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Black News Channel launching, but is it a ‘good thing?’

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News hit last week that a Black news channel will be launching later this year and be dedicated to proving news exclusively to Black consumers. Initially, it was met with favor, that is until some news sources discovered who is behind it. That is J.C. Watts Jr., a former football player who also served in the U.S. House of Representatives for the state of Oklahoma. Watts was known as a conservative Black Republican. So some news outlets are calling the Black News Channel (BNC) a “Trojan horse” and “Fox News for Negroes.” And, reports the Root, the hierarchy of BCN is not all Black. Robert Brilliante, a White man, is listed as BNC’s CEO and co-founder. It’s also been revealed that out of four vice presidents, only one is Black. According to BNC’s website, its list of investors include Angela Sailor, a Black woman who works for the Heritage Foundation (considered to be an ultra-right organization); Steve Pruitt, a former executive with the United Negro College Fund; Elroy Sailor, who served on the President Trump’s transition team; and Timothy Wright, an attorney who served with the Bush administrations. “BNC’s mission is to provide intelligent programming that is informative, educational, inspiring and empowering to its African American audience,” a statement from the network reads. The network plans to reach “an estimated 33 million households — 23 million satellite TV households and 10 million cable TV households — in the top African American TV markets, including New York, Los Angeles, and Atlanta.” BNC will also launch partnerships with historically Black colleges across the country, which will also serve as recruitment and training grounds for students with an interest in news production. “Black News Channel’s purpose is to be a news organization that gives voice to the varied experiences, issues, points-of-view and priorities that matter to African Americans,” the statement continued. “BNC will not just tell a story, but the network will tell the entire story. The network will empower the Black community and address the issues of the day in a way that is fresh, bright and complete. BNC will offer real, responsive, reliable and relevant news coverage by and for African Americans.” One of the shows to air reportedly includes that of Larry Elder, well known as a Black conservative.

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