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By Freddie Allen, NNPA National News Editor<\/p>\n
Sidnee King, a 20 year-old broadcast journalism student at Howard University, admitted that she was nervous about her summer plans, the day before the 2016 \u201cDiscover the Unexpected\u201d (DTU) journalism fellows were announced.<\/p>\n
King said that she missed the DTU program launch on March 23, when officials from the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA), Chevrolet and the School of Communications at Howard University revealed that eight student journalists would be selected to produce content for four NNPA member publications.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe said, \u2018It\u2019s okay, you\u2019re going to figure it out, don\u2019t worry,\u2019 because I panic some times,\u201d said King.<\/p>\n
King\u2019s mother reassured her that things would work out, and when they did, King couldn\u2019t wait to share the great news.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo I just called her and told her that I figured out what I\u2019m doing this summer and it includes an internship and a scholarship and all this good stuff, so she was really excited for me,\u201d said King, a native of Bloomfield Hills, Mich.<\/p>\n
Gracie Lawson-Borders, the dean of the School of Communications at Howard University said that she hoped that people see the young journalists as the future storytellers of the Black community.<\/p>\n
The dean said that the NNPA, Howard University and Chevrolet were confident that they got the best students for the program.<\/p>\n
The 2016 \u201cDiscover the Unexpected\u201d journalism fellows are: Brandi Montgomery, Brelaun Douglas, Briahnna Brown, McKenzie Marshall, Tatyana Hopkins, Sidnee King, Victoria Jones and Rushawn Walters. The students come from the Media Journalism and Film department at the School of Communications with concentrations in print, online and broadcast journalism.<\/p>\n
The Michigan Chronicle in Detroit, The Chicago Defender, The Atlanta Voice and The Washington Informer in Washington, D.C., are the first group of publishers to participate in the program. The students\u2019 stories and video packages will run in Black newspapers and on news websites across the country.<\/p>\n
Lawson-Borders surprised the student fellows last Friday with a special guest appearance by Hip-hop pioneer MC Lyte, who also serves as the national spokesperson for the DTU program. MC Lyte revealed that the fellows will have access to a 2016 Chevrolet Malibu to use as a pool car during their internships.<\/p>\n
\u201cJust to see the fellows getting inside the [Malibu] and shooting video and snapping photographs and talking\u2026it was all truly amazing,\u201d said Michelle Matthews-Alexander, Chevrolet\u2019s Diversity Marketing Manager. \u201cWe\u2019re thrilled and we can\u2019t wait to see the content that the students will create.\u201d<\/p>\n
Benjamin Chavis, the president and CEO of the NNPA, said that not only will the journalism fellows get a good learning experience, but the NNPA publishers will also gain from the perspective that the millennials will bring to their newsrooms, \u201cso, this is going to be a mutually beneficial program this summer.\u201d<\/p>\n
Victoria Jones said that having access to the Chevrolet Malibu to use as a pool car adds a level of professionalism to the whole experience.<\/p>\n
Jones worked for the AFRO in Baltimore, Md., and Washington, D.C. from 2014-2015.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen I found out that there was another opportunity to work with the Black Press, I was really excited about it,\u201d said Jones.<\/p>\n
Jones said that unlike the content that she created at the AFRO, when she interned at mainstream media outlets the stories were often tailored for a general audience.<\/p>\n
\u201cI missed that aspect of reporting on things that I\u2019m personally interested in and that people I talk to are personally interested in,\u201d said Jones. \u201cI missed that connection and targeting issues that affect the [Black community].\u201d<\/p>\n
While Jones said that she\u2019s looking forward to reporting about the D.C. statehood issue and voting rights at The Washington Informer, King said that she wants to write about education reform in Detroit and the Flint water crisis.<\/p>\n
Matthews-Alexander said that she enjoyed having face time with the journalism fellows and the opportunity for Chevrolet to showcase its commitment to the program.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat\u2019s most exciting about this phase of the program, from a Chevrolet perspective, is that [students] are going to go out and really uncover these unexpected stories and find those men and women in these communities that are doing amazing things that we might not hear about,\u201d said Matthews-Alexander. \u201cSo for [Chevrolet], a brand that is focused on the positive and being optimistic and ingenious, at the end of the day, we feel like this is perfect.\u201d<\/p>\n
PHOTO CAPTION: The NNPA, Chevrolet and Howard University recently announced the 2016 Discover the Unexpected journalism fellows in Washington, D.C. (Left to right): Brelaun Douglas, Briahnna Brown, Victoria Jones, Tatyana Hopkins, Sidnee King and McKenzie Marshall. (Freddie Allen\/AMG\/NNPA)<\/p>\n
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By Benjamin F. Chavis, Jr. (President of the National Newspaper Publishers Association)<\/p>
The legendary scholar, writer and visionary James Baldwin once personally confided with me that he had come to know that the \u201cpower of the pen\u201d for Black people in America and throughout world was \u201ctruly transformative and irreversibly impactful on the consciousness of all those who cry out for freedom, equality and justice.\u201d Baldwin\u2019s prophetic words from the 1970\u2019s are still true today.<\/p>
We take note with pride that currently there are a growing number of young, gifted and talented journalists that are emerging on the campuses of Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and in the offices of our nation\u2019s Black owned newspapers and media companies. Baldwin\u2019s audacity and legacy to write and speak truth to power are finding a new resonance among today\u2019s young journalists.<\/p>
Thanks to the game-changing efforts and support of General Motors Chevrolet Malibu, the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA) together with the Howard University School of Communications have launched \u201cDiscover The Unexpected\u201d NNPA Journalism Fellows Program.<\/p>
Over the next several months in Detroit, Chicago, Atlanta, and in Washington, D.C., eight NNPA Journalism Fellows from the Howard University School of Communications will be working with NNPA member publishers to sharpen their pens and to files stories that capture and amplify the challenges, struggles, triumphs and realities of Black America in 2016.<\/p>
This will be a program that will benefit the students, the university, the Black Press, and the African American community. We will have the opportunity to help shape the scholarly preparation of a new emerging generation of freedom-fighting print journalists and social media innovators.<\/p>
We should not play down the importance of academic preparation matched with the practicum of putting into practice the craft and skill of journalism from an African American perspective. James Baldwin was an activist author, but he also was a scholar. Alex Haley was an activist author, but he also was a scholar. Maya Angelou was activist poet and author, but she was also a scholar.<\/p>
Remember the names of these NNPA rising scholar fellows: At The Atlanta Voice newspaper are Brandi Montgomery and Brelaun Douglas; at the Chicago Defender are Briahanna Brown and McKenzie Marshall; at The Washington Informer are Victoria Jones and Rushawn Walters; and at the Michigan Chronicle are Tatyana Hopkins and Sidnee King.<\/p>
MC Lyte is a global icon in hip-hop and popular culture. MC Lyte is an activist writer and pulsating orator, but she is also a scholar. MC Lyte not only endorsed the launch of the \u201cDiscover The Unexpected\u201d with her motivating presence at Howard University with the NNPA and Chevrolet, she also is a tremendous living role model of what it means to use audacious talent, genius and commitment to promote positive social transformation and empowerment. We also note that MC Lyte founded and Chairs the Hip Hop Sisters Foundation that has donated thousands of dollars to scholarships for deserving students across the nation.<\/p>
Learn more about Discover The Unexpected (DTU) at https:\/\/www.nnpa.org\/chevydtu\/ and use the hashtag #DiscoverTheUnexpected on Twitter @BlackPressUSA and @NNPA_BlackPress.<\/p>
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