Mission Forward with Carrie Fox

We are just five years from the bicentennial anniversary of the Black press.

Freedom’s Journal was founded March 16, 1827 in Lower Manhattan, New York by John Brown Russwurm, the first African American graduate of Bowdoin College, and the third Black person to graduate from the halls of an American college or university.

Our guest this week refers to the Journal as a mouthpiece of the Black movement, an artifact of Black history that not only represents the place of the movement that has been in motion for hundreds of years in this country, but a marker of just how far that movement has come in the many years since.

Brandon Nightingale is a historian and the Black Press Archives digitization project manager at the Moorland Spingarn Research Center at Howard University. Brandon's project: to research and document the history of the Black press.

The Black Press Archive was started at Howard in 1973, donated by the National Newspaper Publishers Association. Now, fifty years on, the Jonathan Logan Family Foundation has gifted the Archive $2 million to digitize the historic collection. Brandon kicks off season 7 of Mission Forward with a conversation on the importance of protecting the voices of the Black press and sharing them with the world. Our great thanks to Brandon for sharing his experience and enthusiasm with us this week.
  • (00:00) - 200 Years of the Black Press
  • (01:51) - Welcome to Mission Forward
  • (03:29) - Introducing Brandon Nightengale

What is Mission Forward with Carrie Fox?

Mission Forward: An award-winning podcast for communicators on a mission.

Hosted by social impact expert and B Corp leader Carrie Fox, each episode of Mission Forward explores the power of communications. With just the right mix of practical and thought-provoking content, we take on the issues that matter to you, and that support your work as a communicator for change.

Together, we talk through topics that you’re likely experiencing right now: from how to tackle tough conversations; to how to best challenge stereotypes; to how we can build bridges across the issues that divide us. If you’re working to become a more inclusive and thoughtful communicator, there’s nothing holding you back—except you.

About Season 11

What does it mean to stand at the threshold of change? To face a door that is both closing and opening at the same time? In Season 11 of Mission Forward, Carrie Fox invites us into that liminal space—the sacred and often unsettling pause between hello and goodbye. It is here, in the transitions, where the most important work of leadership—and of life—often takes place.

This season, you’ll meet people who have walked away from stability in pursuit of something more true. You’ll hear from those who said yes before they were ready, and in doing so, discovered new strength. And you’ll learn from leaders who chose to stay rooted, practicing presence and commitment in a culture that prizes constant movement.

These are stories not just about change, but about how we communicate through it—about the clarity, courage, and care required when our words and actions mark turning points. Because goodbyes are never just endings. Hellos are never just beginnings. And the space between them? That’s where possibility lives.

Hello. Goodbye. And the Space Between.

* About the Host (https://www.missionforward.us/about-carrie)
* Listen to Past Episodes (https://www.missionforward.us/episodes)