NABJ-CafeMedia Entrepreneur Academy Empowers Black Digital Media Owners

“The relationships are treasured, my relationship to my work is transformed, and I have a new level of pride and determination as a Black journalist and producer.”

These are the words of Caron LeNoir, founder of CARONISMedia Group, as she reflects on the transformative offerings of the National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) Entrepreneur Academy, powered by CafeMedia.

LeNoir is one of 10 media entrepreneurs selected to participate in the Academy’s inaugural class, which wrapped its first course this fall. 

LeNoir praised the impact the Academy has already had in her business and professional development, noting that it provided “leadership, inspiration, and an introduction to a community of people (and mentors) I would come to enjoy and respect.”

The Academy is a component of the NABJ Entrepreneur Network, which offers training, development, and networking opportunities for Black journalists and media professionals looking to grow their digital media and online businesses. 

The Academy included a series of curated programs that helped class members expand their digital brand presence into sustainable businesses on the open web. Based on a curriculum developed by a renowned team of experts from CafeMedia’s successful program, Remarkable Voices, the eight-week intensive included workshops, presentations, and expert office hour tracks covering topics such as brand and content strategy, audience development and engagement, monetization, and more.

Like Lenoir, fellow class member Chandlor Henderson, creator of The Black American Spring, underscored how the Academy helps to unlock the earning potential of Black content creators.

“I want to thank NABJ and CafeMedia for this incredible opportunity to learn. I especially appreciated the insights on homepage management. I’ve been implementing the skills I learned in these classes to help my business grow,” Henderson said. 

Class member Greg Dunmore, of PULSEBEAT MEDIA, concurred.

“The knowledge I gained will be paramount in fueling the success of my company’s digital platform,” said Dunmore. “As a veteran journalist, still having high hopes and strong entrepreneurial ambition, the effective business development advice and digital strategy support given were meaningful, measurable, and priceless.”

As NABJ celebrates its 46th anniversary this month, President Dorothy Tucker noted that the successful completion of the first class moves the needle forward in the fulfillment of the vision of NABJ’s 44 Founders.

“We are ecstatic to hear the rave reviews from our members of how the first Entrepreneur Academy class has empowered, inspired and prepared them to grow profitable businesses,” said Tucker. “The Academy builds on NABJ’s founding mission and commitment of diversifying the media landscape and preparing our members to become media entrepreneurs. We are grateful for the partnership of CafeMedia in developing an innovative curriculum and for all of the insights our guest presenters offered. I’d also like to acknowledge our Network co-chairs, Brett Chambers and Renita Young, for their leadership in launching this project. We encourage our members to stay tuned as we launch more offerings in 2022.”

“We have been honored to work with NABJ and power the curriculum for this program and its incredible inaugural class,” said Michael Sanchez, Chief Executive Officer of CafeMedia. “They are an exceptional group, and we can’t wait to see them take their owned and operated digital businesses to the next level.”

For a full listing of the 2021 cohort, view the slider below, or click here.

About CafeMedia

CafeMedia’s mission is to build a creator-first future. We empower the world’s best creators and independent publishers to grow thriving businesses for the long term. Under our CafeMedia and AdThrive brands, we manage digital advertising sales and technology and a growing number of services for more than 3,500 creators and independent publishers. We make it easy for them to focus on what they do best — produce great content.  

Our passion and expertise have made us a leader in advertising and creator services. Today we rank as the ninth largest digital property in the U.S. and #1 in Food, Family, Home, and Lifestyle–with a reach of nearly 182M monthly unique visitors in the U.S. alone. 

About NABJ

The National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) is an organization of nearly 4,000 journalists, students, media-related professionals, and journalism educators. The association provides innovative, quality training programs and career services to and advocates for Black journalists worldwide. Founded in 1975 by 44 visionaries in Washington, D.C., NABJ advocates year-round to ensure fairness, diversity, and inclusion are a priority across the news and media industries. Learn more: nabjonline.org.

Media Contact: Press@NABJ.org