THE BYLINE NOVEMBER 2023 ISSUE

It’s Not My Job, It’s My Passion!

As we head into the holiday season and as the end of the year is just before us, this is a great time to reflect on the past year: successes, losses, challenges, wins, as well as opportunities and goals that we have yet to accomplish. This issue of the Byline features two Atlanta journalists who talk about their careers in journalism. Whether it is in front of the camera or behind the scenes, these two women have followed their passions, leading them to accomplish the successes they have achieved today. It is not just about having a job, it is about knowing who you are, knowing what you want, and knowing what your gifts and talents are. With this realization, anything is possible when you put your mind to it. Let’s get serious about our purpose so that we too can make an impact and inspire others!

 

Lisa Rayam Speaks on Her Longstanding Journalism Career

(Pictured: Lisa Rayam)

By

Mya Grant

Longevity in the journalism industry is more than the trust you build in your community, the ratings and reads you bring to your station or publication, or the renowned household name long after you’ve retired. Veteran journalist, Lisa Rayam, has enjoyed the course of her career, having the opportunity to continue her passions over the 20 plus years she’s been in journalism.

Raised in Phoenix, AZ, Rayam’s older sister was involved in the speech team at her high school and she wanted to follow in her footsteps. Once Rayam herself made it to high school, she enjoyed studying speech and wanted to see where these studies would take her beyond academics. While exploring her options, she began freelancing for the local Black-owned newspaper, The Arizona Informant, and was secure in her decision that she wanted to pursue journalism once she went to college.

While attending Arizona State University, Rayam believed that print journalism was going to be the route and career she wanted. She interned at another local newspaper and wasn’t completely certain about a career in print journalism but still enjoyed the art of storytelling. By her senior year, Rayam decided to try radio broadcasting through another internship with the campus radio station. This internship reignited her interests in journalism while giving her exactly what she was looking for.

“I like the immediacy of radio,” said Rayam. “I like being on the radio, I like telling stories, four and five on them a day as opposed to one for two and three days, and I just caught the bug.”

After graduation, Rayam was hired at KYCA Radio in Prescott, AZ and began reporting, learning the basics and perfecting her skills as a journalist. While transitioning into her next radio role in the Phoenix area, she noticed many of her peers were working in television, which she too was now interested in.

While still working within the small Arizona market, Rayam obtained her first job in television and continued to learn everything she could about journalism. As her career began to take off, she would go on to work at other smaller stations between Arizona, Florida and Georgia.

“The bug for me started with working at tiny stations,” said Rayam. “Learning all the ropes and kind of moving around to see where I fit in and what I liked best.”

Once she got to Atlanta, Rayam began working as a news anchor at WAGA-TV, also known as FOX 5 Atlanta. From 1994 to 2016, she anchored the 5 p.m. news broadcast and continued reporting on compelling stories. Her favorite aspect of her job was being able to combine everything that she had done and learned in previous roles to help her in this new role. She found her work exciting, thrilling and incomparable to anything else that she had ever done.

“I love breaking news,” said Rayam. “There was nothing like being on set telling a breaking news story and there was nothing like being out on the field conveying a breaking news story.”

Her love for storytelling and the great team of journalists she worked with led her to winning several Emmy awards for breaking news stories and reports. It all came together for Rayam as she made strides in the city and career that she has worked so hard for. She always dreamed of being in Atlanta, a top ten news market in the country and once she got here, she did everything she could to make the best of it. From bumping into Coretta Scott-King in the bathroom to having former mayor, Maynard Jackson, personally welcoming her to the city, Rayam flourished in the city and in her career.

After a 21-year career at FOX 5 Atlanta news, Rayam decided to transition back to broadcast radio. Now at WABE as a senior producer and anchor for NPR’s Morning Edition Atlanta, Rayam is enjoying her longstanding reputation and the endless number of opportunities she comes across to tell compelling stories. Rayam encourages other young journalists to take their time and learn everything there is to know about their career to ensure longevity the same way she has.

Tune in Monday-Friday from 6 a.m. to 10 a.m. to listen to Rayam’s newest stories and follow her on X (formerly known as Twitter).

 

 

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Senior Producer Ericka Wilson Gives Tips for Recent Graduates

 

(Pictured: Ericka Wilson)

By

Da’Zhane Johnson

Chicago-native Ericka Wilson was a child with a curious and talkative spirit. Wilson recalled her childhood as the start of her career. She watched Black women on television, like Dianne Burns and Oprah, which fueled her passion into her college life.

In college, Wilson studied broadcast journalism and participated in five internships. Her roles included work in public relations, event production and television news. Eventually, these experiences helped narrow her career path into television production.

“At one point I thought I wanted to be a news anchor. But it was my last semester in college where I took a news producing course. This is when I said, ‘this is what I want to do. I want to be behind the scenes directing the narrative of our station,’” she explained.

