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Neither of Springfield’s two black newspaper
owners was lured into the business by the potential for a large profit
margin. In 1983, T.C. Christian participated as a member of a
group called People United for Rights and Equality, which protested the
lack of black entertainers booked for local performances. The group forced
a meeting with the Prairie Capital Convention Center board to discuss the
issue. Even though local media were present, Christian says, there was no
mention on the TV news or in the daily newspaper. “That incident told me that I needed to start
my own newspaper,” says Christian, who launched Pure News USA in tabloid format
that same year. Disappointed by scant local news coverage of the
Million Man March, held in Washington, D.C., Mike Pittman says he got the
idea to start a newspaper in Springfield. It took him about a decade, and
in July 2005 Pittman launched a 12-page monthly newspaper, the Capital City Courier. The two competitors both say they’re doing well
financially, though neither will talk specifics. Unlike the established
print-media world, which has lost readership and advertising to the
Internet, local niche-oriented publications have managed to weather the
storm by remaining free of overhead. Christian and his wife, Beverly, publish Pure News USA out of
their home; Pittman uses the offices of his real-estate business, Pittman
Enterprises. Neither employs full-time salaried employees for his
newspaper. Although the two men employ slightly different
journalistic philosophies, each credits loyal readers with a strong
appetite for positive coverage of the African-American community for his
paper’s success.
“We don’t have to do the police beat,
because other media beat us up enough as it is,”
Christian says. Pittman freely admits that he chooses provocative
headlines and illustrations to induce people to pick up the paper but also
says that most people respond favorably to the stories: “It’s a
balancing act. People want something different. We have a unique way of
covering news through our cover stories.”
Since its launch, Pittman’s Courier has doubled in size and is
now distributed throughout central Illinois and in Chicago and St. Louis. Pure News will break into
the St. Louis area in the coming months, Christian says. The two men agree that the presence of two black
papers has enhanced, not harmed, their position. “When they see two black papers, they see the
potential of the market. [The Courier] has strengthened our existence,” Christian says.
Contact R.L. Nave at rnave@illinoistimes.com.
This article appears in Nov 8-14, 2007.
