Ebony, Jet magazines sold to Black-owned Texas firm
21st June 2016 · 0 Comments
Johnson Publishing Co., which has published Ebony and Jet magazines, two of Black America’s most iconic publications for more than seven decades, has sold the two magazines to a Texas-based firm.
The Chicago-based company announced Tuesday that the publications were sold for an undisclosed amount to Clear View Group, a private equity firm in Austin, Texas.
Johnson Publishing Co. will reportedly retain its Fashion Fair Cosmetics division and its historic Ebony photo archives, the latter of which remains on the auction block.
In addition to acquiring Ebony and Jet, Clear View Group assumed the family-owned company’s debt.
The announcement will no doubt send waves through Black America given Ebony’s historic role of chronicling African-American history, culture, politics, civil rights, entertainment and progress. Even the magazine’s iconic covers captured the changing psyche of Black America as it was reflected in the hairstyles, dress and lifestyle choices embraced by people of African descent.
But the good news is that Ebony and Jet will remain part of a Black-owned media outlet.
Throughout the history of the publication, it captured the history of Black America with award-winning articles and compelling images of Blacks throughout the U.S. and beyond and their experiences with Jim Crow segregation, the civil rights struggle, Black Power Movement, anti-apartheid movement, integration, the Million Man March and the election and re-election of the nation’s first Black president.
Johnson Publishing Co. had reportedly struggled financially in recent years thanks in part to the mass movement away from print media to digital media.
Linda Johnson Rice, Johnson Publishing Co.’s chairwoman and the daughter of company founder John H. Johnson, will serve as chairman emeritus on the board of the new company, Ebony Media Operations.
“This is the next chapter in retaining the legacy that my father, John H. Johnson, built to ensure the celebration of African Americans,” she said in a statement Tuesday.
Ebony Media Operations will maintain the magazine’s Chicago headquarters and its New York editorial office, as well as much of the current staff, according to Michael Gibson, co-founder and chairman of African-American-owned Clear View Group.
The acquisition of Ebony and Jet magazine represent the first investment in the publishing business for Clear View.
“We made this purchase because this is an iconic brand — it’s the most-recognized brand in the African-American community,” said Gibson, 59. “We just think this is a great opportunity for us.”
“When we make an investment, that’s what we look for — a strong team that can actually run the company,” Gibson said. “We’re not managers or experts by any stretch of imagination in the media business. What we bring to the table is very strong networking and the ability to raise financing and the ability to establish a vision for the company.”
New Orleans native Desiree Glapion Rogers, the former social secretary for President Barack Obama who has been steering Johnson Publishing since 2010, will remain CEO, focusing on the cosmetics business, which represents about half of the company’s total revenue.
“The overall strategy of separating these two distinct businesses — media and cosmetics — will ensure that both iconic brands are positioned for future investment and growth,” Rogers, the daughter of former New Orleans City Councilman and Zulu King Roy Glapion, said in a statement.
With Rogers at the helm, Johnson Publishing made a number of moves in an effort to shore up finances. Those included taking on a minority partner in 2011, and taking the money-losing weekly digest Jet out of print circulation in 2014.
In January 2015, Johnson Publishing put its entire photo archive up for sale, hoping to raise $40 million. The historic collection spans seven decades and is still for sale, Rogers said Tuesday.
Although the publishing industry still has its challenges Gibson said Ebony will remain in print for the foreseeable future. At the same time, he recognizes the need to ramp up digital growth.
“There’s a lot of good reasons to keep the print,” Gibson said. “That will always be our anchor. We want to grow the digital platform more consistently with both Ebony and Jet.”
Gibson told The Chicago Tribune that he also sees opportunity in leveraging and expanding Ebony’s events business. But in the end, the greatest asset he acquired was the legacy of a brand, one which he hopes will be influential for years to come.
“It’s a dream come true,” Gibson told The Chicago Tribune. “Growing up, we had Ebony and Jet in our household all along. You knew you made it when you made it to the cover of Ebony or Jet. It is just exciting — I pinch myself every morning.”
This article originally published in the June 20, 2016 print edition of The Louisiana Weekly newspaper.
