Why Roland Martin says Black-owned media is under attack in the anti-DEI era — and how to fight back

On the 7th anniversary of launching his show, Roland Martin Unfiltered, the pioneering journalist sat with theGrio to unpack how DEI attacks have hurt Black journalists and newsrooms.

Roland Martin has always known the worth of Black-owned media outlets. The popular journalist may have been a regular on TV networks, but never lost sight of the power of owning the stories he tells—and his own story as a journalist.

“A lot of people didn’t realize I had been independent for a long time,” Martin told theGrio in an extended interview on the seventh anniversary of the launch of his digital streaming show “Roland Martin Unfiltered.” Martin, who is also the owner of the four-year-old Black Star Network, has full control of his brand and the equipment he uses to stream to nearly 2 million loyal subscribers daily. He even owns six 32-terabyte servers of content.

“I understood the importance of being able to have your own stuff,” he says.

A string of high-profile TV personalities exiting mainstream television proves Martin’s point about the real power being in who calls the shots off-camera. Reflecting on his decades-long journalism career, Martin remembers numerous instances of having non-Black executives try to censor his work or determine which Black-focused stories were worthy of being run. That inspired Martin to go into CEO mode on overdrive, focusing more on creating his own platform.

“The greatest mistake of journalists — they don’t learn the business of the business. We get fixated on how it looks,” Martin tells theGrio.

The impact of business on the news is being seen throughout the media industry, as brands go out of business and advertising dollars shrink. Journalists of all backgrounds have been hit with layoffs and censorship during the second Trump administration, but Martin says there is no greater threat to the empowerment of Black communities than the silencing of Black-led newsrooms — ones that cover more than entertainment.

“Our people really don’t understand that we are this close to literally not having Black-owned media covering news and information. That’s why I don’t spend lots of time on sports entertainment. We got lots of that,” Martin tells theGrio.

Martin’s digital show reached the YouTube Top 100 chart in May and continues to climb the ranks, even up against challengers who cover hip-hop, celebrity news, and sports.

Even with that success, Martin points to attacks on DEI having an outsized impact on Black media outlets and making the business harder. Advertisers, who already traditionally gave very little of their budgets to Black-owned news outlets, now face new headwinds and disincentives to be supportive of diverse storytelling.

“Corporate America; they have weaponized it to the point where if you’re a telecommunications company, you gotta deal with Brendan Carter, FCC chair, following Trump saying, ‘I’m not gonna approve any acquisitions because you support DEI, because you sponsor Black events,’” Martin explained. “So telecommunication companies are freaking out and have literally said, ‘Hey, we can’t sponsor that because the FCC is looking at everything that we do.’”

He continued, “We’re talking Black business, Black nonprofits, Black-owned media. Now we’re talking about 300,000 Black women losing jobs, so I keep saying what we’re facing is a massive effort to defund Black America — civil rights infrastructure, economic infrastructure, academia, health, every aspect of Black America. That’s what MAGA is targeting, and here’s the problem: We got to deal with this at least for the next three and a half years.”

Despite the business challenges, Martin says he is encouraged by viewers who are not only loyal but also step up to help Black media outlets financially.

His “Bring The Funk” fan club allows fans to donate and get special viewer perks, incentives, and exclusive stories.

Martin says if readers want to see more Black media outlets give quality and free information — the kind of vetted and deeply reported stories you can’t find on gossip blogs — it will take investment.

“Our people have got to understand that we are swinging and fighting. We are in these rooms. We are demanding these politicians not ignore us,” he says.

“So our people have got to support, and even if they say, you know what, I’m gonna give theGrio 25 (dollars), I’m going to give Roland 25 (dollars), and I’ma give this Black-owned media 25 dollars because I’m telling you right now. You do not want to see the day when Black-owned media doesn’t exist.”

Watch part one of our conversation with Roland Martin in the video player above or on our YouTube channel.