12-11-2024  11:42 pm   •   PDX and SEA Weather

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NORTHWEST NEWS

Proposed Merger of Supermarket Giants Kroger and Albertsons Is Halted by Federal, State Judges

A federal judge in Oregon temporarily blocked the proposed merger until an in-house administrative judge at the Federal Trade Commission considers it. 

1803 Fund Will Invest $8 million in 11 Community Partners to Strengthen Black Portland

The 1803 Fund has announced it will invest million in 11 community-based partners aimed at strengthening Black Portland. Founded in 2020, the investment fund aims to grow shared prosperity, through a mix of financial investments and investments in community-based organizations.

Social Worker, Housing Advocate Sworn In Early to Multnomah County Board

Shannon Singleton’s election victory was followed by a hectic two weeks. 

Q & A With Sen. Kayse Jama, New Oregon Senate Majority Leader

Jama becomes first Somali-American to lead the Oregon Senate Democrats.

NEWS BRIEFS

Congress Honors Shirley Chisholm with Congressional Gold Medal for Trailblazing Legacy

In 1972, she made history as the first Black candidate and the first woman to seek the Democratic presidential nomination. ...

House Votes to Rename Post Office in Honor of Elijah Cummings

Elected to the Maryland House of Delegates in 1982, Cummings became the youngest chair of the Legislative Black Caucus and the first...

House Passes Bonamici Bill to Rename Post Office in Honor of Former Rep. Elizabeth Furse

Furse represented Oregon’s First Congressional District for three terms from 1993-1999 and established her legacy as a champion for...

Portland Parks & Recreation Wedding Reservations For Dates in 2025

In-person applications have priority starting Monday, January 6, at 8 a.m. ...

Grants up to $120,000 Educate About Local Environmental Projects

Application period for WA nonprofits open Jan. 7 ...

Oregon lawmakers to hold special session on emergency wildfire funding

SALEM, Ore. (AP) — Oregon lawmakers are convening Thursday for a special session to discuss emergency funding to pay out millions in unpaid bills stemming from the state’s 2024 record wildfire season. As wildfires still rage in California, Oregon is among several states grappling...

Can ordinary citizens solve our toughest problems?

BEND, OREGON (AP) — Eliza Wilson is a little nervous as she draws the microphone close, but she is determined to share her life story. “My father was a disabled veteran,” she says. “I first experienced homelessness when I was 5 years old.” Wilson, who’s 36, leads programs...

Purdue hires UNLV's Barry Odom as its next football coach

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Barry Odom is getting a second chance to put a Power Four program back to prominence. He can't wait. Purdue athletic director Mike Bobinski announced Sunday he had hired the 48-year-old Odom to replace Ryan Walters, who was fired last week after...

Tamar Bates scores 29 points to help Missouri beat No. 1 Kansas 76-67

COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) — Tamar Bates had 29 points and five steals to help Missouri beat Hunter Dickinson and No. 1 Kansas 76-67 on Sunday. Mark Mitchell scored 17 points in Missouri’s first win over Kansas since a 74-71 victory on Feb. 4, 2012. Anthony Robinson II had 11 points and...

OPINION

My Head Start Story: A Lifetime Connection

NNPA NEWSWIRE — When it was time to move on from Head Start, my literacy and numeracy skills were advanced. Head Start taught my mother how to advocate for what was in my best interest educationally. ...

OP-ED: The Future of American Education: A Call to Action

“Education is a non-negotiable priority. Parents and community leaders must work to safeguard the education system. The future of our children—and the fabric of our society—depends on advocating for policies that give every student the chance to...

A Loan Shark in Your Pocket: Cellphone Cash Advance Apps

Fast-growing app usage leaves many consumers worse off. ...

America’s Healing Can Start with Family Around the Holidays

With the holiday season approaching, it seems that our country could not be more divided. That division has been perhaps the main overarching topic of our national conversation in recent years. And it has taken root within many of our own families. ...

AFRICAN AMERICANS IN THE NEWS

New Zealand official reverses visa refusal for US conservative influencer Candace Owens

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — A New Zealand immigration official has overturned a ban on the U.S. conservative political commentator Candace Owens entering the country, citing “the importance of free speech," a spokesperson for the official said Thursday. Owens is scheduled to...

Fewer U.S. grandparents are taking care of grandchildren, according to new data

Fewer grandparents were living with and taking care of grandchildren, there was a decline in young children going to preschool and more people stayed put in their homes in the first part of the 2020s compared to the last part of the 2010s, according to U.S. Census Bureau data released Thursday,...

2 men go free after their convictions were overturned in a case involving a discredited detective

KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) — Two men were freed Wednesday after their convictions were overturned in a 2009 double homicide whose investigation was overseen by a discredited white Kansas City, Kansas, police detective. Forty-year-old Dominique Moore said he was “thankful and...

ENTERTAINMENT

Kendrick Lamar and SZA announce 2025 North American stadium tour

NEW YORK (AP) — “Not Like Us,” it's like them — Kendrick Lamar and SZA will hit the road together in 2025. On Tuesday morning, Lamar and SZA announced the Grand National Tour, which will hit 19 stadiums across North America next spring and summer. The news...

