Giving Credit Where It's Due

Todd Boyd in his theroot.com article discussed the demise of Vibe magazine. He called the hip-hop culture publication "the brainchild of Quincy Jones." I have no problem with that but he completely overlooked music journalist Scott Poulson-Bryant, a founding editor of the magazine. Poulson-Bryant, an openly gay man, stated in his book Hung: A Meditation on the Measure of Black Men in America (Doubleday, 2005) that "I named Vibe magazine Vibe." Hip-hop culture is notoriously homophobic and it would have been a good idea to acknowledge that a major publication devoted to it was named by a member of a much-maligned but influential group. Let's give credit where it's due.

Black Teens Deserve More Than Just An Entertainment Magazine

Toria J. Smith, Managing Editor
Black Teen
c/o Sterling Group
475 Park Avenue South
New York, NY 10016
June 2, 1986

Dear Ms. Smith:

After looking through Black Teen, I was greatly disappointed in its contents. A magazine that calls itself Black Teen should, I feel, be about more than singers and musicians.

At a time when our black youth are confronted by brutal policemen, drugs, unemployment, low self-esteem, they need a full-service magazine that can help them move forward in this world. That is not to say that there shouldn't be any entertainment articles. But an entire issue devoted to entertainers? Our youth deserve something better. If our youth are our most important natural resource*, then why is there no article about selecting the right college or career or about black teen achievements or about our African heritage or about the responsibilities of being a parent?

I would like to write for Black Teen, but not if it continues in its present direction. If we are to survive as a people, our young will need to know more than who's the hottest singer or group.

Sincerely yours,
Charles Michael Smith


Note:* I should have used the term "human resource."