Photo courtesy: FAMU Housing (FAMU.edu)
Florida A&M University has been the victim of constant backlash and publicity from multiple publications in recent weeks, and not in a favorable way. From indecent exposure on Campus grounds to an untimely displacement of students from their on-campus living arrangements, Famu has addressed these unfortunate indecencies, whether by their doing or by the doing of different media outlets.
Aside from these recent episodes, the Historically Black College is noted for its athletic, artistic, and academic accesses; from receiving hundreds of thousands of dollars over just a few months for the preservation of Famu’s Coleman Library, to the Infamous ’Marching 100’ performing at a Louis Vuitton fashion show in Paris, you would think writing about the excellence this University has displayed would come with ease.
Unfortunately, if not written by FAMU students and staff themselves, it can become difficult to find positive exposure in media outlets in the midst of adverse events. Hard news and entertainment publications such as The Associated Press (AP News) and The Shaderoom, along with other opinionated channels, have only been seen to expose the negative aspects of the University.
AP news has recently put out an article highlighting the issue between FA&M football players and the University; in this article, they presented a summary of the issue, including the letter made by 90 participants of the football program along with names, positions, and outside opinions on the student/athletic experience at the institution.
Giving the AP the benefit of the doubt could be understood in this situation. As a publication founded in 1846 with over 3,000 workers that focuses on practical news such as major sports and politics, it may be unable to find room on their spread to document minor achievements the students may have achieved.
Gossip blogs such as The Shaderoom, which thrive off messy content and love to pin the African-American race against each other for a few giggles, have also decided to speak on issues surrounding the institution. When the news of a FAMU graduate student taking nude photos on the Rattler Statue in front of the Center for Access and Student Success hit the air, The Shaderoom wasted no time hopping on the popularity train and interviewing the student to publish an article with more half naked pictures of the perpetrator (who is now under investigation and in the process of losing her degree), than words.
Honing in on the fact that the AP tends to present news for middle to Upperclass White Americans, while The Shaderoom enjoys profiting off of distasteful and embarrassing content and those who enjoy it, it is safe to say that the reason why FAMU’s congratulation-worthy efforts are not recognized, is that they aren’t entertaining enough.
The note-worthy accomplishments make the University look too educated for many white Americans to enjoy, and make the University look too “well put together” for other Black people to uplift. The Institutions weak points seem to be a household conversation that can bring traffic to these websites, which, unfortunately, seems to be the only reason that they would voluntarily publish anything pushing HBCUs in a positive light.