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My Reaction To HBCU Pulse Being Featured On The Shade Room

By
Randall Barnes
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When I started HBCU Pulse in conjunction with Urban Intellectuals on January 3, 2017, I was tasked with seeing the vision of what it could be and where it could go. I couldn’t. I have that problem sometimes. I always have amazing ideas but it’s always hard for me to fit it in to a grander plan. I’m always stuck in the present; I’m stuck on what I can feel now. Although I couldn’t see the future what I could do with Pulse, I saw what I did want to become. I wanted HBCU Pulse to be like The Shade Room.

I’ve always been a fan of the business model of The Shade Room. I loved how founder Angie Nwandu created such a sphere of influence within our culture. TSR is a part of our everyday lives, whether you like it or not. When you turn on your radio, you hear “The Shade Room”. When you watch TV, you hear “The Shade Room”. Even as you casually scroll through your timeline on social media, you’ll see your friends posting content from “The Shade Room”. I wanted that for Pulse. I still do. 

On September 25, 2017, I was given an early birthday present from Complex Hustle. They interviewed Angie about the rise of The Shade Room and how they reinvented Celebrity News & Gossip. When I would stay weekends at Fort Valley State University and walk to the cafe for breakfast I’d play that episode on repeat. I told myself, “I can do this. I can graduate from FVSU and make HBCU Pulse a world-renowned brand.” So, that’s what I set out to do. My goal was to make HBCU Pulse a mixture of the HBCU advocacy & programming excellence of “The Tom Joyner Morning Show” mixed with the relevance & culture shifting power of “The Shade Room”. Although we’re still on that journey, it warms my heart that The Shade Room posted our video on today. 

 

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The moment was so surreal. My social media manager Kroix Hansen was the first to alert me of the amazing news that they reached out to feature the video I shot of my friend and Spring 2019 initiate of Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Incorporated Karizmah Wall’s probate reveal. We had to fight to get pages to tag us in the post. This is the reason why. I didn’t know what our push to get pages to recognize our efforts would do but I knew it had to happen. Now, we’re on “The Shade Room”. This is huge for Fort Valley State University, the Delta Beta Chapter of Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Incorporated, Karizmah and me.

I don’t want this moment to happen and then fizzle away. I want this moment to be life-changing. I want this to be the start of Karizmah’s illustrious professional performance career. I want people to book Karizmah to perform at their events once we finish the fight against COVID-19. I want schools to book her to create choreography for their events. I always knew that this was the future for Karizmah. I hope and pray that this is the moment that catapults her to greater success. 

For HBCU Pulse, I want this to be the moment where we cross over to a larger audience. I want the world to see the amazing students that HBCUs produce and help us in elevating their platforms. I also want to interview Angie Nwandu and possibly do work alongside TSR to provide opportunities HBCU Students, particularly those in business and media related majors. However, what I want the most is mentorship. I’d love to be able to connect with Ms. Nwandu and pick her brain. I want guidance on how to create an impact like hers in the HBCU Community. That will be the game-changing moment for me.

Above it all, I am grateful. Thank you to The Shade Room for posting our content. Thank you to the HBCU Pulse family for always supporting us. And, most importantly, thank you to Karizmah for working with me these past three years and always believing in the vision. We did it!!!!!

Detroit Lions Hire Brad Holmes as next general manager

By
Calaydria Callins
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The Detroit Lions are expected to hire Los Angeles Rams director of college scouting Brad Holmes as the team’s new general manager, a source told ESPN’s Adam Schefter.

Holmes becomes the second Black general manager in team history, following Martin Mayhew, who was the team’s general manager from 2009 to ’15.

The Lions had been at the forefront of diversity issues in the NFL over the past year. They were the first team to protest the shooting of Jacob Blake in August by canceling practice the day before the Milwaukee Bucks refused to play a playoff game in protest of Blake’s shooting

Holmes initially interviewed with Detroit virtually on Jan. 6 and then in person Wednesday. The North Carolina A&T grad and he majored in journalism and mass communications. He spent his whole work career at the Los Angeles Rams. 

