#INTHEBLACK Launches to Highlight Black Spending Power

NEW YORK, June 25, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- BET Networks has partnered with HuffPost BlackVoices, Black Enterprise, Burrell Communications, Cable Advertising Bureau, Essence Communications, GlobalHue, Inner City Broadcasting Corporation, KJLH Radio, Johnson Publishing Company, National Association of Black Owned Broadcasters, Nielsen, North Star Group, National Newspaper Publishers Association, One Solution, Radio One, TV One, Interactive One, Reach Media, Steve Harvey Radio, TheGrio, The Root, The Africa Channel, UniWorld Group, Vibe Media and Walton Isaacson to create a history making black media and marketing consortium. The consortium is launching a revolutionary #INTHEBLACK campaign to encourage increased investments in the African American consumer marketplace while helping companies reach the African American audience more effectively.   

(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20070716/BETNETWORKSLOGO )

The consortium will use its collective resources and strength to speak to the advertising community and consumer audience to raise awareness and create a sense of urgency around the economic opportunity the black consumer segment presents. African American media has the unique ability to reach the African American consumer base directly and is an important resource in identifying and establishing trends within the black community. #INTHEBLACK aims to amplify the value of engaging African Americans through black targeted media and agencies.

African Americans represent over 42 million strong consumers, product talkers and brand influencers with a buying power of nearly one trillion dollars annually. By 2015, African American buying power is estimated to gain a whopping 35% hitting 1.2 trillion dollars, up from $913 billion in 2008.* African Americans are mega consumers beating out all other ethnic groups in the consumption of automobiles, wine & spirits, baby care products, groceries, health and beauty products, personal care products, apparel, electronics, movies and travel and entertainment.

"We are excited to partner with some of the nation's most influential media and marketing groups to highlight the growing economic opportunity of the Black marketplace. As a collective, we are better positioned to demonstrate the value of targeting the black consumer audience and partnering with leading brands to help them succeed," said Debra Lee, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, for BET Networks.

African Americans are crucial to the consumer economy and their sphere of influence is growing rapidly:

• With buying power of nearly one trillion annually, if African Americans were a country, they would represent the 16th largest economy in the world (slightly smaller than Canada but larger than Australia) – Nielsen 2011 State of the African American Consumer
• Between 2000-2009, African American homes have experienced significant growth among households earning $75,000+ (up 63.9%) and households earning $100,000+ (up 88.7%) – Nielsen 2011 State of the African American Consumer
• Nearly one out of every seven babies born in the United States are of African American descent – National Center for Health Statistics based on CDC's National Vital Statistics 2010
  • There are 1,702 African American babies born daily; more than half a million AA babies (623,029 babies) join our population every year – Source:  US Census Statistical Abstracts- Live Births, Birth Rates and Fertility Rates.
  • Every hour on the hour, there are 71 African American babies entering the world's population– Source:  US Census Statistical Abstracts- Live Births, Birth Rates and Fertility Rates.

#INTHEBLACK will be keeping consumers informed on companies that are exemplary leaders in supporting and working with the African American community. For more information or to find out how you can help, visit areyouintheblack.org.

* GfK MRI Doublebase 2011 African American Volumetrics Category Expenditure Data

About BET Networks

BET Networks, a subsidiary of Viacom Inc. (NASDAQ: VIA, VIAB), is the nation's leading provider of quality entertainment, music, news and public affairs television programming for the African-American audience. The primary BET channel reaches more than 90 million households and can be seen in the United States, Canada, the Caribbean, the United Kingdom and sub-Saharan Africa. BET is the dominant African-American consumer brand with a diverse group of business extensions: BET.com, a leading Internet destination for Black entertainment, music, culture, and news; CENTRIC, a 24-hour entertainment network targeting the 25- to 54-year-old African-American audience; BET Digital Networks - BET Gospel and BET Hip Hop, attractive alternatives for cutting-edge entertainment tastes; BET Home Entertainment, a collection of BET-branded offerings for the home environment including DVDs and video-on-demand; BET Event Productions, a full-scale event management and production company with festivals and live events spanning the globe; BET operates in the United Kingdom and oversees the extension of BET network programming for global distribution.

About HuffPost BlackVoices

HuffPost BlackVoices (blackvoices.com) is a leading source of news, cultural trends and opinions addressing issues with unique impact or interest within the African American community.
HuffPost BlackVoices has over 4 million monthly unique visitors (comScore May 2012) who are highly engaged posting over 225,000 monthly comments and is part of Huffington Post's award winning breaking news, opinion and socially engaged community for opinion and conversation. HuffPost has over 30,000 bloggers -- from politicians, students and celebrities to academics, parents and policy experts -- who contribute in real-time on the subjects they are most passionate about. 

About Black Enterprise

BLACK ENTERPRISE is the premier business, investing, and wealth-building resource for African Americans. Since 1970, BLACK ENTERPRISE has provided essential business information and advice to professionals, corporate executives, entrepreneurs, and decision makers.

