Dynamic Dot-Connectors, Deal-Closers & Doers In Media Industry

Give them their flowers

Source: Steve West

We couldn’t let National Publicist Day pass without celebrating the men who guide careers, connect move-makers with power-players, and make the “impossible” happen while navigating a notoriously thankless industry.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 73% of all publicists are white with Black men making up only 5.9% of the diversity-starved PR industry.

Taking things a step further, Dr. Chuck Wallington, EVP and Chief Marketing & Communications Officer at Cone Health, cited that Black men represent just over 3% of those employed in entry-level roles.

“There’s a lack of understanding about public relations among folks in high school,” he said based on interviews with 32 Black men working in PR. “So before you even get to college, young men just don’t have an understanding of what the profession is all about. Without that early awareness, folks are just not going be successful when they go into the field. It’s hard to attract people into the field, and when they get there, they tend to flounder around.”

Wallington, whose graduate study research centered around the lack of Black men in PR, also pointed to the lack of available mentors to the few who make it to the industry.

“There’s a shortage of colleagues, especially Black men, who can be mentors, who can be sponsors, who can be role models, who can be allies,” he said. “When this happens, Black men feel alone; they feel isolated. There’s no one else there who can relate to them, to their experiences, and to their journeys.”

While the number of Black men in PR is shockingly low, there’s been an emergence of Black male tastemakers in the industry headlined by ONE Musicfest Founder J. Carter who continues to redefine the festival experience with his culture-shifting event.

Named as one of EBONY‘s Power 100 along with dynamic partners Moetown Lee, Steve Canal, and Troy Brown, Carter has ascended into the pantheon of Black power-players in the ultra-competitive festival space.

“It’s hard to believe we’ve reached the fifteen-year mark,” he said in our interview ahead of this year’s festival. “We’ve grown into the longest-running and largest Black independently owned festival in the country and this journey has been a blessing.

Our commitment to the community remains steadfast as we continue to bring the biggest and brightest performers in music and the best activations with amazing partners,” J Carter said in the statement announcing the festival lineup.”

With that said, it’s only right that we celebrate the male publicists, move makers, and mavens making power moves in the entertainment industry on the flip.