The 41-year-old Holmes could alter his vision now that he’s in the general manager seat since he does have experience under five head coaches and four general managers during his time with the Rams, but Holmes hit a lot of the things Detroit searched for in the process.

We think in some cases very unique to our situation,” Lions team president Rod Wood said recently. “I won’t share all of them with you, but I would say they focus on leadership, culture, teamwork, awareness of each other’s strengths and weaknesses, and what we’re really looking for is a culture that is open, inclusive, where everybody is pulling together as a team, and in one word, communication is paramount and everybody is doing the right thing for the Detroit Lions.

 

WHO warns that herd immunity won’t happen in 2021

By
Calaydria Callins
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Commuters wearing face masks walk at Shinagawa Station in Tokyo on January 8, 2021. (Photo by Kazuhiro NOGI / AFP) (Photo by KAZUHIRO NOGI/AFP via Getty Images)

The World Health Organization (WHO) has warned that ssocial distancing measures will need to stay in place “ for the rest of this year,” even as vaccination rollouts get under way globally, because it takes time to build up herd immunity. 

WHO’s Chief Scientist Dr. Soumya Swaminathan speaking a brief on Monday said:

 “ Because even as vaccines start protecting the most vulnerable, we are not going to achieve any level of population immunity, or herd immunity, in 2021 and even if it happens in a couple of pockets in a few countries, it’s not going to protect people across the world.”

Swaminathan added “ A situation where the majority of a population becomes immune to the virus either because they have become infected and recovered; or through vaccination-  won’t be achieved this year.” 

Health officials had warned the Covid-19 pandemic would make winter one of the most difficulties times in US history. 

For the past week, the US averaged more than 3,000 Covid-19 deaths per day. And monday marked the seventh day in a row the country reported more than 200,000 new Covid-19 infections. 

December was devastating and January could be deadlier.

The figures below are based on data from the Johns Hopkins University Center for Systems Science and Engineering. 

 

CNN’s Abby Phillip To Host “Inside Politics”; Succeeds John King

By
Calaydria Callins
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729627 CNN Digital Expansion Washington DC 2020, Abby Phillip

Earlier today CNN announced the network’s new Washington-based anchor roles.  Phillip has been promoted to senior political correspondent and will  be taking the reins of Inside Politics from John King. 

Phillip is no stranger to the Inside Politics set, she has been a member of the show’s roundtable since 2015 and even filled in for King last month.

After covering the 2020 election as a political correspondent, Phillip began to receive regular screen time on CNN. Last January, Phillip co-moderated the seventh Democratic Presidential Debate. That performance helped in expanding her opportunities. In November, Phillip co-anchored CNN’s election-coverage staple Election Night In America alongside Wolf Blitzer, Anderson Cooper, Dana Bash and Jake Tapper. During the special the viewers and other media outlets began to take notice of her and her well-informed view of the news of the day.

Phillip posted on her instagram her excitement for this new opportunity. 

 

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FBI WARNS OF PLANS FOR NATIONWIDE ARMED PROTESTS NEXT WEEK

By
Calaydria Callins
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The FBI has received information indicating “armed protests” are being planned at all 50 state capitols and the US  Capitol in Washingtonn, DC in the days leading up to President-elect Joe Biden’s inauguration on Janurary 20,  according to an internal bulletin obtained by  CNN. 

The statement reads, “Armed protests arebeing planned at all 50 s tate capitols from 16 January through at least 20 January, and at the US Capitol from 17 January through 20 Janurary,”  

Army Gen. Daniel Hokanson, chief of the National Guard Bureau, told reporters Monday that the Guard  is also looking at any other issues. 

“We’re keeping a look across the entire country to make sure that we’re monitoring, and that our Guards in every state are in close coordination with their local law enforcement agencies to provide  any support requested,” he said. 

Additionally, the FBI  is tracking reports  of “various threats to harm President-elect Biden  ahead  of the pressdiential inauguration,” the bulletin states. Also “reports indicate threats against VP-Elect Harris  and Speaker Pelosi.”

