The site uniquely offers an array of commentary from Malcolm Gladwell, Thelma Golden, William Julius Wilson, John McWhorter, Charlayne Hunter Gault, among others, fostering spirited debate and celebrating the medley of voices that exists among the national African American and International black populations, including the ongoing conversation about family history.

 "Family history through genealogy is a critical piece to African American heritage," said Gates, an expert on African American genealogy, Executive Producer of "African American Lives" and co-founder of the testing site AfricanDNA.com. "To embrace the future it is essential to understand one's past. We are giving the black community the resources to restore the memories destroyed after the middle passage."

 "The Root" hosts an interactive section to trace genealogy and heritage, enabling users to participate in a genealogy test through AfricanDNA.com, co-owned by FamilyTreeDNA. Readers will also have the opportunity to build and map family trees using software developed by Avencia.

 Jacob Weisberg, Editor of Slate magazine, and Cliff Sloan, Vice President and Publisher of Slate, were tapped by Don Graham to help guide the creation of "The Root." Weisberg said, "Slate has been delighted to lend a hand in developing 'The Root.' To me, 'The Root' is groundbreaking, and I believe it will change the media landscape for black America."