It has been a tough few years for journalists. With buyouts and layoffs and companies being sold and “doing more with less,” it’s a wonder any of us can see straight anymore.
But we do. And we’re still here.
That matters not just to me personally, but also on a broader level. You see, those of us who’ve been lucky enough to work in our chosen profession are working hard to stay and to keep finding the stories that are important to our community as Californians, as San Diegans, and as African-Americans.
Our numbers may have dwindled in newsrooms, but our commitment to the SDABJ mission – bridging the gap between the local African-American community and the media – remains as strong as ever.
And so we keep doing the work: Asking the tough questions, showing up in court or at city hall, knocking on doors, combing through dusty records. We show up when people don’t want us there and again when they do. We find the topics, decisions, policies and individuals that were hidden and we bring them to light.
But one of the things we members of SDABJ have to do better is to step into the light ourselves. In this day of new media – of texting and tweeting and Facebooking – we must do a better job not just of telling other people’s stories, but of telling our own.
So I’m calling upon my friends and colleagues to help move SDABJ forward in that direction. We’ve been here in San Diego County for more than a decade, supporting working journalists and mentoring aspiring ones, and we want the public to know we’re here.
Here’s to our future.
Dana Littlefield
President
The San Diego Association of Black Journalists
