Black-Owned Media Upfront To Showcase Programming, Promote Economic Inclusion In Advertising Industry

Leaders of the Black-Owned Media Matters movement will gather to showcase programming and talk about economic inclusion in the U.S. advertising industry during the Black-Owned Media Upfront 2021.

Set for Tuesday and Wednesday, May 11 and 12 from noon to 2:30 p.m. ET, the event, presented by TVNewsCheck, will feature presentations and highlight programming from a variety of Black-owned media companies.

Kicking off the two-day Black Owned Media Upfront will be Allen Media Group’s Entertainment Studios Networks and Syndication units and The Weather Channel. Byron Allen, founder, chairman and CEO of AMG and owner of The Weather Group, will appear with his companies’ programming and sales executives to spotlight new and ongoing shows and networks.

Allen, who created and has been the primary driver of the Black-Owned Media Matters initiative, will also talk about how the multi-billion U.S. advertising industry can advance economic inclusion by devoting 5% of annual media budgets to companies like his and the others that will be presenting at Black-Owned Media Upfront 2021.

For months, Allen has maintained that the audiences served by Black-owned media companies have been undervalued — and underpriced — by advertisers and their agencies, creating what he calls “America’s biggest trade deficit.”

To amplify his message, Allen has founded the National Association of African American Owned Media. The group’s core focus is to promote economic inclusion across all sectors of American business and in particular, advertising.

Allen’s efforts have already secured a commitment from General Motors to spend 4% of its advertising on Black-owned media companies in 2022 and up to 8% by 2025.

The Black-Owned Media Upfront will focus on steps the advertising industry must take to create a fair and equitable marketplace for all media companies. The goal, Allen says, is “building a more equitable advertising industry together.”

By partnering with TVNewsCheck to present Black-Owned Media Upfront 2021, Allen says he aims to ensure an open and transparent dialogue among advertisers, their agencies and the Black-owned media community. He says he’s determined to bring his decades of industry experience, extensive connections with media industry peers and a hands-on approach to foster “meaningful partnerships and an exchange of ideas and opportunities.”

Register to attend the Black-Owned Media Upfront 2021 here.