![]() ![]() “That’s how I’m going to talk about it in the marketplace,” she said. Ghee said she’s treating the enterprise like a startup, “although it has 75 years of history that I have the honor and privilege to tap into.” Ebony will target Black folks ages 25 to 54, while Jet will target those 18 to 34. Experiential events, such as a revival of the Ebony Power 100 gala, are likely to be a major revenue stream. While some presence in print has not been ruled out, most efforts will be concentrated on the digital audience, with an emphasis on reporting, commentary and video. The vision for Ebony and Jet, fashioned in close collaboration with Bridgeman’s daughter, Eden Bridgeman, who has taken the lead representing the family, can be summarized in a few words that all start with the letter B: Black, bold, brilliant and beloved. “I might not be able to make everyone whole,” she said, “but I can make them healthy, and I am committed to that.” ![]() That means she must first lead the healing of wounds that Ebony and Jet created for the small staff struggling to keep its web pages alive and the dozens of writers and other freelancers whose invoices went unpaid. She’s also aware that a successful media brand in 2021, especially a Black one, must rise to meet a moment of sociopolitical unrest and accountability. Print is largely withering and digital publishing is a game of impressions. As a sales executive with more than 20 years of experience spearheading teams at BET and CNN, among others, she acknowledged that the landscape has changed from when Johnson founded the publications. Ghee, though fiercely excited for the journey ahead, isn’t naive about what she’s walking into. It’s not an impossible feat but a tough one for sure.” ![]() “It’ll take someone with John Johnson’s business acumen, his understanding of Black communities and his commitment to quality journalism to make Ebony and Jet work again. “Those publications came out of a specific vision and worked for a specific time,” Ramsey said. ![]() Although Bridgeman’s $14-million purchase of the titles marks a potential revival of these legacy outfits, they are at once burdened by and resting on their history as they chart a new future. Under new ownership, woes continued as unpaid freelancers sued Ebony, and the publication ended its print operation in 2019. Two years later, Johnson Publishing sold both publications, save the photo archive, to private equity firm Clear View Group. Jet ceased print production in June 2014. As the broader media industry experienced its shifts, Ebony and Jet, and similar outlets deemed “niche,” struggled. Like pictures of King, Malcolm X and Black Jesus hanging on the walls, Ebony and Jet were commonplace decor in Black homes across the country. They were a connective tissue of sorts, he said, for a nationally dispersed Black community - so much so that most Black people of a certain age can recall thumbing through the pages at the barbershop or beauty salon. “For many years, Ebony and Jet were the only outlets where Black life was reported on seriously, or covered at all.” Ramsey, curator of the Instagram page an ode to iconic magazine covers featuring Black folks. “It’s impossible to overstate the significance of Johnson publications in telling the story of Black America,” said Donovan X. ![]()
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