“On 8 January, the FBI received information on an identified group calling for others to join them in ‘storming’ state, local and federal government courthouses and administrative buildings in the event POTUS is removed as President prior to Inauguration Day. This identified group is also planning to ‘storm’ government offices including in the District of Columbia and in every state, regardless of whether the states certified electoral votes for Biden or Trump, on 20 January,” the bulletin adds.

Authorities are preparing for additional personnel to help secure the nation’s capital in the coming days. A Department Of Homeland security official told CNN that the breach of the Capitol will sharpen theresponse and planning for inauguration. 

 

Washington D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser Urges People To Avoid The City On Inauguration

By
Calaydria Callins
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0

In a press conference today, Washington, D.C., Mayor Muriel Bowser urged Americans to participate virtually in the festivities surrounding President-elect Biden’s inauguration next week.

“Our goals right now are to encourage Americans to participate virtually and to protect the District of Columbia from a repeat of the violent insurrection experienced at the Capitol and its grounds on January 6,” Bowser said.

On Wednesday, Jan.6, a pro-Trump mob stormed the United States Capitol Building as the Senate and House were meeting to certify President-elect Biden’s win November. Five people died in the violent insurrection, including Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick. 

Mayor Bowser, warning that “Trumpism won’t die on Jan. 20,” said that she has asked both the president and acting Department of Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf to issue a pre-disaster declaration for the city.

Bowser also sent a letter to acting Secretary Wolf asking for assistance, including extending the National Special Security Event period until Jan. 24, and requesting a daily threat and intelligence briefing from the FBI through the 24th. 

The head of the National Guard says at least 10,000 troops will be deployed in Washington, D.C., by Saturday, and an additional 5,000 could be requested from other states.

There are currently 6,200 Guard members in the city from D.C. and five nearby states. The increase in requests for Guard members on Monday comes as officials brace for more, possibly violent protests surrounding the inauguration of President-elect Joe Biden.

 

Tuskegee Airmen Theodore ‘Ted’ Lumpkin dies at 100 Of COVID-19

By
Calaydria Callins
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0

Just a few days away of celebrating his 101st birthday, Theodore Lumpkin Jr died of Coronavirus on December 26th, 2020.

His death was announced by his son, Ted Lumpkin III, who told the LA TIMES: “We’re carrying on his legacy, but it’s the end of an era.”

Lumpkin was drafted in 1942 and assigned to the 100th Fighter Squadron in Tuskegee, Alabama. The Tuskegee Airmen escorted bombers in Europe. His eyes weren’t good enough to become a pilot, so he served as an intelligence offer, briefing pilots about missions during his overseas combat tour in Italy. 

During his time in the Military, earned his bachelor’s and master’s. degrees from University of Southern California.  He met his wife, Georgia, while he was a student and got married. Later, he retired from. The Air Force Reserves as a lieutenant colonel.

After retiring from the Air Force Reserves and being a social worker and real estate broker, he became the president of the Los Angeles chapter of Tuskegee Airmen Inc. The organization’s mission is to honor the accomplishments of the Tuskegee Airmen and promote interest in aviation and science among young people. Lumpkin was also a board member with the Tuskegee Airmen Scholarship Foundation. 

The Tuskegee Airmen received the highest civilian recognition in 2007 with the Congressional Gold Medal. Nearly two years later, then President Obama invited the surviving squadron members, including Lumpkin, to his inauguration. 

Now, only eight original Tuskegee combat pilots and several support personnel are still alive, said Rick Sinkfield of the Tuskegee Airmen Inc, and all of them are in their 90s or older.

Lumpkin Jr. is survived by his wife, two sons, one daughter, several grandchildren and one great-grandchild. 

