By Stacy M. Brown and Paris Brown
From – https://baltimoretimes-online.com/
Reprinted – by Texas Metro News
In 1986, Joy Bramble gathered all her resources and began publishing the Baltimore Times from her kitchen table on Madison Avenue. Nearly 39 years later, Bramble’s peers honored her as Publisher of the Year during the 2024 National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA) annual convention. The NNPA, a trade association comprising over 200 African American-owned newspapers and media companies, held its convention in Baltimore from June 19–22, 2024 at the Four Seasons Hotel and was co-hosted by The AFRO News and The Baltimore Times. In addition to being named Publisher of the Year, The Baltimore Times won three other National Newspaper Publishers Association industry awards, including 1st Place E. Washington Rhodes award for Original Advertising Campaign; 1st Place for the Don King Award for Sports; and W.A Scott II Award for Community Engagement.
Photo credit: Mark Mahoney, Dream In Color
Joceyln Cheryl Bramble, affectionately known as Joy, launched The Baltimore Times to fill a void she saw in positive news reporting about Black people. She believed there were enough positive stories to sustain a weekly publication. Initially, The Baltimore Times published five newspapers with a combined weekly circulation of 52,000, making it the largest circulation of African American newspapers on the Eastern Seaboard. Today, The Baltimore Times and The Annapolis Times continue to publish weekly without missing an issue, even during the pandemic.
The Baltimore Times’ major pillars are positive news reporting on health, finance, and housing (aimed at closing the wealth gap) while highlighting community contributions. Bramble’s dedication to improving Baltimore residents’ quality of life led to hosting the first-ever health screening expo in Baltimore City, where over 3,000 attendees participated. For over 30 years, The Baltimore Times has collaborated with entities like the Department of Health and Human Services, the Baltimore City Health Department, and the National Institutes of Health (NIH), earning national recognition for its work in health reporting and addressing health inequities.
Her dedication to closing the wealth gap led to the founding of the Center for Lendistry, a strategic partner to Lendistry, which provides loans and financial products to underserved small business owners. Other programs offered by The Baltimore Times to help provide access to capital through partnerships include: PNC Bank’s “Mind Your Business,” Lendistry’s “Access to Capital,” and JPMorgan Chase’s news reporting on such topics.
The newspaper’s business reporting and personal storytelling inspire businesses to establish, develop, and grow. During Juneteenth of this year, The Baltimore Times, in partnership with Friends of the Movement (FotM), launched the Black Wall Street Ticker to promote awareness of Black spending in America and Baltimore’s Black businesses.
Last year, the newspaper launched the inaugural Best of Black Baltimore Digital Campaign, celebrating over 316 businesses and achieving significant community engagement. This spring, The Baltimore Times embarked on Creatively Black Baltimore, a pop-up art initiative at Inner Harbor Light Street Pavilion, showcasing the richness of Baltimore’s Black creative community.
Committed to excellence in journalism, The Baltimore Times avoids investigative or anonymous source reporting, earning its reputation as a trusted community news source. Joy Bramble’s contributions to Baltimore City and Maryland have been widely recognized, including a Maryland State Capital session where she was honored by Adrienne Jones, the first Black Speaker of the Maryland House of Delegates. Her wax figure was unveiled at the National Great Blacks in Wax Museum, the first wax museum featuring prominent African Americans.
The Baltimore Times and Joy Bramble have received over one hundred citations and awards, including the City of Baltimore Presidential Citation, Kool Achiever Award, and numerous congressional, gubernatorial, and mayoral citations. Joy Bramble currently sits on the University of Maryland School of Medicine board and has previously served on the boards of Goodwill Industries, the Greater Baltimore Urban League, NNPA, MDDC Press Association, and other local organizations.
As she transitions to Publisher Emeritus on June 28, 2024, this honor acknowledges Joy Bramble’s service to the Baltimore community, her commitment to her team, and her dedication to the National Newspaper Publishers Association. Paris M. Brown, Associate Publisher, will succeed her as Publisher of The Baltimore Times.
