Title
Recognizing and congratulating WHYY and the News and Information Community Exchange (N.I.C.E). collaborative on their steadfast commitment to diversify local news sources, and empower local, BIPOC, and underserved communities through grassroots news.
Body
WHEREAS, WHYY believes communities are not just consumers of news and information, but producers too and seeks to connect grassroots content creators for a mutual aid journalism collaborative to develop a more robust local news environment; and
WHEREAS, The News and Information Community Exchange was funded by the Knight-Lenfest Local News Transformation Fund, and launched during COVID-19 when the need for equity in access to news and information was at an all-time high; and
WHEREAS, The 12 News and Information Community Exchange media partners represent a range of mediums (podcasts, digital, print), languages (English, Arabic, Mandarin, Spanish, Vietnamese), and participate in weekly virtual peer learning and professional development discussions to build collaborations with each other and WHYY; and
WHEREAS, Each local media partner is committed to responding to the information needs of underserved Philadelphia residents and elevating community voices, and deserve to be recognized individually; and
WHEREAS, Emma Restrepo is a Colombian-born freelance journalist who aims to connect LatinX people living in Philadelphia with other Spanish-speaking communities across the Americas. Restrepo, a professor in the Spanish department at Temple University, immigrated to the U.S. to escape the violent political revolution. She is the Founder and host of a weekly radio program on Saturdays at 9am called DosPuntos on independent radio WPPM 106.5FM. She was nominated one of the best Freelance Journalists by Pen & Pencil Club Philadelphia in 2016, and she was awarded in 2017 with the IAmAnAmericanImmigrant by AI Dia Newspaper; and
WHEREAS, Nora Elmarzouky & Yaroub Al-Obaidi created The Friends Peace and Sanctuary Journal, the first Arabic language newspaper to be published in the region in over 100 years. FPSJ grew out of a grant from the Pew Center for Arts and Heritage that allowed Swarthmore College to connect with Iraqis and Syrians in Philadelphia who had been displaced from their home countries. FPSJ offers a formal space for Arabic speaking residents to gain information and share stories, recipes and events related to their community and bring people together; and
WHEREAS, Eric Nzerbie is the Founder and Publisher of Fun Times Magazine, the predominant culture and life-style magazine for African, Caribbean, and African American communities in the Mid-Atlantic region; Nzeribe has been working in the publishing industry over 30 years and began publishing Fun Times Magazine in 1992 in Liberia at the height of the civil war as a way of spreading joy and good news to the people who were suffering under the conflict. Since that time, Fun Times has been a resource for people of the African diaspora and regularly reaches over 30,000 readers each edition. Based in West Philadelphia, Nzeribe recently received the PABJ 2019 Trailblazer Award; and
WHEREAS, Malik Boyd and Kyndal Chase, Founder and host respectively of HeartCity TV, which broadcasts weekly to elevate topics that affect the African American community in Philadelphia and across the country. Their weekly panel of guests come from all walks of life are encouraged to answer freely, dig deeply, and speak truth to power on issues including politics, race, finance and culture. Malik Boyd has been a long-time prominent figure in Philadelphia’s political and media circles having gone from being homeless in college to operating a marketing firm with high profile clients. Malik was the recent recipient of Black Men Heal’s 2021 Community Plug award for his work connecting and collaborating with various small businesses and organizations across the region. Kyndal Chase is the weekly host for HeartCityTV and talent producer for Malik Boyd Productions. She has over 20 years experience serving children, families, and the community in the City of Philadelphia and successfully weaves this expertise into her weekly digital talk show; and
WHEREAS, Daniel Tsao is the Founder of New Mainstream Media, the publishing company of two leading Asian newspapers, Metro Chinese Weekly and Metro Viet News, in the Greater Philadelphia region. Their publications serve a quarter million Asians across Eastern Pennsylvania, Southern New Jersey and Northern Delaware. During the pandemic, when many businesses were struggling, Dan was able to start Rice Van, a delivery service that helped the owners and customers of small groceries and restaurants in Chinatown and Center City stay connected while keeping his staff employed and his papers distributed to readers; and
