All Articles Tagged "NAACP Image Awards"
Victoria Christopher Murray Lands NAACP Image Award Nomination Amid New Publishing Landscape
When author Victoria Christopher Murray received her first NAACP Image Award nomination for Outstanding Literary Work, Fiction, in 2001, she was beyond surprised. The nod was for her debut novel Temptation, and she was up against stiff competition in the likes of bestseller list mainstays Terry McMillan and Eric Jerome Dickey.
“It was huge,” Murray said. “I was literally standing at the door shaking, waiting on my husband to come home so I could tell him.”
She didn’t take home the prize that year, but following an official announcement by the NAACP on December 11, Murray now has a second nomination for her book Destiny’s Divas – albeit in a literary landscape that hardly resembles the one she first encountered 11 years ago. The presentation of the NAACP Image Awards will air on NBC on Friday, February 1 at 8pm, the first day of Black History Month.
The bankruptcy and subsequent closing of Borders bookstores, plus the growing popularity of e-books, and the ease with which self-published authors can take to the web and sell their writing to the masses (often for as little as $.99) has had a tsunami-like impact on the industry. Reports lamenting the death of traditional book publishing are likely false – or severely premature, at least – but make no mistake: the game ain’t the same.
Murray has certainly noticed the strain on her books’ sales, but regardless, she has exhibited a level of sustainability that is rare in any corner of the entertainment world. She’s been continuously signed to a major publishing house since Temptation, with a total of 16 novels under her belt – even as many of her contemporaries have failed to receive new contracts.
“I believe I was put on this earth to do this,” said Murray of her writing career. “It gets very hard, but I know that God has it all under control.”
She may be confident and secure in her career choice now, but Murray’s road to literary success was a long and winding one. She worked in financial services for ten years before deciding to focus on her writing full-time in 1997, a luxury she was afforded through a sizeable bank account. Together, she and her husband invested $50,000 of their own cash to publish Temptation, a contemporary tale of love and friendship, complete with sex, scandal and, notably, Jesus.
NAACP Apologizes for Snubbing Black Press
(TriceEdneyWire.com) –NAACP President and CEO Benjamin Todd Jealous admits that “a grave mistake was made” right under his nose when advertising inserts were placed only in White newspapers on the eve of the organization’s annual image awards, which aired March 4. Danny Bakewell, chairman of the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA), a federation of more than 200 Black-owned newspapers, is demanding justice.
“If the NAACP desires to advertise with the white press, they need to understand and experience the repercussions of going outside of their “house” (The Black Press). The NAACP needs to know that by ignoring the Black Press they are ‘cutting off their nose to spite their face,’” Bakewell said in a March 7 letter to NNPA publishers, obtained by the Trice Edney News Wire. “We have marched side by side with them and been their voice in the African American community. It is truly disheartening to be on the battlefield with someone and not be able to share in the spoils.”
Survey: Many Take Issue with Image Awards
(ThyBlackMan.com) In a recent survey taken at YourBlackWorld.com, over 83 percent of the black respondents said that the NAACP is off-base by nominating hip-hop artists such as Jay-Z and Nicki Minaj, both of whom have used the N-word and lyrics that are derogatory toward women. In the survey, participants were asked the following question: “The NAACP Image Awards recently nominated artists like Jay-Z and Nicki Minaj, both of whom have used the N-word and lyrics which degrade women. Does this make the NAACP hypocritical?”
In response to this question, 83 percent of the 335 respondents said “Yes, these nominations are a contradiction to the message and image of the NAACP.” Another 5.8% of the African American respondents said that the NAACP might be a bit hypocritical in their approach, but that giving awards to these artists helps to keep them relevant. Another 10 percent of the respondents said that the NAACP was not being hypocritical by nominating these artists. There was also some degree of variation in responses based on age. Those under the age of 30 were the least likely to say that the NAACP was being hypocritical (74.1% disagreed with the NAACP’s decision), while those over the age of 50 were most likely to have a problem with the nominations (83.5%). So, while every group had a problem with the NAACP’s move, young people were the least likely to express concern.
Should Nicki Minaj & Jay-Z be Eligible for NAACP Image Awards?
The NAACP Image Awards are meant to recognize the positive achievements of of African Americans in media and entertainment. What qualifies someone for an Image Award though? Should using the n-word, talking graphically about sex acts or openly talking about past drug dealing disqualify someone? According to a recent survey by YourBlackWorld.com, 83 percent of black survey respondents think the NAACP is wrong to nominate hip hop artists like Nicki Minaj and Jay-Z.
Go over to AOL Black Voices to read more about this interesting stat.
What do you think? What type of content should disqualify a person from being nominated for an Image Award?