Wilson is a Morning Senior Producer at Atlanta News First, in Atlanta where she builds the 4:30 a.m. news cast. From deciding reporter assignments to copy editing scripts, her early shifts are planned efficiently. When discussing her early mornings, Wilson reiterated how passion is the driving force for journalists.

“You have to be passionate in order to be a journalist. This isn’t a job where you just get up and go ‘okay let me go in and collect my paycheck,’” she begins. “In order for you to be happy and successful with it, you have to have a passion for it.”

After acknowledging their passion, she said the next step is to begin practicing the craft. Whether it’s writing scripts, rehearsing stand-up shots or reading, the success to a journalist’s career is built on repetition.

“As a journalist, you want to be a reliable source and people want to know that you understand what you’re talking about, so you have to read. Shoot as much content as you can, even if you have to shoot it all in one day,” she said.

There should also be a time of self-reflection as well. Particularly for recent graduates, Wilson explained knowing your strengths and weaknesses leads to opportunities of growth and transparency. When looking for a new job, people should recognize what they want from each opportunity as well. This level of awareness is good for employers too.

“Have at least three things in mind you want from the opportunity. That could be making a certain amount of money or working a certain shift,” Wilson stated. “If you know you’re really good with politics and that’s what you like to write about, you should let your team know this is where you come in strong.”

Lastly, graduates should also be open-minded and make themselves available for opportunities. Wilson implored that people should be willing to relocate. With Atlanta being her fifth market, she’s implemented this tip several times in her career too.

After the new year, Wilson will begin producing a later news cast, but is still grateful to be in the Atlanta market, telling stories to the Black community. Her next career goal is to transition into news management and eventually become a General Manager. She also is interested in running for a Board position with the Atlanta Association of Black Journalists (AABJ) for the 2024 – 2026 term.

To keep up with Wilson’s journey, follow her on LinkedIn and check out her work on Atlanta News First.

 

 

This issue of the Byline was edited by Tianna Faulkner, Vice President of Print for the Atlanta Association of Black Journalists (AABJ).

THE BYLINE OCTOBER 2023 ISSUE

Veteran AJC Reporter Speaks on Upcoming Documentary “The South Got Something to Say”

(Pictured: Ernie Suggs)

By

Da’Zhane Johnson

This year marks the 50th anniversary of hip hop. Although the genre’s birthplace is the Bronx, New York, there is undeniable influence created in the city of Atlanta. The influence left cultural impacts on arts, politics, sports, business and more.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution is celebrating the anniversary by highlighting the city’s contributions to the genre and the evolution of the sound. In addition to the numerous exclusive content, the outlet will be releasing a documentary titled “The South Got Something to Say” on Friday, Nov. 3.

“The paper correctly saw that Atlanta plays a huge role in the evolution of hip hop. Atlanta’s hip hop movement is unlike anything the country’s ever seen.” spoke Ernie Suggs, a veteran reporter for the newspaper. “There are different ways to tell stories now, so we decided to make a film.”

The Brooklyn-native has worked for the newspaper for nearly three decades. Suggs spent time covering night cops and city politics, however, his main passion is covering race and culture.

In 2021, Suggs co-curated AJC’s Unapologetically ATL newsletter. The newspaper serves as an agent for Atlanta’s Black residents. Each Thursday, the newsletter emphasizes Black issues and cultural topics. The producers also connect with the community by previously holding events, like a free yoga class.

With Atlanta being his second home, Suggs reported on numerous civil rights leaders, including Coretta Scott King and Representative John Lewis. Just last year he published “The Many Lives of Andrew Young,” where Young’s career is told through words and pictures the work of Ambassador Andrew Young.

“He’s been a congressman, civil rights leader, ambassador, pastor and the Mayor of Atlanta. All that wrapped in one person is phenomenal,” Suggs began. “It was a very meaningful process to write his story. Outside of my work as a newspaper reporter, it’s been the most fulfilling work I’ve ever done.”

With the help of his colleagues, Suggs worked as a writer on the upcoming documentary. There are featured interviews from hip hop icons like Jermaine Dupri and political figures like Senator Raphael Warnock.

The two-hour film is a celebration of history, but there is still a spotlight on newcomers in the game. Atlanta artists like Kalii and Lil Baby are also in the conversation when showing the progression in hip hop’s overall sound. Overall, the newspaper sought to portray the hip hop movement through “homegrown voices,” without any generational gaps.

“There’s an evolution of sound and of Atlanta’s growth, so we felt it was important to tell Mojo’s story. But it’s also important to tell Kalii’s story. We wanted to tell the full encompassing story of Atlanta hip hop that started in 1982,” Suggs said.