WHEREAS, Northwest Local, founded by Steve and Carolyn Fillmore in 2014, is a monthly hyperlocal print newspaper with a “hypervocal” spin. Serving East Falls, Germantown and parts of Mount Airy, “The Local’ encourages neighbors to get involved, and nurture the power, joy, & novelty of their own voices. By sharing residents stories, photos and artwork in their publication, they celebrate the history and people of NW Philadelphia; and
WHEREAS, PQRadio1 is an online radio station founded in 2013 by Saj “Purple Queen” Blackwell for the people, by the people, with a mission to serve the community by giving a voice to the voiceless. PQ Radio 1 Purple Blackwell has been a public personality in Philadelphia for many years, with her roots in entertainment management, and has made a name for herself with her down to earth style interviews with the mayor and other elected officials. Purple has taken her bubbly personality and social media savvy and developed a reputation as a trusted source of news, information and resources for her community in West Philadelphia; and
WHEREAS, Founder and host POC or Proof of Consciousness developed REVIVE Radio & Media, as an outlet designed to “reach and restore the minds of people”, with a goal of creating stimulating conversations, and to broadcast positivity and unity. POC is a dynamic host, MC and personality, transplanted from Washington D.C. with a love and passion for Philly, it’s music, culture and its people. POC’s “Mad or Nah” segment which airs regularly on WHYY.org is one of the newest and most well received programs on their lineup. Her fresh sound, unlike any other on public radio introduces WHYY listeners to their Philly residents on controversial topics; and
WHEREAS, The Supportive Older Women’s Network (SOWN), provides innovative solutions to help adults 50+ lead independent, healthy lives and age in place in their homes and communities. Their newsletter, SOWN Together, curated by Jill Smith, began as a COVID-19 print newsletter for Philadelphia area older adults. Since that time Jill has been featured in the publications and as a guest on the shows of her N.I.C.E. partners representing for and speaking to older residents across the city, providing wit, wisdom and information; and
WHEREAS, Streets Department began as a photo-blog created by Conrad Benner that discovers art on the streets of Philadelphia. The primary focus of Streets Dept is documenting and celebrating street art and muralism across Philly’s public spaces but Conrad Benner makes it so much more. Now in its tenth year, Streets Dept brings national attention to Philadelphia’s creators and creative environment. Conrad’s work is a celebration of Philadelphia’s space, its art and its people; and
WHEREAS, Uptown Radio, represented by Lateef White, Dean Lloyd and Mike James, is an independent radio station in Philadelphia, developed by the Uptown Entertainment Development Corporation under the leadership of the late Linda Richardson, that began broadcasting on WJYN 98.5 FM in the Fall 2016 with over 30 shows and 40 hosts including Live in the Diva Den, Uptown Date Night, Wednesday Traffic Jam, The Gas Station, the Talk to Reebs show, and others. The station broadcasts from their office directly across the street from the historic Uptown Theater on the 2200 block of North Broad Street; and
WHEREAS, Founder and Publisher James Williams established Uptown Standard, a monthly newspaper launched in January 2020 to fill a void of relevant news and information in the community. With a circulation of 3,000 copies, distributed in approximately 80 locations throughout Uptown Philadelphia, the Uptown Standard focuses on state and local government, high school sports, and neighborhood news. Their newest publication, North Philly Journal highlights the residents, arts and culture of lower North Philly. Uptown Standard recently held the first annual Uppity Awards, celebrating small business owners, community activists and elected officials in Northwest part of the City; and
WHEREAS, The News and Information Community Exchange collaborative is transforming the local news ecosystem by elevating community voices in the development of locally relevant news and information; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA, That it hereby recognizes and congratulates WHYY and the News and Information Community Exchange collaborative on their steadfast commitment to diversify local news sources, and empower local, BIPOC, and underserved communities through grassroots news.
FURTHER RESOLVED, That an Engrossed copy of this resolution be presented to WHYY and the News and Information Community Exchange Media Partners as further evidence of the sincere appreciation and admiration of this legislative body.
End