For publisher John H. Johnson, the opening of 820 South Michigan Avenue in the early 1970s was evidence of the Black press' enduring relevance to Black communities at home and abroad. However, its opening also came at a moment of crisis, with the gains of the civil rights years contributing to a Black press 'brain drain' and an uncertain future for Black publications.
Over the past fifty years, scholars have increasingly chosen to contrast analysis of a 'golden age' during the middle-decades of the twentieth century, with the demise of Black Press - a position often focused specifically on the declining circulations and influence of Black 'legacy' newspapers such as the Chicago Defender and Pittsburgh Courier, but rooted in the broader (and broadly disproportionate impact) of media consolidation, changing patterns of consumption and technological innovation on the Black press.
Over the past fifty years, scholars have increasingly chosen to contrast analysis of a 'golden age' during the middle-decades of the twentieth century, with the demise of Black Press - a position often focused specifically on the declining circulations and influence of Black 'legacy' newspapers such as the Chicago Defender and Pittsburgh Courier, but rooted in the broader (and broadly disproportionate impact) of media consolidation, changing patterns of consumption and technological innovation on the Black press.
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The tone of work such as Clint Wilson's 2014 study Whither the Black Press? has reflected such anxieties over the future of the Black Press as an institution. As a leading Black Press historian, Wilson recalls being routinely asked questions such as "Is the Black Press dying?", "Are Black newspapers still relevant?", and "Is there really a need for the Black Press today?"
In turn, Black media buildings have come to play a major role in public debates over the 'rise and fall' of the Black Press and its relationship to Black communities. Just as the unveiling of new buildings was celebrated as a symbol of Black progress, so too has the relocation or sale of Black media headquarters been held up as 'evidence' of the Black Press' broader decline. |
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When Johnson Publishing moved into its custom-built corporate offices at 820 South Michigan Avenue, it was seen by Eric Easter as "its own loud protest - a visual pronouncement that Black America had arrived in all its striving, outrageous, hip and fashionable glory."
Four decades later, the building's purchase by Columbia College Chicago provided potent ammunition for those who argued that the Black Press was an outdated enterprise. Against the backdrop of Johnson Publishing's downsizing and the ongoing fire-sale of its assets, 820 South Michigan stood vacant and decaying - no longer a symbol of Black entrepreneurial spirit and cultural mores, but a monument to past glories.
Four decades later, the building's purchase by Columbia College Chicago provided potent ammunition for those who argued that the Black Press was an outdated enterprise. Against the backdrop of Johnson Publishing's downsizing and the ongoing fire-sale of its assets, 820 South Michigan stood vacant and decaying - no longer a symbol of Black entrepreneurial spirit and cultural mores, but a monument to past glories.
Barbara Karant. 820 Ebony/Jet
In exploring the building history of the Black press and Black media institutions, it is perhaps just as important to consider what happens to these buildings after said institutions leave.
In many cases this is a story of loss. In Chicago and across the country, the disproportionate impact of postwar "slum" removal on Black communities led to many landmark Black Press locations being destroyed. Where physical structures have survived, they have often been renovated in ways that dislocate their current use from their historical significance.
Debates into historical preservation came to the fore following the sale of 820 South Michigan Avenue. While landmark status saved its exterior and the iconic Ebony Jet signage on its roof, the building's interiors were gutted; a decision which, for many readers, was akin to "watching someone lose their mama's house after all her sweat and tears" (Chicago Sun-Times, 2019). Today, the bespoke fabrics and bold patterns which embodied Johnson's own vision of Afrocentric design and Black modernity have been replaced with sterile apartments divorced from the building's colorful past.
Debates into historical preservation came to the fore following the sale of 820 South Michigan Avenue. While landmark status saved its exterior and the iconic Ebony Jet signage on its roof, the building's interiors were gutted; a decision which, for many readers, was akin to "watching someone lose their mama's house after all her sweat and tears" (Chicago Sun-Times, 2019). Today, the bespoke fabrics and bold patterns which embodied Johnson's own vision of Afrocentric design and Black modernity have been replaced with sterile apartments divorced from the building's colorful past.
A mid-sized studio at the South Loop's new 820 South Michigan, 2019. YoChicago
At the same time, the Chicago Defender's return to its "spiritual home" by way of a new headquarters on the Chicago South Side was celebrated as part of a renewed commitment to the city's Black communities and its roots as a "community" paper:
"We are going back to where we belong. It's the beginning of a new era of the Chicago Defender that reinforces our strong commitment to the African American community and the communities of greater Chicago...We will be more accessible for our readers, advertisers, and supporters...they can just come on in and continue building a relationship with us."
"We are going back to where we belong. It's the beginning of a new era of the Chicago Defender that reinforces our strong commitment to the African American community and the communities of greater Chicago...We will be more accessible for our readers, advertisers, and supporters...they can just come on in and continue building a relationship with us."
Defender headquarters at 4445 South King Drive. Chicago Sun-Times
In other locations, the redevelopment and repurposing of Black media buildings speaks to the impact of gentrification and urban renewal on inner-city Black communities. The Defender's former location at 2410 South Michigan Avenue, under its new role as an events space, has become a focal point in efforts to revitalize the Motor Row district and South Michigan corridor.
Black press sites including the former Chicago Bee building on South State street, continue to serve the Black community as civic or educational spaces such as libraries. After the Bee branch of Chicago Public Library was reopened in 2018 following a major renovation project, Mayor Rahm Emmanuel declared that "the newly renovated Chicago Bee library is not only a commemoration of Bronzeville's history, it is a nod to what is to come in the community."
Black press sites including the former Chicago Bee building on South State street, continue to serve the Black community as civic or educational spaces such as libraries. After the Bee branch of Chicago Public Library was reopened in 2018 following a major renovation project, Mayor Rahm Emmanuel declared that "the newly renovated Chicago Bee library is not only a commemoration of Bronzeville's history, it is a nod to what is to come in the community."
Chicago Bee Branch Library Reopens, 2018. Chicago Crusader
Extant or extinct, Black media buildings provide us with an important window into larger debates about the historical significance and continuing relevance of the Black Press, and the relationship between race, space and community in the twenty-first century city.