About Burrell Communications

Burrell is a diverse and award-winning, business-building agency. It is not a coincidence that our clients are leaders in their respective categories – or that the communications we develop on behalf of our clients are regarded as some of the most impactful and most insightful in the industry.  A key reason for our success is our best-in-class approach to strategy which guides our thinking in every discipline.

About Cable Advertising Bureau (CAB)

The Cable Advertising Bureau (CAB) is the unified voice of the cable advertising sales industry that lobbies for more ad revenue, better ad processing, and a cable dominated future. Lobbying is direct to advertising agencies and the advertisers themselves via live presentation, research insights, PR/publicity, digital forums, live forums, and collaboration – standards & practices. CAB is dedicated to providing advertisers and agencies with the most current, complete and actionable Cable television media insights at the national, DMA and local levels. CAB owns and operates ReachingBlackConsumers.com.

About Essence Communications

ESSENCE is Where Black Women Come First for news, entertainment and motivation. ESSENCE occupies a special place in the hearts of millions of Black women-its not just a magazine but her most trusted confidante, a brand that has revolutionized the magazine industry and has become a cultural institution in the African-American community. Founded in 1968, Essence Communications Inc. (ECI) launched ESSENCE, the ground-breaking magazine created exclusively for African-American women in 1970. For 42 years, the company has flourished and expanded beyond the pages of its flagship magazine to generate brand extensions such as the Essence Music Festival, Women Who Are Shaping the World Leadership Summit, Window on Our Women (WOW I, II & III) and Smart Beauty I, II & III consumer insights, the Essence Book Club, Essence.com, and ventures in digital media (mobile, television and VOD) via Essence Studios. The ECI corporate headquarters are in New York City, with offices in Chicago, Los Angeles and Detroit.

Read more: http://www.essence.com/about/#ixzz1ylWyDzWq

About GlobalHue

GlobalHue is a full-service marketing communications agency with total market and cultural expertise. The agency handles total market work for the Jeep brand and OneMain Financial. For decades, GlobalHue has been acknowledged for its multicultural expertise, and, most recently was recognized as the "Multicultural Advertising Agency of the Decade" by Adweek. The agency has 300 employees and boasts several blue-chip clients, including Chrysler Group LLC, Verizon, Walmart, U.S. Navy and OneMain Financial. For more information, go to www.globalhue.com. 
Visit GlobalHue on Facebook atwww.facebook.com/GlobalHue 
Follow GlobalHue on Twitter at @GlobalHue

About Inner City Broadcasting Corporation

Inner City Broadcasting Corporation, also known as Inner City, is a New York-based telecommunications company founded in 1971 by Percy E. Sutton and a group of prominent African-Americans.  Focused on radio, Inner City has also owned and operated the famed Apollo Theater, produced the hit television show, "It's Showtime at the Apollo," owned and operated cable systems in New York and Philadelphia, and invested in cellular communications.  Its' two flagship radio stations, WBLS-FM and WLIB-AM, continue to represent the voice of black New York.

About KJLH Radio

KJLH Radio, owned by the legendary Stevie Wonder and operated by Taxi Productions, has served the African American community of Southern California for over 45 years. KJLH is the preferred source for music, entertainment, and information for its listeners, a loyal and valuable audience with an annual spending power of over $2 Billion dollars in total retail sales alone. KJLH maximizes its connection to its listeners through a multiplatform media outreach that includes terrestrial broadcasting, digital, social networks and major events marketing.

About Johnson Publishing Company

Founded in 1942 by John H. Johnson, Johnson Publishing Company (JPC) is the preeminent publisher of EBONY and JET magazines and owner of Fashion Fair Cosmetics, a global prestige cosmetic brand for people of color. JPC is committed to celebrating the vibrancy of Black culture by operating trusted brands and delivering products of the highest quality that celebrate, inform, engage, entertain, inspire, and enhance the lives of people.

About The National Association of Black Owned Broadcasters

The National Association of Black Owned Broadcasters (NABOB) was organized in 1976 as a response to the abysmal underrepresentation of Black Americans in the communications industry.  Since its inception, NABOB has grown into a major trade association representing the interests of 225 Black-owned commercial radio stations and 8 commercial television stations around the country.  Additionally, NABOB counts among its associate membership: law firms, station brokers, national rep firms, financial institutions and a variety of other organizations involved in broadcasting, cable television and wireless services. As the voice of the Black broadcast industry, NABOB has been instrumental in shaping national government and industry policies to improve the opportunities for success for Black and all other minority station owners.

About Nielsen

Nielsen Holdings N.V. (NYSE: NLSN) is a global information and measurement company with leading market positions in marketing and consumer information, television and other media measurement, online intelligence, mobile measurement, trade shows and related properties. Nielsen has a presence in approximately 100 countries, with headquarters in New York, USA and Diemen, the Netherlands. For more information, visit www.nielsen.com.

About National Newspaper Publishers Association

The National Newspaper Publishers Association (http://www.nnpa.org), also known as the Black Press of America, is a 69-year-old federation of more than 200 Black community newspapers from across the United States. Since World War II, it has also served as the industry's news service, a position that it has held without peer or competitor since the Associated Negro Press dissolved by 1970. In 2000, the NNPA launched NNPA Media Services– a print and web advertising-placement and press release distribution service. In 2001, the NNPA, in association with the NNPA Foundation, it began building the BlackPressUSA Network– the nation's premier network of local Black community news and information portals. The BlackPressUSA Network is anchored by BlackPressUSA.com– the national web portal for the Black Press of America.

