trice Edney

Charles Ogletree, Harvard University

Jack Levin, Northeastern University

(TriceEdneyWire.com) – Just as Boston was beginning to hunker down for a 48-hour manhunt that ended in the death of one suspected bomber and the wounding and capture of the other, Harvard Law Professor Charles Ogletree was already envisioning the healing process that would be needed after the tragedy that took place only hours earlier.

“I’m getting emails from people already talking about what we need to do to move forward and how we need to openly express not only support for this great country and the leadership of our president and our governor and our local mayor and police authorities, but also our willingness to have the conversations with our children and grandchildren, and neighbors and friends and even some enemies about how we have to come together as communities to combat these senseless acts of violence like this one,” he said in a telephone interview. “So this will lead to further dialog and further activities rather than people simply being stunned and angry and disappointed. I think they want to do something that makes a difference.”

Ogletree, nationally known as a civil rights icon and thought leader, was among the founders of the Charles Hamilton Houston Center for Race and Justice, which he now directs at Harvard, located in Cambridge, Mass., a suburb of Boston. In the coming months, he envisions the Center, named after the iconic civil rights lawyer of the 1960s, growing as a hub for those conversations that could lead to healing among communities.

“It’s no question that the Charles Hamilton Houston Center will use this as another stepping point to have larger dialog. Rodney King urged us to think...more than two decades ago, when he said, ‘Why can’t we all get along,’” Ogletree recalled the poignant words of the now deceased former victim of police brutality.  “I think we could answer his question. We’re going to see to it that that happens and we’re going to make sure that whoever is responsible for this goes through the justice system in an appropriate way.”

Later, through video and eye witnesses, Police and FBI quickly narrowed down the Boston Marathon bombing suspects to Tamerlan and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, brothers of Chechnyan descent. During a massive manhunt that shut down the city of Boston and surrounding communities, Tamerlan was killed amidst a gun battle with police. Dzhokhar, 19, is now hospitalized with gunshot wounds and has been charged with use of a weapon of mass destruction and malicious destruction of property. Authorities say he is lucid and communicating and has reportedly written that the motive was to “defend Islam.” He reportedly cannot talk because of a gunshot wound to his throat.

The attacks included the explosion of two bombs near the finish line. It left three people dead, nearly 200 suffering physical wounds, but thousands more emotionally and psychologically traumatized.

Despite what appears to be an increasing number of terrorist attacks on American soil since Sept. 11, 2001, experts say they are minimal compared to those abroad.

“We have far less terrorism in this country than in many others. Countries in Asia, the Middle East, South America yearly have far larger numbers of terrorist acts,” says Jack Levin, co-director of the Brudnick Center on Violence and Conflict at Northeastern University in Boston.

He says international terrorism is actually rare in the U. S. “The terrorism in this country tends to come, not from politics, but from psychopathology. Most of the terrorist acts are not from other countries. They’re not international. The vast majority are domestic in origin committed by American citizens for personal reasons.”

His words harkened to the mass murders by gun fire that have taken place over the past several years, including the Virginia Tech University, the Aurora movie theater, and the Sandy Hook Elementary School shootings.

Despite the new vigilance and the relief expressed by Bostonians that the suspects were quickly apprehended, Levin predicts a long road to healing.

“We’re not going to heal as quickly as the residents of New York City for one reason alone - the city of New York is so much larger than Boston,” Levin said. “When tourists visit New York, they think of Broadway,” he said, explaining that the larger the city, the less people will actually identify the act of violence with the city because of its vast reputation.

Boston – like Newtown, Conn., the location of Sandy Hook Elementary – will probably take much longer to heal from the shock simply because of its size, he says.

Ogletree agrees the attack has left a city awakened to violence in way it never expected as well as dealing with principles of justice that must be respected.

“This is a tragic reminder of the terror that we all experienced on Sept. 11, 2001. It reminds us that we still can’t assume that where we live or what we do makes us safe from threats like this. It also is a reminder that when people use tactics like this, it’s no longer a global or national or even state event, it can be very local and can be very public and can lead to this tragedy that we saw here,” Ogletree says. “So I think it just requires all of us to be vigilant, to respect the need for more security, and yet not to engage in unwarranted and unnecessary profiling along racial, religious or ethnic lines. That can be very dangerous.”

