Time for today’s media to make GOOD TROUBLE!

“Without the press, the Civil Rights movement would have been a bird without wings.”~John Lewis

Black lives mattered and so did their stories.

John Lewis understood the importance of telling a story.  He had his favorite stories, funny stories and horrific stories. Stories of the Civil Rights Movement were paramount in his quest for teaching young people, but also for keeping the flame of The Movement alive. It was/is through the telling of these stories, that he created a memorial of sorts, analogous to the lit flame of the Unknown Soldier, for those who lost their lives to The Struggle, for those who peacefully and repeatedly got into Good Trouble. They were jailed, beaten and, too often, killed or murdered. It is through stories, the light of those who persisted by calling out, singing out and shouting out for justice, that the brave men, women and even children remain present with us today. 

Let us pause for a minute. We make a request. On July 17, 2025, grab a candle. Light it. Do it in honor of the legacy of John Lewis. Do it in honor of those who never wavered, who were knocked down, but got back up, time and time again, despite beatings, injuries and insults. They took risks for the greater good.

It is through John Lewis’ exemplary courage as he stood in front of a wall of adversaries, on that 1965 Bloody Sunday in Selma, Alabama, where he and those gathered with him held up a light against the darkness. It was a light America could not miss, America could not deny.  Through the mainstream media, Americans and the world were compelled to bear witness to the atrocities directed towards Negroes in the South. Their response: shock and outrage, to such a degree it contributed to the passage of the 1965 Voting Rights Act.

But what took so long?
According to the Library of Congress, “In (early) 1950 only 9 percent of American households had a television set, but by 1960 the figure had reached 90 percent.”
And we can assume, given their poverty rate, the percentage would have been significantly lower for the black community, many of whom lived in extreme poverty, hard-pressed in being able to even afford to eat. 

The on-going and continual struggle for civil rights didn’t hit mainstream America until about the mid-1950’s with the murder of Emmett Till. Jet Magazine was given permission to publish the horrific photos of the 14-year-old Emmett’s mutilated body, resulting in significant boycotts and civil disobedience campaigns. And by 1965, 48 million people watched Bloody Sunday on their black-and-white television sets. But throughout this time period, segregationists viewed journalists as “invaders”.  Many journalists and photographers were often physically attacked by them--injured and one reportedly killed. Segregationists understood the power of the press to sway public opinion, and they feared losing their own power over the populace by a power with far more reaching influence. (Does this sound familiar?) John Lewis notably understood the power of the press; he is quoted to have said, “We need the press to be a headlight and not a taillight.” 

Love them or hate them, The Movement needed the press.
When John Lewis was chairman of SNCC (Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee), he understood the necessity of the press to raise awareness. The Black press was steadfast in their reporting of the violent and oppressive events happening in their communities, in a sense becoming an extension of the actual protests occurring in the streets. Through the influence of the black press, civic engagement by local residents partnering with visiting student workers grew, informing and transforming black communities.  And yet, let us acknowledge, like the white and mainly Jewish volunteers and Civil Rights workers who traveled from the North and from as far away as California to join the ranks on behalf of their fellow men and women, initially there were only a small number of white members of the press who sought to bring truthful attention to the plight of the Negro. Oftentimes, mainstream media denigrated The Movement’s efforts and often defamed the character of many of those involved.

And yet, did the arc of news coverage during the course of the Civil Rights era evolve? Or rather, has it evolved enough for today’s world?  The media’s unjust coverage of the 2012 killing of Trayvon Martin spurred the birth of the Black Lives Matter movement. The use of social media has become the town hall to raise voices of discontent. Fast forward to 2020, anyone can take a page from Darnella Frazier, who bore witness, cellphone camera in hand, to the killing of George Floyd. A singular event uploaded to the internet, creating shock and outrage akin to Bloody Sunday‘s, galvanized a nation. More specifically it finally caused masses of white people to recognize they too needed to get involved, to march, gather and demonstrate for black justice and against racism.

Controlling the public and thereby influencing public opinion can take many forms. Inequality requires favoring one over another, usually at the expense of the oppressed, though also through less harsh forms, such as suppressing speech. With the surge and recognition of the power of the internet, John Lewis and other activists supported net neutrality, which was viewed as necessary to disallow discrimination in communication channels and for organizing dissent.  John once stated, “If we had the technology, if we had the Internet during the movement, we could have done more, much more, to bring people together from all around the country, to organize and work together to build the beloved community. That is why it is so important for us to protect the Internet. Every voice matters, and we cannot let the interests of profit silence the voices of those pursuing human dignity.”

With the repeal of net neutrality in 2017 (under Trump 1.0), activists and marginalized communities face now suppression within the technology arena. And by impacting these voices, we risk losing an avenue for holding others accountable.

Making good trouble will require collective effort and may even require the unexpected.  Individual voices like John Lewis’ do have impact. John had a light that magnified a million-fold. We are a million who can reflect that light. Many of us probably carry a bit of John’s light within us. When we partake in a march, when we waste not our hard-fought right to vote or when we hold our government representatives accountable, we continue his legacy. Yet today we need to hold our media accountable too. John Lewis’ persistent message to the press was: “You must not give up. You must hold on. Tell the truth. Report the truth. Disturb the order of things. Find a way to get in the way and make a little noise with your pens, your pencils, your cameras.”

We need the media to shine their light. We need the media to tell the truth. We need the media to speak truth to power. We need the media to be courageous like John Lewis and get into Good Trouble.  The Civil Rights movement must not be seen as a singular time in history. The sacrifices made by them must continue to beam their light towards new and future generations.  If any of this resonates with you, come join us on Slack in the #media_accountability channel.