About North Star Group

The NorthStar Group is a media, management and marketing company representing some of the nation's leading celebrities, entertainers, websites, and magazines including The Source Magazine and Jones Magazine. The Source (TheSource.com) is the original and leading voice of Hip-Hop music, culture, politics and sports for over 24 years and remains the industry's most recognizable youth culture's media brand worldwide. Jones Magazine (jonesMag.com) is the lifestyle shopping guide glossy targeting multi-cultural women and catering to fashion and beauty enthusiasts who share a penchant for what's hot, new and yet to be yet-to-be discovered.

About Radio One/ TV One/ Interactive One

Radio One, Inc. (http://www.radio-one.com) is a diversified media company that primarily targets African-American and urban consumers. The Company is one of the nation's largest radio broadcasting companies, currently owning or operating 54 broadcast stations located in 16 urban markets in the United States. As a part of its core broadcasting business, Radio One operates syndicated programming including the Russ Parr Morning Show, the Yolanda Adams Morning Show, the Rickey Smiley Morning Show, CoCo Brother Live, CoCo Brother's "Spirit" program, Bishop T.D. Jakes' "Empowering Moments", the Reverend Al Sharpton Show, and the Warren Ballentine Show. The Company also owns a controlling interest in Reach Media, Inc. (http://www.blackamericaweb.com), owner of the Tom Joyner Morning Show and other businesses associated with Tom Joyner. Beyond its core radio broadcasting business, Radio One owns Interactive One (http://www.interactiveone.com), an online platform serving the African-American community through social content, news, information, and entertainment, which operates a number of branded sites, including News One, UrbanDaily, HelloBeautiful, Community Connect Inc. (http://www.communityconnect.com), an online social networking company, which operates a number of branded websites, including BlackPlanet, MiGente, and Asian Avenue. In addition, the Company owns a controlling interest in TV One, LLC (http://www.tvoneonline.com), a cable/satellite network programming primarily to African-Americans.

About One Solution

One Solution (OS) is the strategic and integrated marketing division of Radio One, TV One and Interactive One. The combined media assets reach 82% of the African American audience.  OS develops best-in-class integrated marketing programs that enable leading brands and marketers to achieve and exceed their business objectives through strategic integration, and deeper insights and connections with consumers.

About Reach Media

REACH Media Inc. may be the most effective media platform to REACH Black America. Founded by the nation's No. 1 syndicated urban radio host, Tom Joyner has created a company built on the solid foundation of one of the most powerful communications and marketing vehicles in the country, The Tom Joyner Morning Show, which airs in more than 100 markets and reaches an audience of over eight million listeners—approx 1 in 4 African Americans.

About Steve Harvey Radio

The Steve Harvey Show is uplifting, inspirational, motivating, and covers topical issues and community concerns that touch everyone. It combines heart, humor, great music for grown people and hot celebrities from the entertainment and sports world plus interviews from a variety of engaging guests.

About TheGrio

TheGrio.com is an NBC News website dedicated to stories and perspectives which affect and reflect the African-American community. Launched in 2009, TheGrio reaches over 2 million users monthly.

About The Root

The Root is the leading online source of news and commentary from an African-American perspective. Founded in 2008 under the leadership of Prof. Henry Louis Gates Jr. of Harvard University, The Root offers a unique take on breaking news, provides solid analysis and presents dynamic multimedia content. The Root raises the profile of black voices in mainstream media and engages anyone interested in black culture around the world. The Root is owned by the Washington Post Company. Visit us at www.theroot.com, on Twitter @TheRoot247 and on Facebook.

About UniWorld Group

Founded in 1969 by Byron Lewis, UniWorld Group, Inc., is the longest-standing full-service multicultural marketing agency in the United States. The agency continues to be a trendsetter, poised to connect forward-thinking brands to the $2 trillion spending power of multicultural consumers while pushing the envelope with innovative ideas and fresh solutions for the general market as well. UniWorld Group also has a strategic alliance with WPP, one of the world's largest communications services groups. For more information on UniWorld Group, Inc., visit www.uniworldgroup.com.

About Vibe Media

Vibe Media is the parent company of Vibe magazine, Vibe.com, VibeVixen.com, Uptown magazine, UptownMagazine.com. Vibe Media is a vertical content and advertising network which represents over 25 websites, several publications, direct mail, TV shows and media platforms reaching over 19 million consumers per month. As the premier destination for urban entertainment and media, Vibe Media creates solutions for advertisers looking to engage consumers via music, entertainment, culture and lifestyle 18-54. www.vibe.com

About Walton Isaacson

Walton Isaacson is an advertising and marketing agency that focuses on channel agnostic creative. WI was founded in late 2005 by industry veterans Aaron Walton and Cory Isaacson in partnership with Earvin 'Magic' Johnson, with full service offices in Chicago, Los Angeles and New York City.

SOURCE BET Networks