Black women in media create spaces to support and empower each other in an evolving industry.
Betting on yourself and building your brand can unlock opportunities traditional media cannot provide.
Embracing AI as a tool, rather than fearing it, is key for Black women journalists to succeed.
Black women in media gathered in Atlanta for an inspiring evening of candid conversation, career gems, and community, and BOSSIP was there as their stories, successes, and sisterhood were Carvd N Stone.
Source: What’s Grit / Carvd N Stone
After 11 years in journalism, it takes a lot to make me sit back and really reflect on my journey in this industry, but being in a room full of Black women in media did exactly that. I left feeling inspired, encouraged, and reminded of why I fell in love with storytelling in the first place. There was something special about being surrounded by women who understand the highs, the lows, the pivots, and what it takes to keep showing up in an industry that seems to change daily.
Source: What’s Grit / Carvd N Stone
Carvd N Stone founder Nyesha Stone recently brought her Successful Black Women in News panel to Atlanta for the first time, and the timing could not have been better. Held during NABJ weekend, the event drew a packed room of people who have supported Stone’s journey, those just being introduced to her work, and media professionals looking for community and conversation.
Honestly, it was a great kickstart to NABJ weekend.
The conversation was especially necessary considering today’s journalism climate. Newsrooms are changing, layoffs continue to impact Black journalists and Black women in media, and the journalist versus influencer conversation has become impossible to ignore. Then add artificial intelligence into the mix, and many media pros are saying WTF and asking what the future of this industry will actually look like.
Source: What’s Grit / Carvd N Stone
Inside the room, however, Black women felt seen and heard.
We caught up with Stone, who also moderated the panel, and asked what Black women in this industry need most to not only survive, but really thrive, especially in a world influenced by AI.
Source: What’s Grit / Carvd N Stone
“That was the whole point of why I did the Successful Black Women in News panel, because we need spaces to be ourselves, to let go, and figure out ways of how we can support one another. A.I. is just yet another tool that’s been created over time.
We shouldn’t be scared, but we need to figure out how we want to use it,” she added.
Journalism has never been an easy field to be in, yet we as Black women and Black media find a way to keep going in the field. Outside of collaboration, Black women in news need to find ways to brand themselves. Make people see you AND be really, really good and what you do. Make it so no one can deny your talent or your brand, and you become unstoppable.”
Stone knows all too well about betting on yourself.
She started Carvd N Stone in 2017 while she was a junior at UW Milwaukee and already earning bylines in local newspapers. As she became more familiar with working journalism, she grew frustrated with how Milwaukee news outlets covered the Black community. Instead of simply complaining about it, she decided to rebel by telling the stories she felt were missing.
That decision ultimately gave her something traditional media could not: freedom.
“A traditional job would have boxed me in to only cover certain beats. But because I created Carvd N Stone, I have been able to move entire states from Wisconsin to Georgia. I’ve interviewed top celebrities like Kerry Washington and Lionel Richie. I’ve covered Sundance and many other national festivals, all because I bet on myself. My client is Amazon. I’ve raised and awarded over $30,000 in scholarships through my company, and now we have a nonprofit arm: Carvd N Stone Foundation. Everything I have been able to accomplish in journalism is because I never once gave up on myself and my vision. I never would have been who I am if I had stayed in traditional news.”
Source: What’s Grit / Carvd N Stone
In an industry where Black women are often forced to pivot, rebuild, and prove themselves all over again, Stone’s first Atlanta event served as both a celebration and a reminder. Sometimes betting on yourself is the story worth telling.