April 21, 2013

Black-owned Car Dealerships Disappearing Across the Nation
By Fred Jeter

Harry Lee Harris and his wife, Vanessa, stand in front of the Universal Ford dealershiphe is selling in Henrico County. The sale price was not disclosed. PHOTO: Sandra Sellars/Richmond Free Press

Special to the Trice Edney News Wire from the Richmond Free Press

(TriceEdneyWire.com) - After spending most of his life in the automotive business, 60-year-old Harry Lee Harris is shifting gears. Owner of Universal Ford since 1986, Harris will on May 1 complete the sale of his successful black-run business to Richmond Ford.

“There is a time to buy and a time to sell,” said Harris, referring to his dealership at 10751 W. Broad St. in Henrico County near Richmond, Va. “My wife and I are looking forward to traveling all over the big globe and being super grandparents. We’ll play lots of golf, too.”

Ron Kody, who is White, owns Richmond Ford. The ownership change means there will not be a single Black-owned, new car dealership in the Richmond area. Virginia, at best, has just a handful of Black-owned dealerships. In Northern Virginia, there are three, Infiniti of Chantilly, owned by Reginald L. Brown Jr., formerly of Richmond, and BMW of Sterling and MINI of Sterling, both owned by Thomas A. Moorehead.

Across the nation, the number of Black-owned, new car dealerships peaked at 532 in 2002, but has fallen by 50 percent since. As of 2012, there were 261 such dealerships, according to Automotive News, an industry trade journal. Those dealerships comprised just 1.5 percent of the 17,653 new car dealerships in the U.S.

In response to a question, Harris elected not to disclose his selling price. “The purchase price was sufficient for Mrs. Harris (Vanessa) and I to retire comfortably. And the Kodys certainly purchased a profitable and premium franchise in the Richmond market, and we wish them luck.”

As of May 1, Universal will change its name to Richmond Ford West. Harris said all Universal employees will be retained as part of the transaction. That includes Geneva Harris, a manager, who is Harris’ daughter.

The youngest of 11 children, Harris was born in Arkansas and grew up in St. Louis. His role model was his older brother, Sam Johnson, one of the nation’s first minority auto store owners. Harris got his start as a teen when his brother put him to work washing cars at his dealership, Metro Lincoln-Mercury in St. Louis.

An unquestionable workaholic with king-sized dreams, he rose to managerial status. “I fashioned myself after Sam,” said Harris. “I used his blueprint to get where I am today.”

His first car was a pre-owned 1962 Chevy Impala that he purchased for $250. He’s been upgrading ever since. Harris and Johnson became partners and transferred to Charlotte, N.C., in 1977 to run Johnson Lincoln-

Mercury. In 1986, with the help of the Ford Motor Minority Dealer Program, Harris purchased Universal Ford. The original location was in the Virginia Commonwealth University area where the Siegel Center now stands. The business moved to Innsbrook in Henrico County in 1989.

Harris has been ranked as high as No. 53 on Black Enterprise magazine’s annual list of the 100 top Black-owned dealerships. In 2012, he received the Entrepreneur of the Year Award from the Metropolitan Business League, the area’s largest Black business group, of which he is a longtime member. He also belongs to the Ford Minority Dealer Association, the Ford Lincoln Mercury Alumni Association, the Urban League of Greater Richmond and the National Association of Minority Automobile Dealers. He served on the board of the Garfield Childs Foundation, whose members included former governor and current U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine.

Harris, Harry’s wife of 37 years, is something of an entrepreneur herself. For nine years, she owned and ran Shoes Etc. at Sixth Street Marketplace.

Harris has two brothers, Clyde and Eli Harris, who own and operate used car lots in the Richmond area. The decision to sell will free him and his wife “to do things we’ve never had the time to do,” Harris said. Until now, he said, life has totally revolved around work.

“Nothing is forever,” said Harris. “We’re no different than Thalhimer’s, Bill’s Barbecue, Dick Strauss Ford. All those owners have moved on, too. I’ve got my own bucket list of goals, and I’ve pretty much reached them.”

In retirement, he hopes to speak to business classes at Virginia Union University and other schools. Harry and Vanessa’s four children are graduates of either VUU or Johnson C. Smith in Charlotte. They have three grandchildren.

Life is good. The Harrises reside in a home along the 18th fairway at plush Dominion Golf Club in Wyndham in Henrico. Harris says both he and Harris are “avid golfers,” but “she can  outdrive me because she’s had so much more practice.”

Now, Harris, in “Chapter Two” of his life, will have more time to chase the dimpled ball around the course. You might say he’s trading cars for pars. Being a shrewd businessman, it’s a deal he couldn’t pass up.