Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University, also known as FAMU, is making history this year. The HBCU has reportedly launched a 24-hour black news program, which will be airing in more than a dozen cities. The network has efforts to educated and entertain, while changing the way the black community is depicted in the current mainstream media.
There are high hopes for the program to become that go-to station for black viewers, similar to how Univision and Telemundo does for the Latino community.
The homebase for Black Television Network Channel will be at FAMU’s School of Journalism and Graphic Design, which is going to be very beneficial to the students who go there. Students will be given the chance to work with reporters and producers, gaining that experience in a professional environment. It will also create jobs for nearly 100 people.
The news programs has big plans for itself, expecting a viewership around 33 million upon its launch, which is set for February 2018.
Tallahassee Mayor John Marks and BTNC partner expressed his excitement for the news program at the ribbon-cutting ceremony last week.
“This has been a long time coming,” Marks told WCTV. “I really feel so proud to be a part of what I know is going to be revolutionary as well as evolutionary. We think we can be educational and informative not just to the African-American community, but to the nation.”
