Date of Award

9-1-2011

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

Department

Journalism

First Advisor

Dale Zacher

Abstract

Historically, the black press served as a voice to its community, but after the heat of the Civil Rights Movement died down many publications struggled to find their purpose. As a result of the equality it fought for the black press declined after the 1970s. Despite the recent media trend in 1984, Daisy Bates reopened the Arkansas State Press after a 25-year absence. Since 1941, Bates and her husband, L.C. Bates, were the owners of the weekly State Press until 1959 when it suffered a backlash from the white community. The purpose of the study is to analyze how the Arkansas State Press survived through the steady decline of the black press. The study questions whether the paper continued the tradition of the black press or moved in a different direction. All issues from April 1984 to January 1988 were studied.

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