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Atlanta Falcons Headed To Super Bowl 51, City Gives Sports Lesson For Oakland

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The Atlanta Falcons beat the Green Bay Packers in the NFC Championship Game at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta 44 to 21, and are headed to their second Super Bowl game, Super Bowl 51. While the winner of the AFC Championship Game is to be determined, it’s time to stop and congratulate and celebrate the victory. The reason is because Atlanta is a model NFL city with a model NFL owner in Arthur Blank (Zennie Abraham vlog at Zennie62 on YouTube). 

 

Oh, and before we take a look at Atlanta the City, we have to shout out the Atlanta Falcons. Head Coach Dan Quinn came in from the Seattle Seahawks, and with a blueprint based very much on what he learned from the legendary former USC and now Seattle head coach, Pete Carroll – a plan based on the assembly and training of a very fast defense and a ball-control offense. That was certainly the message this blogger got when interviewing Coach Quinn at the 2015 NFL Annual Meeting in Arizona.

 

 

In building the Falcons to fit his ideals, Quinn resisted the temptation to replace Falcons Quarterback Matt Ryan. The former Boston College star was always considered a good passer, but the Atlanta media constantly talked about the big games he lost with bad throws and interceptions. Not this time. Now, Matt Ryan can finally bask in the glow afforded an elite NFL signal-caller in the Super Bowl Game – a win would cement the title for Ryan. (Against the Packers, Ryan was 27 of 38 for 392 yards and 4 tocuhdowns, and one TD running.) It would also give Atlanta something it’s never had: an NFL Champion.

 

 

Atlanta is a great city on the rise. According to Sustainable Atlanta, Georgia, the Capital of The South added 40,000 new residents between 2010 and 2015. It’s gained back almost half the residents it lost during what is called the great exodus of the 1980s, when 100,000 Atlantans departed for the suburbs. And Atlanta and the North Georgia region have grown to become one of the entertainment production hubs of America.

 

 

Film LA reports that Georgia is number five in the World for film production behind only California, New York, and two international locations. Spending by film companies in Georgia has increased to $1.7 billion in 2015 and that’s up by 500 percent over the year 2008.

 

 

And what this blogger likes most is that Atlanta is a city that appreciates sports as economic development, and has plans for the retention of its teams, rather than reacting to any threat to move – there is none. Atlanta is also a city that is unapologetically Southern and black, yet is the growing tech hub of the South.

 

 

Oakland can learn a lot from Atlanta: from how to keep its sports teams, to how to embrace, not fear, black culture, to how to maintain affordable housing in the face of rampant growth, to how to be a top place for women in the workforce. Thanks to the Falcons NFC Championship Game win and trip to Super Bowl 51, and President Donald Trump’s ill-advised tweets against it, Atlanta now has the World’s attention and it deserves every bit of it.

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Oakland Post: Week of May 21 – 27, 2025

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of May 21 – 27, 2025

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Remembering George Floyd

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OP-ED: Oregon Bill Threatens the Future of Black Owned Newspapers and Community Journalism

BLACKPRESSUSA NEWSWIRE — Nearly half of Oregon’s media outlets are now owned by national conglomerates with no lasting investment in local communities. According to an OPB analysis, Oregon has lost more than 90 news jobs (and counting) in the past five years. These were reporters, editors and photographers covering school boards, investigating corruption and telling community stories, until their jobs were cut by out-of-state corporations.

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By Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis, Jr.
President and CEO, National Newspaper Publishers Association

For decades, The Skanner newspaper in Portland, the Portland Observer, and the Portland Medium have served Portland, Oregon’s Black community and others with a vital purpose: to inform, uplift and empower. But legislation now moving through the Oregon Legislature threatens these community news institutions—and others like them.

As President and CEO of the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA), which represents more than 255 Black-owned media outlets across the United States—including historic publications like The Skanner, Portland Observer, and the Portland Medium—l believe that some Oregon lawmakers would do more harm than good for local journalism and community-owned publications they are hoping to protect.

Oregon Senate Bill 686 would require large digital platforms such as Google and Meta to pay for linking to news content. The goal is to bring desperately needed support to local newsrooms. However, the approach, while well-intentioned, puts smaller, community-based publications at a future severe financial risk.

We need to ask – will these payments paid by tech companies benefit the journalists and outlets that need them most? Nearly half of Oregon’s media outlets are now owned by national conglomerates with no lasting investment in local communities. According to an OPB analysis, Oregon has lost more than 90 news jobs (and counting) in the past five years. These were reporters, editors, and photographers covering school boards, investigating corruption, and telling community stories, until their jobs were cut by out-of-state corporations.

Legislation that sends money to these national conglomerate owners—without the right safeguards to protect independent and community-based outlets—rewards the forces that caused this inequitable crisis in the first place. A just and inclusive policy must guarantee that support flows to the front lines of local journalism and not to the boardrooms of large national media corporations.

The Black Press exists to fill in the gaps left by larger newsrooms. Our reporters are trusted messengers. Our outlets serve as forums for civic engagement, accountability and cultural pride. We also increasingly rely on our digital platforms to reach our audiences, especially younger generations—where they are.

We are fervently asking Oregon lawmakers to take a step back and engage in meaningful dialogue with those most affected: community publishers, small and independent outlets and the readers we serve. The Skanner, The Portland Observer, and The Portland Medium do not have national corporate parents or large investors. And they, like many smaller, community-trusted outlets, rely on traffic from search engines and social media to boost advertising revenue, drive subscriptions, and raise awareness.

Let’s work together to build a better future for Black-owned newspapers and community journalism that is fair, local,l and representative of all Oregonians.

Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis Jr., President & CEO, National Newspaper Publishers Association

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