Name
Jordan, John Q (Interviewee)
La Brie, Henry G (Interviewer)
Title
Oral history interview with John Q. Jordan, 1971
Other Titles
Reminiscences of John Q. Jordan : oral history, 1971; Oral history of John Q. Jordan, 1971
Abstract
In his 1971 interview with Henry La Brie III, Jordan discusses his education and its interruption by the Great Depression, his original career plans, how he came to work at the Norfolk Journal and Guide, and how the paper grew under his leadership. He gives his take on how black journalists approach news stories and how he learned to create interest in a story through its visual presentation. Other topics include: the supposed sensationalism of black papers, the relationship between the black press and the civil rights movement, advertising and the black press, and his time as a war correspondent in Italy during World War II.
Collection Name
Black Journalists oral history collection
Subjects
Journalism--Social aspects; Journalism--Political aspects; Journalists; World War, 1939-1945--Journalists; African American press; African American journalists; Newspapers--Circulation; African Americans--Civil rights; Norfolk (Va.); United States Race relations; Jordan, John Q
Format
oral histories
Genre
Interviews
Date
1971
Physical Description
sound files : digital preservation master, WAV files (96kHz, 24 bit); 49 pages
Note (Biographical)
John Q. Jordan was born in North Carolina in 1909 and grew up in Portsmouth, New Jersey. Jordan attended the Boston Clerical School and, briefly, the New England School of Art. In 1933, he was hired by the black newspaper the Norfolk Journal and Guide and returned to New Jersey to work at the Portsmouth Bureau. During World War II, Jordan covered all-black marine units in Italy for the Journal and Guide; his photos and related written work were published in numerous papers across the nation.
Note
Interviewed by Henry G. La Brie III on July 6, 1971.
Note (Provenance)
Henry G. La Brie III Gift, 1975
Language
English
Library Location
Columbia Center for Oral History, Columbia University
Browse Location’s Digital Content
Catalog Record
11563797
Also In
Oral History Archives at Columbia
Time-Based Media
Time-Based Media
Persistent URL
https://dx.doi.org/10.7916/d8-fmtp-ab70
Related URLs
Available digital content for this interview.