 

The Fake News About The COVID-19 Vaccine HAS To Stop

By
Randall Barnes
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0

This is a transcript of the “Randall’s Thoughts” commentary that you can find on HBCU Pulse’s YouTube and Instagram. The full audio is below:

What’s going on everybody! This is Randall Barnes, the Founder of HBCU Pulse here with the first edition of “Randall’s Thoughts”. “Randall’s Thoughts” is my take on the world at large and the issues that we face as a community. Today’s edition about the COVID-19 vaccine couldn’t be more fitting as we’re interviewing my friend and nurse Chelsea Walton, who’s taken the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine, on tomorrow afternoon. My reasoning behind securing this interview is simple: I want to provide our audience with facts about the vaccine and the first hand experience of someone who’s taken it. I understand why we’re nervous and skeptical about the vaccine. It was rushed and it’s so many variables that are still unknown about it. Plus, the Black Community doesn’t have the best past with vaccinations. The Tuskegee Experiment is a perfect example. But, guys, we have to be cautious about spreading fake news. A perfect example of blatant fake news is this video floating around of a “nurse” that took the vaccine and had an “adverse” reaction. You’ve probably seen it but, if you haven’t, here’s a little bit of the audio.

 

 

Now, watching that video can get you in your feelings and tug on your deepest feelings about the vaccine. However, further research shows you that this video is not true. Don’t believe me? Check out this report from WPSD TV out of Kentucky.

 

 

Family, we can’t let fake news prey upon our fears and doubts about the vaccine. We all are nervous about this thing. COVID-19 is continuing to spread and cause so much harm to our communities and the ones that we love. However, we must be solution oriented, not reactionary. We can’t act like every video and article we see about COVID is fact. We have to do our research and then determine if this vaccine is right for us. It upsets me to see so many lies floating around and folks saying stuff just because. A lot of people have so much to say about taking the vaccine, yet they aren’t coming to us with any solutions. If the vaccine isn’t the answer, what’s the solution? What should we do to reverse the course of a pandemic that has taken over 300,000 people and affected the world? 

We’re in a scary place right now and it’s primarily because we can’t separate truth from fact. We must move better to get out of this pandemic. We must only trust reliable sources of news, do our own research and come up with our own conclusions based on fact. If we don’t, we’re going to be suffering for a while. And, these are my thoughts for today. Make sure to check out my interview with FVSU alumna and nurse Chelsea Walton Thursday, December 31st at 4:30 PM EST. 

 

The New Agenda: How HBCU Students Can Become Media Stars

By
Randall Barnes
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0

At Fort Valley State University, I wasn’t adequately prepared to become a media personality. I’m not afraid to say it. I love my HBCU. I love the Media Studies department and everyone that believed in me. I learned a lot in my time at FVSU, I failed to learn what it took to conquer the media world as we approached the start of a new decade. We were taught to be employees. We were talk to only to work within a system and not to create a system for ourselves. If anything, we were taught how to be news anchors and reporters. I went to school to be a radio personality.

This isn’t just the story of my institution. Through the greatness of our experience, we often are left behind in what’s necessary to create our own media brands. We are in a new world. COVID-19 has nearly crippled the revenue generation of television and radio. Media personalities are doing national shows from home and interviews with guests on Zoom. Facebook’s current monopoly on social media platforms has been tested. Apps such as Clubhouse and Tik Tok are jumpstarting a new generation of content creation and creating new ways to communicate and engage audiences. Are we really learning about this at our institutions?

We have to speak on this. We can’t just stop at starting the conversations in our departments about how to adapt our curriculum to brace for a new era of the world. I never was one for just complaining as I was always taught by my family to create the change I wanted to see. That’s what I did for myself at FVSU. I wanted to showcase my philosophy on media and put my peers in the right situation. That’s what jumpstarted HBCU Pulse. I wanted to put the power to tell our story into the hands of student leaders. In 2019 I saw it worked. In 2020, I went even deeper. I wanted to work with someone who was at the top of their game in the national student sector and assist them in elevating their personal brand. That’s when I met CDK On The Mic from North Carolina A&T.