The newspaper has not released which platform will house the documentary, however, there is a full-day program on Nov. 2 before the official release. From 9 a.m. EST to 3 p.m. EST, executives and creators will have an interactive discussion about Atlanta’s present hip-hop scene. Some of the discussions included predicting hip hop’s next 50 years and exhibiting advocacy for rap music.

Following the day, there is a premiere screening at Center Stage Theater and starts at 6 p.m. EST. Afterwards, viewers can participate in a Q&A with all the film’s creators. Tickets for this red carpet are now on sale.

“I don’t know what we can expect in terms of ratings, but we do know that we’ve come up with a really good movie. This is a solid piece of artistic work,” said Suggs. “We’ve put together a living document that tells Atlanta’s story.”

To keep up with more updates on “The South Got Something to Say” and witness more hip-hop related content visit the Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s website. Suggs also posts frequently about the film on Instagram and X.

 

 

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Emmy Award Winning Journalist Faith Jessie Speaks on Her Journalism Career

(Pictured: Faith Jessie)

By

Tianna Faulkner

Atlanta Newswoman Faith Jessie is not letting her age define her work. The 11 Alive Atlanta news reporter is covering great news stories and is being recognized for it. Jessie who graduated from the University of Southern California in 2014 has proven that hard work pays off regardless of your age. In her short journalism career, she has won three Emmy Awards, all of which she won in one year. Being intentional about the types of stories she covers has opened doors for her and has paved the way for her to obtain notable opportunities throughout her journalism career; and the best is yet to come.

“NABJ is why I am a journalist. I went to the convention in Orlando, Florida in 2012 and it sparked my interest in journalism,” said Jessie. “I was a reporter in the number one news market in the country in New York. It is great to be recognized for my work. I was doing investigative reporting. I was in awe that my peers decided I was worth of an Emmy Award.”

Jessie, has covered a variety of topics, including coverage of the 2020 election, the 2016 Democratic National Convention, protests in Las Vegas following George Floyd’s death, stories about the Black maternal death issue, and the COVID-19 pandemic, to name a few. She says, although she has been recognized for her work, there is more she wants to cover. She said she likes being challenged at work, including the long days she had covering the Trump trial in Atlanta and she is using her platform and access to help people (now in Atlanta).

“I love being here to break down difficult topics for people to learn something new and to know what’s going on in their communities,” said Jessie. “It is nice to be able to educate people on things. It is very fulfilling.”

She advises journalism students and young journalism professionals to join the National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) to be a part of student projects, to go to meetings, and to get involved in those spaces. Additionally, she says students and young professionals should get a mentor. Her work has also taken her abroad to Germany, where she has been a part of the Gun Reform German exchange program through the Radio and American Sector Program since 2018. Through this program she learns about gun reform in Germany compared to gun reform in the United States.

“My mentors Rod Carter and Andre Senior helped me do my reel and get my first job out of college. I met them through NABJ,” said Jessie. “I will be hosting a German student as a part of the Radio American Sector Program.”

Prior to working in Atlanta, Jessie has worked in Upstate New York at WICZ-TV, Las Vegas at KSNV-TV, and Long Island, New York at Newsday TV. Atlanta is the first place she has worked where she has family, which she loves. She said Atlanta is a city of Black excellence and that of all the places she has worked, there is a lot of history in Atlanta, including the Civil Rights Movement. Her story is an example for all journalists, young and old, that experience, along with talent, drive, and a great work ethic can lead to success.

“Atlanta is a very large news market and I have really learned about Atlanta as an adult. There is a lot happening here and there is never a shortage of stories to cover,” said Jessie. “I am a journalist at my core, and it is blessing to be here and have the opportunity to cover news.”

Follow Faith Jessie on Instagram @FaithJessie or visit her website Faith Jessie.

 

 

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Shumuriel Ratliff Explains the Importance of Professional Relationships

(Pictured: Shumuriel Ratliff)

By

Mya Grant

We all know the popular saying, “it’s not what you know, it’s who you know,” and it’s proven itself to be true in many ways. Making connections can carry you farther in your career than your skillset and public relations professional, Shumuriel Ratliff, is well versed in building those genuine relationships, as well as benefiting from them.

During her time at Winston-Salem State University, Ratliff went through the majority of undergrad undecided but excelled in areas that required her creativity and writing skills. Her roommate at the time suggested that she try the communications track and see where that took her. Ratliff enjoyed storytelling and being able to exercise her creativity and went on to join the school newspaper.

After graduating college, Ratliff began working as a television reporter. Through her experiences, she was always looking for the next big step for herself and decided that she wanted to transfer into roles along the lines of a communications manager. It wasn’t always easy explaining to prospective employers that the skills she acquired closely aligned with the roles she had applied for.

“It was a hard switch to make because there were so many interviews and just not really being able to tell how I could help back then,” Ratliff said.

