Former television exec launches African-American weekly paper in Shreveport, LA

By Velda Hunter
The Shreveport Times
(May 26, 2007) As traditional daily newspapers try to dodge darts from the digital world or step up their game, another publication has joined the print arena in the Shreveport area.

A former television station manager, with no prior newspaper experience until this latest venture, is at the helm of the operation.

Edward Bradley, who served as vice president and general manager of local CBS-affiliate KSLA, is now publisher and majority owner of The Mirror Weekly Observer. The free newspaper debuted Thursday with a mission to "deliver compelling news, information and entertainment to the African-American community."

Bradley is returning to the public eye after a lost bid for Shreveport mayor.

"When I lost the election I took some time off," Bradley said. "I had to make the decision about whether I wanted to remain in Shreveport."

After reading the book "Mirror to America: The Autobiography of John Hope Franklin" and conducting some research, he found something was missing in the market, he said. He used, for example, the recent visit of Congresswoman Maxine Waters, D-California, to Wiley College in Marshall, Texas, which didn't receive coverage locally.

"Those things happen all the time," Bradley said. "We're going to do a lot of human interest stories" and coverage of social events that happen in the black community."

But the newspaper's entry comes at a time when weekday circulation at U.S. daily newspapers continues to fall. Based on reports delivered to the Audit Bureau of Circulations, the Newspaper Association of America revealed weekday circulation fell 2.1 percent, and Sunday newspapers fell 3.1 percent, during the latest six-month reporting period, The Associated Press reported in April.

The report, however, showed many newspapers are attracting advertising dollars and readers to their Web sites.

Bradley said his research revealed niche newspapers had a better chance of survival than mainstream newspapers.

Typically, free newspapers depend on advertising dollars to survive. And Bradley said he doesn't see why there wouldn't be enough advertising dollars to go around.

"There are 14 or 15 white newspapers. They don't seem to be struggling," he said. "And, as you know, Shreveport is a majority African-American city. If they can sustain 14 or 15 white newspapers, it shouldn't be any problem."

But advertising revenue is stagnant, said Gordon Jackson, managing editor for the Dallas Examiner, a 21-year publication that will salute the black press Friday with a celebration. The newspaper is a member of the National Newspaper Publishers Association, a federation of more than 200 black community newspapers in the nation.

He cited other forms of media such as radio and the Internet as reason, and said black press have been denied advertising dollars from corporations.

"It's going to be important for this newspaper to embrace the business community to get advertising but at the same time address the true voice of the community," Gordon said.

Bradley said he wasn't sure if there was ever a good or bad time to start a newspaper. But he created the publication to fill a so-called gap.

Another weekly newspaper in the black community has been around since 1920.

Melvin Collins Sr. founded The Shreveport Sun, which publishes every Thursday, said his granddaughter, Sonya Landry, editor of the newspaper owned by Shreveport Sun Publishing.

Landry said she was not familiar with the new publication and didn't know what to make of what could be called impending competition.

"I don't like to talk about things I'm not familiar with," she said.

Bradley called his newspaper more "mainstream."

"Their newspaper leans more toward the religious community," he said.

But Gordon believes there is enough room for two such newspapers in the Shreveport area.

"I think two African-American publications won't hurt at all," he said.

Historically, the black press has deep connections in the black community in that it exposes and reports the brilliance in the community as well as the problems, Gordon said.

The challenge will be their ability to garner advertising revenue to stay in business.

"Hopefully, they have a creative marketing and (public relations) strategy," he said.

The free weekly newspaper will be available at several locations, including barber and beauty salons along with bookstores, including the Barnes & Noble on Youree Drive, Bradley said. Starting June 7, the publication will be available every Thursday.

Currently, the newspaper has only two employees, including Bradley, but he plans to get contract reporters, he said.

"This is a small operation," he said, revealing neither how much money has been put into the operation nor its investors. Bradley said he is learning a lot about producing a newspaper.

"It's fascinating. It's very hard work," he said. "It's been a labor of love."


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