I did an article on the greatness of CDK when he was crowned the #1 HBCU Host by HBCU Buzz. Our acquisition of CDK onto the HBCU Pulse team was transformative. Battle of the DJs became a staple in our lineup and allowed us to shine a light on HBCU DJs, the most important figures in the cultural scene on our campuses. CDK allowed me to sit back and play the mastermind; the coach calling plays from the sideline as the star player scored bucket after bucket. CDK was instrumental in our brand integration with Pretty Vee, introducing us to other creatives, and thinking about the media game in a different way. Plus, his passion for his journey even motivated me to keep fighting. 

The acquisition of CDK onto the HBCU Pulse team is one that will forever go down in our history. It is the example that I’m not just talking when I say that I want to give students a platform to grow. CDK joining our team defined 2020 for Pulse. 2021, we are on a new wave. I decided to make December Founder’s Month. Sure, it’s a celebration of what we were able to achieve in 2020 but also a preview of how we’re coming in 2021. The most important aspect of this month was our national push to build an HBCU Pulse team. We let the world know about our Podcast Network efforts and how we want to up our original content. That’s not our main goal though. Our goal is to cultivate the next crop of stars in our community. 

I’ll know if this venture is successful ten years from now when CDK is hosting a nationally syndicated radio show and all over our TVs. I know when my social media manager Kroix is the VP of Public Relations for a Fortune 500 company. I want to see everyone that I bring on the Pulse team prospering in their desired field. That’s what our arm of HBCU Advocacy to become. So, it will be. This will be 2021 for us.

I want 2021 to be the year that we push the levels of creativity. That’s why donations are the central focus of Founder’s Month. Money is how we can achieve what I dream for this brand. I thank everyone that has supported us thus far. From the shares to donations large and small, you’ve aided in our rise in 2021. As we close out this year, I ask that you continue to donate. I promise that we will continue to push the game to the next level and broaden our mission of creating stars. 

The Journey: My First Year Post-Graduation

By
Randall Barnes
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0

When I graduated from Fort Valley State University on December 14, 2019, I was hopeful. I knew that I had my whole life ahead of me. HBCU Pulse had significantly grown its audience since the start of 2019 and just hit the all-important mark of 15,000 followers. Yet, within that hope was a sense of unhappiness. I didn’t feel the success. I didn’t feel the sense of validation that I was steering the brand in the right direction. My goal was always to do HBCU Pulse full-time. I even publicly announced it the week of my graduation. But, I didn’t fully believe I could do it. Well, at least not yet. What other choice did I have though?

My “dream career” has always been radio. I wanted to be an on-air jock and impact the community like Tom Joyner did before me. That opportunity wasn’t available in my hometown of Macon, Georgia. However, I wasn’t ready to leave. There was so much that I’d yet to discover about myself and my ambitions. I wanted to have a better concept of who Randall post-college was before I put myself in an unfamiliar place contending against hundreds of people with the same ambitions and more skills than I possess. As I looked for jobs, all I saw were news reporter gigs. I never wanted to be on TV, at least not the local news. I couldn’t see myself reading off the news topics of the day from a teleprompter. I went to school to be in the radio industry. 

I knew as I started my post-grad job search the last couple of months at FVSU that there wasn’t a perfect position for me. I wanted freedom. I wanted to speak on what I thought was important and give my view on the world around us, hoping that I could educate and uplift people. I was already doing that with Pulse though. I wanted to interview celebrities and aid in the growth of the next generation of stars in our community. I do that with Pulse. I wanted to travel different places and meet new people. I did that with Pulse this year. What I soon realized was that every goal that I had for my career post graduation was fulfilled by what I’d already established with HBCU Pulse. My perfect match was already right in front of me. However, the money wasn’t there to justify working “full-time” on the dream. 

Sure, we had some businesses that hit us up for advertising. Plus, the Student Leadership Academy Election Initiative of the early part of 2020 was lucrative as well as personally fulfilling. But, questions  still lingered. How would I be able to afford an apartment when I finally moved out of my parents house? How could I afford my car note without guaranteed money? The Mazda dealership doesn’t accept the payments every other month if money comes in. The need to provide for myself as an adult as well as traumatizing business disputes that started the beginning of 2020  made me feel as if HBCU Pulse would only be a passion, not a career. 