Transitioning away from being in front of the camera, Ratliff landed a position behind the camera at CBS46 (currently known as Atlanta News First). At this job, she built a connection with her boss – also, her current mentor – and would continue to make those connections to assist in the progression of her career transition.

“It just got to the point where I was just like ‘Hey, just checking on you, sending good vibes and hope you’re having a good week’,” said Ratliff. “And doing those things – for me just to be considerate – led to me getting out of the business.”

Since stepping away from reporting, Ratliff wasn’t telling stories anymore and she missed that. Creating content allowed her to continue to tell stories and dive into her creativity in many aspects. She started making YouTube videos where she talks about life, career and everything in between. It was initially started as a makeup channel since Ratliff has had much experience doing her makeup while reporting but snowballed into the content she enjoys putting out now.

“That’s just another opportunity for me to still be creative,” said Ratliff. “Whether it be how I shoot it or edit it, just to not let that part of me die because the creative is strong.”

As the current corporate communications manager for Cox Enterprises, a lot of her work revolves around building and maintaining those relationships with clients, coworkers and other correspondents. Ratliff highly encourages other professionals to build organic relationships with who they can and be strategic about it. Always reaching out for a need isn’t the correct way to build those relationships.

Finding people that align with your goals, explaining the reason why you reached out and how they could help, putting in the effort to talk to them regularly and being open to learning from them are some of the most impactful ways to build and maintain strong relationships.

“I think it’s safe to say every role I’ve gotten, especially since leaving TV, has been because I knew somebody or I knew somebody who knew somebody,” said Ratliff.

As journalists, we’re already equipped with the skills needed to fulfill our roles, but our connections and relationships is what drives our careers. Build and maintain those strong connections and see where it takes you.

 

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Use What You’ve Got: How Nichole Owens’ Journalism Career Made Her a Great Storyteller

(Pictured: Nichole Owens)-Photo Courtesy of The Community Foundation of Greater Atlanta

By

Radhiya Alston

Sometimes in life you must know when to pivot. This is a lesson that Nichole Owens has lived by. Owens is the current Storytelling Manager at The Community Foundation of Greater Atlanta. She has held various positions over the years in media before securing her current role. Owens, a communications guru known for her storytelling, shares how each position she had prepared her for her dream job today.

Owens grew up in a military family, where her father was in the United States Army. Her family lived in Hawaii, North Carolina, and in Germany. After high school, she attended Ithaca College in Ithica, New York, where she studied television and radio broadcasting. Owens explained that with her father was still stationed in Germany and that attending Ithaca College gave her a chance to be close to her father’s side of the family who lived in New York.

“At the time Ithica was known for their communications program, and my dream was to be an international news correspondent,” Owens said. “While at Ithaca, I was a part of the student news cast, where I co-anchored for about a year with David Muir, ABC’s current world news anchor.”

While at Ithica College, Owens also had two internships.  In 1993, she interned at the CNN News Bureau in New York City. She explained that during this internship she wanted to be in the field with the reporters and she spent a lot of time at the assignment desk. Her second internship was in Atlanta at WGST Radio. There she interned with Maria Boynton, the current News Brand Manager and Public Affairs Director for Audacy Atlanta.

“While working at the radio station, I learned the difference between writing for television and radio and I did news gathering, and stacked shows,” Owens said. “In 1994 I graduated from college and got my first job as a video journalist at CNN in Atlanta.”

In that role Owens said part of her responsibilities were pulling scripts and making sure the anchors had scripts. She knew very quickly that this was not what she wanted to do. Owens wanted to write and do more of what she had previously done in her internships. After ten months, she left CNN and moved to Wako, Texas where she was the weekday reporter/line producer for KXXV-TV. In 1997, Owens came back to Atlanta and worked at WSB TV, where she wrote news for Monica Kaufman and John Pruitt during the five, six, and 11 o’clock news.

By 2008, Owens was laid off from her job and began working in sales. She took her severance package and started her own copywriting consulting firm. She explained that through her business, she was able to help companies tell their story and sell their products. Owens ran her business for 13 years before getting hired at The Community Foundation of Greater Atlanta.

“As the Storytelling Manager, I am able to amplify voices for those that need to be heard through my storytelling,” Owens said. “I have reimagined my job description from a traditional public relations practitioner to a Storytelling Manager.”

In this position Owens oversees the storytelling strategy of the organization and said her work as a journalist prepared her for her current role which she loves. For more information, visit

The Community Foundation of Greater Atlanta.

 

Members, please look out this month for upcoming information about AABJ’s Candidate Forum where AABJ members interested in running for 2024-2026 AABJ Board positions will speak on their platforms for office.

 

 

This issue of the Byline was edited by Tianna Faulkner, the Atlanta Association of Black Journalists’ Vice President of Print.