ATLANTA

It started out as a friendly conversation in the late 1990s between friends and sports fanatics, filmmaker Spike Lee and late author and sportswriter Ralph Wiley.

The two HBCU graduates — Lee is from Morehouse College while Wiley went to Knoxville College — were bemoaning the fact that the number of minority sports journalists was so low, especially since the sports they cover are often dominated by non-White athletes.

The result of that conversation is the beginning of a new program at Lee’s Atlanta alma mater. Along with Morehouse officials, Lee recently announced a new journalism and sports program at the college.

“They talked about the need for more, not only Black journalists and sports writers, but also those who could ascend to leadership in the industry to become active voices in shaping the images of African-American athletes,” says Kathleen Johnson, special assistant to president Walter Massey.

Lee “is an avid sports fan,” Johnson says. “During the last 20 years, as African-American players became more prominent in sports, Spike certainly noticed how African-American athletes were presented.”

The topic is one that has been discussed widely. While Blacks have made strides in the sports journalism field, many say the number of Black sportswriters is still lacking. 

Since beginning his professional career in 1965, “other major newspapers have hired Black sports reporters,” wrote veteran Chicago Sun Times sports writer Lacy J. Banks in his September 2006 column for the paper. “But on the whole, Black sportswriters for major dailies remain a disproportionate minority.”

A 2006 study from the University of Central Florida’s Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sports found that 95 percent of sports editors, 90 percent of sports columnists and 87 percent of assistant sports editors and reporters were White.

So far, nearly $1 million has been raised for the new program. Lee has contributed some of his own money, and is working with Johnson to get contributions from various organizations and individuals, including Lee’s friends.