I made up in my mind that I was going to apply to be an Account Executive at the iHeartMedia station in Macon. Originally, I knew nothing about the job. I didn’t even know they were hiring. I happened to connect with an Account Executive that had FVSU assigned to them as an advertising client. He’d known me from my years of student leadership. We’d always exchange pleasantries when we’d see each other. Plus, he’d even put me on the radio during a Homecoming remote that 97.9 WIBB was doing back in 2017. I still cherish that. 

In a visit to FVSU after my travels to different institutions with NBCAHOF, I saw him. Something told me to go talk to him and tell him about HBCU Pulse. So, I did. I told him what HBCU Pulse was, our business model and what I wanted to achieve with the brand. He was impressed. The first thing out of his mouth to me was “You should work for the station.”

My eyes widened. Was I close to finally getting in what I felt was the perfect position for me? Was I going to get that golden opportunity to be on the air? Spoiler alert: I haven’t yet. You couldn’t have told me that though. I thought I finally had that life-changing moment that’s only seen in celebrity biopics. I didn’t know what an Account Executive was. I thought they were the big whig at the station, almost like the General Manager. In actuality, they sell advertising for the station to local businesses and national entities. They make a lot of money but many don’t have on-air shifts. That’s not what I wanted. But, I knew I had to open my mind to any and all possibilities. 

So, I nurtured the connect and was able to get an interview. I was excited, even though I felt as if I was giving up on the dream of doing Pulse full time. I still forged on, and even decided to take the Pulse audience along for the journey with me. We’d just hit 20,000 followers the day before so I felt that it would be cool to give the Pulse Family an update on where I was and how I was doing. I went to the interview and I aced it. I knew that I had the Account Executive job locked up. I just had to do one more interview and I’d know something . Then, the pandemic hit.

When everything went on lockdown, my job prospects were put on pause due to a hiring freeze. Even worse, the whole nation was in collective fear of the impacts of COVID-19 and how our lives would change. I didn’t have time to be down about the hiring freeze. I knew that I needed to step up and be a voice for the Pulse audience. It wasn’t the time for games and jokes. We had to inform the audience about what was happening and what was to come. 

We started to grow tremendously as the pandemic raged on. People came to us for information, inspiration and entertainment during lockdown. Pretty Vee blessed us with the opportunity to interview her, then collaborated with us on a graduation celebration. Battle Of The DJs became a staple of HBCU Pulse. I started to reevaluate if I wanted to work a regular job. Maybe my ship had come. It still wasn’t time yet. The pandemic continued. I saw iHeartMedia continue their job freeze and lay off hundreds of employees. I became restless. The future wasn’t certain for me. What was my next move? Fortunately, I found out that I got the job at the start of June and that I’d start in in August. 

It wasn’t a happy ending. I knew that this journey would still be complicated. I had to learn a whole new skillset to sell radio. It was almost as if I was going back to school. Meanwhile, I was missing FVSU. Even though the pandemic, I saw the sense of community that I longed for. I thought about how I would’ve helped the school using platform as a student leader. Then, I got back to focus. I’m grown now. My college days are behind me. I’m a student of life now. I have to figure out what my personal definition of success is.

My 2020 journey has been interesting. I feel a sense of peace in my life. I’m finally starting to get the hang of being an Account Executive. I’m seeing how HBCU Pulse is affecting a new generation of students that are hitting the yard at their respective institutions. And, I’ve grown. I no longer think that I’ve failed in my goal to be the self-sufficient business man or the second coming of Tom Joyner. All of these dreams are obtainable. I just have to keep pushing. Everyone’s journey to the top isn’t the same. Our life GPS takes us on different routes to get to the same destination: our dreams. And, although the road has been tough through 2020, I’m ready for what’s next in 2021.

Donate $4 or more to our Cash App to support HBCU Pulse Projects in 2021: $hbcupulse

 

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