Word in Black Activities
 Word in Black is a news collaborative, which features the work of the Black-owned press. Word in Black's mission is to frame the narrative and foster solutions for racial inequities in America.

​Explore articles from the Word in Black collection, and use the questions to guide your reflection. 

Mission, Context, & Newspaper Texts

  • Watch this "What is Word in Black?" video created by the Word in Black team.
  • How do the speakers describe their mission? How is it relevant to our current historical moment?
  • Why do you think that it's important for sites like Word in Black to exist? 
  • What other perspectives and issues do you think should be highlighted more media publications?

Examining & Comparing Narratives

  • Word in Black currently focuses on a range of issues, including police reform, public health, education, and social justice. 
  • Choose one of these issues, and then visit the Word in Black site. Which stories relate to this issue? What is the central idea of each?
  • Next, search Mucktracker for stories related to the issue you chose. What similarities and differences do you notice?​

Understanding Solutions Journalism 

  • ​Word in Black stories are examples of solutions journalism, which focuses on the solutions, or responses, to social issues in addition to the issues themselves. Learn more about solutions journalism by visiting this resource from Columbia University's Dart Center.
  • Then, visit Word in Black. How do the stories on the Word in Black site demonstrate the qualities of solutions journalism?
  • Next, search Mucktracker for a story around a current issue society faces today. Do you see any examples of solutions journalism? Describe what you see. If not, what would these stories look like from a solutions journalism lens?

See, Read, Wonder

  • Visit the Word in Black site, and choose two stories to read. 
  • For each story, answer the following: ​
    • Which newspaper source published the article?
    • What does the article make you wonder or want to learn more about?
    • What is the central idea?
    • Which sentence best conveys the central idea? Why?