Black Media Initiative (BMI), a program funded by The Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism at the City University of New York’s Center for Community Media, which is currently moderated by BMI Director Cheryl Thompson-Morton, is the moderator and manager of Black News Link.

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The Black Media Initiative was started in 2020 to support Black media outlets through advocacy, convenings, training and research. Its aim is to be a one-stop resource for publishers of Black media, connecting them with available resources to build their capacity and stay sustainable.

 

Out of the BMI mutual convenings attended by the Black press and media, the official name and members, the Black News Link was formed in July 2022.  The group began taking memberships in August, and has a unique process of adding team members who have a desire to propel the media collective forward.

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Thus the Black Headline News channel was birthed through the encouragement of the BMI collective and of course, the members of Black News Link, who were enthused about the opportunity for the Black media to have a collective platform.

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The Black News Link group has a number of benefits to its membership:  monetization tools for media outlets, grant resources, weekly meetings for insight and input, funding opportunities, BMI forum access and other items to help Black media outlets online and offline.