News Reporter and PR Firm Founder

She wanted to be a writer reporting the news. Her first jobs in journalism were successful, which attracted the attention of the founder of a new magazine, who hired her but when she asked for compensation deemed excessive by magazine ownership, she had to depart. Undaunted and using her contacts and news experience, she established her own business, which grew to be successful. 

FAMILY BACKGROUND

BCS was born in a major city, where her father was a family physician and her mother was a homemaker, also a lifetime member of the N.A.A.C.P.

CHILDHOOD

When BCS was a child, the family moved from the city to the suburbs. 

EDUCATION

A dedicated student through her elementary, middle, and high school years, BCS was admitted to a nationally respected college, from which she earned a Bachelor’s degree in history. 

EARLY JOBS ARE NEVER A CAREER COMMITMENT

First adult jobs for BCS were working as a journalist at Esquire and Look magazines, before she joined The New York Times as one of the first Black women to be hired as a reporter. 

CHALLENGES – WORK LOCATION AND PROFESSIONAL RESPECT

The Times hired BCS to work on its women’s news section, which at the time was called “Food, Fashions, Family, Furnishings.” 

The women who worked for the women’s section said they were overlooked by the rest of the newspaper’s staff. For most of its life span, the department was set apart from the main newsroom – relegated to “some dark little corner of the Times” as another alumna of the section recalled later. 

BCS’ specific assignment for the newspaper was to write about the latest fashions and sometimes about the celebrities who wore them. Thus, she encountered movie stars with extravagant wardrobes and also wrote about an Austrian prince, collectors of odd gadgets and what children in the audience were wearing at performances of “The Nutcracker” at Lincoln Center in New York City. 

GOOD JOB PERFORMANCE MAY LEAD TO A BETTER CAREER OPPORTUNITY

After working for two years with The New York Times, BCS learned of a journalism job opening at The Washington Post – as a news reporter. Based on the quality of  her writing within the fashion columns plus her prior academic record and her mature personality during a personal interview, BCS was hired, becoming the Post’s second Black female reporter at the time. 

At the Post, BCS was given more substantial assignments. She covered a speech by the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. at the National Cathedral, the funeral of Senator Robert F. Kennedy and other high-profile events. 

NEW CAREER OPPORTUNITIES MAY NOT ALWAYS BE SUCCESSFUL

After two years working at the Post, BCS was presented with the opportunity to become Editor-in-Chief of a new Black women’s magazine to be called Sapphire. BCS accepted the new job and worked with others at the young business venture to launch the new magazine. However, when BCS asked the magazine founder for a 5 % share of ownership in the magazine company, the founder balked. Instead of withdrawing her request and continuing to work as the Editor, the disagreement over BCS’ compensation became part of a larger inability of BCS and ownership to share a common vision for the growth of the magazine, so she departed. 

Apparently, the magazine’s founder interpreted BCS’ compensation request as more of a demand than a request. 

USING PAST BUSINESS CONTACTS AND EXPERIENCE TO LAUNCH A NEW BUSINESS

During her journalism career, BCS had interacted with many business leaders and celebrities. She now knew the world of newspapers and magazines, so she decided to combine her experience in those worlds with her ability as a writer to create the best narrative presentations for individuals and organizations by starting her own public relations firm. 

After a slow start with few clients, word spread from satisfied clients to prospective clients about the creative and personalized services which BCS and her firm could provide to present client stories in a positive light. Eventually, BCS’ new business was able to grow its profitability. 

CAREER SATISFACTION

A co-worker at one of the newspapers where BCS was employed early in her career, recalled about BCS, “Her talent and perseverance produced extraordinary stories that humanized national news at a time when all too many stellar women of all colors and backgrounds were shunted off to the Pink ghetto of society pages.”

After her public relations firm’s success attracted news attention, the former reporter (BCS) had “the tables turned” on her when she became the subject of an interview about ‘independent’ women with successful careers who have chosen to go it alone – that is, single (unmarried) by choice. Said BCS: “I’ve grown accustomed to the freedom to do whatever I want, whenever I want, and I cannot give that up easily.”

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This career story is based on an obituary written by Neil Genzlinger, published by The New York Times on 3/3/23.