Lynn Jones-Turpin and the Black Press: We Are Built Different
In 2014 I interviewed Candace Dupree when she was a member of the Phoenix Mercury. I covered Dupree when she was drafted by the Chicago Sky and we developed a professional relationship where I could interview her in the locker room after the game, something that is rarely done in modern times. Photo by Albert Deloney
Our questions are more like conversation starters. Our style is more like a talk with one of your cousins. Our audience is more personal to us. Our writing style capitalizes the word Black when we talk about Black Americans. We are the Black Press of the United States of America, and if you didn’t know, now you know, and Lynn Jones-Turpin is one of us.
In case you hadn’t heard, Jones-Turpin has come under fire, with some saying her media credentials should be revoked by the NFL after she had the “audacity” to have an auntie-type moment with Jacksonville Jaguars head coach Liam Coen. The first-year leader of the Jaguars was attending his post-game press conference when, in an unexpected moment, Lynn-Turpin didn’t ask a question but told him, as only a Black woman could, “Congrats on your success, young man. You hold your head up. You guys have had a most magnificent season. You did a great job out there today. You keep it going. We got another season okay.”
You would have thought the woman had insulted the man’s family the way some of the mainstream media started clutching their pearls in disgust. Many criticized her actions as unprofessional and asserted that media personnel cannot be fans while covering a team. I disagree with this statement. While it is true that you should never actively wear a team’s colors or cheer from press row, you can bet your behind media members are a bunch of fanboys and fangirls. Especially in sports media. Many of us grew up playing sports. We have our unconscious biases whether we want to admit it or not.
Jones-Turpin is an editor at one of the oldest Black newspapers in the United States. She is a respected member of our community. Usually, pro sports teams don’t even want to give credentials to Black newspapers because they don’t feel we have a large enough audience. During my tenure at the Chicago Crusader, we consistently faced denials of our requests. It wasn’t until the tragic murder of George Floyd and the protests that erupted around the nation that more media relations people at professional teams started granting us more access.
Actor Morris Chestnut and I shared a laugh on the red carpet at the Chicago premiere of the movie “The Perfect Holiday” in 2007. Photo by Jermaine Washington
It is my hope that this event will allow the Black Press to promote itself more in places that typically have shut us out. We have a different style of interviewing people, and America, along with those in the mainstream media, will just have to adjust. Seeing the public’s overwhelming support of Jones-Turpin gives me hope. What disappointed me were the social media posts from Black reporters who work in mainstream media, like Jemele Hill and Russell Dorsey, who I had on my sports podcast a few years back. In one of his posts on the subject, he stated:
“There’s a time and place for everything, and that was neither the time nor place for that comment. You’re a reporter, not a fan. You’re held to a different standard in those moments. That might not be what people want to hear, but it’s the truth.”
In general, Dorsey is right. But the bigger picture is that people responded to it positively. There is enough drama in the world right now. Presidente Diablo Naranja is bombing countries all over the place. A federal law enforcement agency is violating the constitution without repercussions, food prices are high, and the earth itself is dying because humans are killing it. A veteran reporter sharing a tender moment with a coach is not going to destroy the First Amendment. Citizens who allow fascism will.
Hill, whose political commentary got her fired from ESPN, was probably the most disappointing of the group. When her butt was on the line, it was the Black Press that came out and supported Hill. Her remarks about Jones-Turpin were disrespectful not just to Jones-Turpin as a media colleague but also as a fellow Detroit native.
My interview/conversation with actress Sharon Leal at the Chicago Black Film Festival a few years ago was an enjoyable experience for us both. Photo by Torrick Hall
“That can't be a reporter. Cause if so, I would not have used the term awesome,” is what Hill said in a post on X, before quickly retreating when she learned just who Jones-Turpin was.
To her credit, Jones-Turpin hasn’t run from the controversy. In fact, she has actively embraced the controversy instead of avoiding it. She has embraced and doubled down on it. She has been doing interviews with several media outlets, explaining why she did what she did and using the platform as a chance to promote the National Newspaper Publishers Association (Black Press).
I have interviewed dozens of athletes and entertainers. My style is professional but also very true to the culture that I come from. I speak a certain way. I use terms from popular Black culture sometimes, and when I interview fellow Black Americans, we usually end up laughing and talking about other stuff when we are done with business. Good job, Lynn. You represent us well.