The Black Press is the true voice of Black America. Founded in 1827, the Black Press still stands on the basic premise that was stated in the first editorial of Freedom's Journal: "We wish to plead our own cause. Too long have others spoken for us." The Black Press is also one of the last standing truly independent voices.

Today in 2009, there are many who say that they represent America, but what America do they represent? They show America as they see it. They show America through the lens of white America.

Whether in print or on TV, the lens is through the eyes of white editors and producers. They see our communities as the media has seen them historically, not as the actually are. If we look at newsrooms across the country, especially print, the numbers we were so optimistic about in the late 1990s have turned around. According to the American Society of News Editors, "American daily newspapers shed 5,900 newsroom jobs last year, reducing their employment of journalists by 11.3 percent to the levels of the early 1980s."

The report continued, "Of the journalists who departed newsrooms, 854 were minorities, according to ASNE's 2009 census. The overall year-over-year drop left 46,700 journalists, including 6,300 minority professionals, on newspaper staffs at the end of December 2008. The number of minority journalists stands at the level reported in the 1998 census."

According to ASNE, there had been a net increase of journalists of Asian, Hispanic and Native American heritage, but a net decrease of Black journalists. This is troubling.

This loss of journalists in the mainstream media, coupled with the struggles of all media outlets, bring us back to what is happening in the Black Media landscape. Can we survive?

Mark Twain said, "The rumors of my death have been greatly exaggerated." I think that, too, of Black media. In the last few weeks, there has been talk of the great publishing house, Johnson Publishing Company, being on death's door. They are in trouble, but death is not around the corner. They have troubles, like all of us in the media do. Do they have more trouble than some? Yes, but what they have is just more reported on because it is a Black-owned organization, and the "mainstream media" will try to kill us off as soon as possible.

We are in dire times in the media, but the voices of the 200+ Black newspapers, the Black radio stations and the Black magazines in this country are necessary for the good of our communities. We may have a Black president, but we do not have enough Black people dictating what is on the cover of the major newspapers in this country, nor do we have Black people dictating what stories lead in the local and national TV news. We are the only ones telling our stories from our point of view.

Our voices must be protected, and the Black Press is the only real vehicle we have to preserve this voice. We must make sure that the Black Media thrives and survives in this age of economic uncertainty. Advertisers must see that the Black Media is still the way to reach the Black community and that the Black community's voice is still in the Black Press.

This week, the NNPA (National Newspaper Publishers Association) meets in Minneapolis, Minnesota, for our annual convention. At this convention, we will discuss the future of the Black Press and the ever-present need for our voices. Because today, as much as in 1827, "We wish to plead our own cause. Too long have others spoken for us." The Black Press must and will survive.