In this Still Talking, we asked Madison Carter, news anchor and reporter for WKBW 7 Eyewitness News:
“Given that Buffalo constantly ranks among the most segregated cities in the country, do you think local media can play a role in changing that?”
Carter, who is also president of Buffalo Association of Black Journalists (BABJ) and a member of the national association has been a part of the 7 Eyewitness News team since summer of 2018 as a multimedia journalist, after attending Syracuse University where she earned her degree in broadcast journalism and policy studies.
“I’ve always said I want to tell stories about Black people without them being ‘Black stories,’” Carter said. “I don’t know if that’s possible right now. But let me be clear about this: racism may not affect everyone, but it does impact everyone – my job lately has been to show people how.”
Carter remembers being the only black reporter covering the first night of protests on May 30. It’s a standout moment for her because of an interaction she had with another reporter who was excited about the action they saw.
“I realized in that moment how privileged that individual was to be excited about a moment where I was terrified my friends might not make it home that night,” Carter said. “… to many others who don’t spend time in communities with people who don’t look like them – they weren’t people. They were just exciting stories to possibly tell later.
“The media landscape has long reflected this community’s issue with segregation. There’s no reason I should have been the only Black woman in my entire building for the first 8 months on the job. There are no main anchors that are Black. Most Black anchors are given the weekend shows.”
Carter concluded, “We are slowly making change and I really credit our chapter of the BABJ for helping our newsrooms with this endeavor. It’s a big reason I ran for president. I wanted to be a leader in this movement for change. I’m proud of the work we’ve done and I’m very pleased with the response from every newsroom — print, television, and radio. Everyone is receptive, leadership is not pretending we don’t have a diversity problem in media, and they’re all working with us to change this.”
Follow Madison on social media:
Facebook | Instagram – @madisonlcarter | Twitter – @madisonlcarter | National Association of Black Journalists, Buffalo chapter Instagram – @nabj_buffalo