Television’s René Syler Says “I Hope Times Are Changing” The last time many viewers saw René Syler, she was a co-anchor of CBS News’ “The Early Show,” with her hair chemically straightened and then hot curled. After four years, that job ended in 2006. She dealt with breast cancer surgery and other medical issues, wrote…

An African American female television reporter decided to let her straightened hair “go natural” during sweeps week and let viewers see the transformation process. Rochelle Ritchie of WPTV-TV in West Palm Beach, Fla., called “The Big Chop” a success, and ratings confirmed that. The station put up a web page with her two stories and related ones. News director Jeff…

2 in Mississippi Serving Double-Life Over $11 Robbery A black nationalist website was onto the case early. Then there were more websites and the muckraking magazine Mother Jones. A talk-show voice on CNN, a local black radio station and the syndicated The Michael Baisden Show joined the mix, as did the NAACP and the Innocence…

When the showing of Tyler Perry’s “For Colored Girls” ended Tuesday evening at the White House, first lady Michelle Obama got up and told the 50 guests she hoped they enjoyed it. But those who had come from around the country to share the experience “were just sitting there. I don’t think they knew how…

College to Own First Black-Owned Building in Chicago’s Loop Johnson Publishing Co. has sold its historic building on Chicago’s Michigan Avenue to Columbia College Chicago, the company announced on Tuesday. It has not yet selected a new home and is to remain in the building for 18 months. “The sale of 820 S. Michigan is…

NPR’s board of directors has approved hiring a law firm to review the network’s handling of the termination of Juan Williams’ contract, and the network has taken steps to address concerns raised by journalists of color. NPR has hired a second African American on-air reporter, Alex P. Kellogg of the Wall Street Journal, plans to make up for…

Report Calls Underachievement a “National Catastrophe” “Black males continue to perform lower than their peers throughout the country on almost every indicator,” according to a new report from the Council of the Great City Schools, which calls itself “the only national organization exclusively representing the needs of urban public schools.” Its report, released Tuesday, is…

After Perry Film Debut, Writers Compete for One-Liners The hatin’ on Tyler Perry’s film “For Colored Girls” was so intense that Ronda Racha Penrice, writing on theGrio.com, had to find solace in the opening weekend’s box office take: “Negative reviews from respected film critics like The Hollywood Reporter’s Kirk Honeycutt, who proclaimed Tyler Perry’s For…

Sheryl Tucker Returns to Run Magazine on Acting Basis Angela Burt-Murray, editor at Essence magazine for the last five years, “has announced her plan to leave her post and relocate with her family to Atlanta,” John Huey, editor-in-chief of Time Inc. told staff members on Friday. “We are beginning our search for a new editor,…

Milwaukee’s Garry D. Howard to Lead Sporting News Garry D. Howard of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, the last remaining African American editing the sports section of a mainstream daily newspaper, is leaving in December to become editor-in-chief of the weekly Sporting News. “We thank him for his dedication, enthusiasm and passion for exceptional journalism,” Martin…