Sean Penn accuses Academy Awards of cowardice at Marrakech Film Festival

MARRAKECH, Morocco (AP) — Sean Penn on Tuesday blasted the organizers of the Oscars for being cowards who, in effect, limit the kinds of films that can be funded and made. The 64-year-old actor said at the Marrakech Film Festival that he gets excited about the Academy Awards only on...

Lauren Mayberry steps out of the band Chvrches for a solo album that shows her influences

NEW YORK (AP) — The birth of Lauren Mayberry as a solo artist should be marked by something like a wolf cry. And that's exactly what it sounds like. The vocalist and percussionist from the Scottish pop band Chvrches has punctuated her debut album with a playful howl while telling...

U.S. & WORLD NEWS

Judge declares mistrial after jury deadlocks over killing of gay University of Mississippi student

A judge declared a mistrial Wednesday in the case of Sheldon “Timothy” Herrington Jr. in the 2022 killing of...

North Carolina announces 5-year deal with Bill Belichick to take over as coach of the Tar Heels

Bill Belichick had seemingly been waiting for the right opportunity to return to an NFL sideline. Instead, the...

Southern California forecast of cool temps, calm winds to help firefighters battle Malibu blaze

MALIBU, Calif. (AP) — Cooler temperatures, calmer winds and a chance of rainfall in Southern California this...

Vatican's keffiyeh Nativity scene raises eyebrows and then disappears — at least until Christmas Eve

VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Francis presided over his weekly general audience Wednesday alongside a...

An explosion in the Afghan capital kills the Taliban refugee minister

ISLAMABAD (AP) — A suicide bombing in the Afghan capital on Wednesday killed the Taliban refugee minister and...

Syrians flock to morgues looking for loved ones who perished in Assad's prisons

DAMASCUS (AP) — Mohammad Chaeeb spoke softly into his phone, telling a relative the grim news: He found his...

George E. Curry Editor-In-Chief NNPA News Service

WASHINGTON (NNPA) – Highly-respected media and entertainment executive William G. Tompkins, Jr. has been name president and chief executive officer of the National Newspaper Publishers Association, a federation of more than 200 Black-owned publications.

NNPA Chairman Cloves Campbell, publisher of the Arizona Informant, said Tompkins was selected from an impressive field of candidates screened by Carrrington & Carrington, a Chicago-based executive search firm.

"Bill is an accomplished, nationally-known executive who will be responsible for executing the vision of the NNPA Board of Directors," Campbell said. "Because the Board chair is elected every two years, having a president and CEO in place will provide the organization with smoother operations and greater continuity."

Campbell described Tompkins as "a true visionary who will make an immediate impact on the organization."

Tompkins worked at the Washington Post for 19 years in a variety of top-level positions, including vice president of marketing, director of national advertising and manager of corporate and financial advertising sales. He left the newspaper to join Kodak as chief marketing officer of its entertainment imaging business unit. Tompkins was also vice president and general manager of the Motion Picture Film Group for the Eastman Kodak Company, managing a $700 million global distribution operation.

In addition, he was chief marketing officer of NextGen media Group, the firm that launched the social media news site ReportN. He also was president of William Tompkins Associates, a consulting firm specializing in providing advice on strategic planning and operations.

Tompkins is eager to draw on his wealth of experience on behalf of NNPA.

"Having had corporate roles during the majority of my career, I now have the opportunity to work with people who represent the heart and soul of what our country is all about, that being entrepreneurs are making a difference," he said.

And he will make a huge difference for NNPA, a group of publishers who own and operate their own newspapers.

"I will be able to create a firm and more solid internal foundation for the Association to ensure that we consistently provide higher quality and more useful services to our members," Tompkins explained. "I will also be responsible for ensuring the long-term financial viability of the NNPA and for providing bigger revenue streams for our members."

According to a job description NNPA provided to candidates for the position, "The President and CEO exercises overall authority and responsibility for the direction of the organization's personnel, programs and services and drives the execution of the strategy through its daily activities."

The job description also said the president and CEO "is the lead spokesperson and advocate for the organization with the community and a diverse set of partners and stakeholders."

Tompkins received his BA in economics magna cum laude from Tufts University and his MBA from the Harvard Business School. He is a former chairman of the National Kidney Foundation and has served on the board of the National Advertising Council.

Although many major U.S. daily newspapers are experiencing financial problems as a result of dwindling circulation, community-based publications appear to be much more viable. So much so that a company owned by Warren Buffett, the second-richest person in the United States behind Bill Gates, recently purchased 63 daily and weekly newspapers from Media General, Inc. for $142 million.

"In spite of the transformational changes in the newspaper industry, Black media publications continue to play a critical role in our country, both in terms of their impact on society at large and especially in the role they play in local communities," Tompkins said. "My background is in media and entertainment so the opportunity to participate in the reinvigoration and transformation of this hidden jewel of newspaper assets will be both exciting and impactful."

 

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