(BALTIMORE – September 23, 2026) – I have often said that if you get one true friend in this world, you are rich.
Omega Psi Phi Fraternity expresses it this way: “Friendship is essential to the soul.”
When I look at the photograph taken after Wednesday’s BMORENews.com press conference, that message comes alive.
I see my godbrother, Bishop Kevia Fernando Elliott; my dear friend Renny Bass; Symbolie; and Jacqui Cummings. Their friendship has stood the test of time. They are true blue—A1 from day one.
They have supported BMORENews.com in ways that go beyond words. They have supported us through action.
We began Wednesday’s gathering at The Chill Spot with prayer. We then held a press conference to announce the inaugural print edition of the BMORENews.com newspaper and promote Saturday’s Black Wall Street Expo 2026 on West 25th Street.
Afterward, we took a picture.
What happened between the prayer and that photograph is difficult to put into words. In that room stood a circle of people who have helped strengthen Baltimore through business, ministry, culture, community leadership, and friendship.
Renny Bass is the force behind the Downtown Cultural Arts Center. I have held numerous Black Wall Street events and television tapings at his facility. He has supported Black Wall Street since I first met him, including an early event at the Shops at North and Charles, across the alley from the legendary O’Dell’s.
Bishop Kevia Fernando Elliott leads The Lord’s Church on Park Heights Avenue. I can genuinely say that Bishop helped raise me. More than that, he has stood beside me through some of the toughest periods of my life.
Symbolie is a leader with R.E. Harrington, one of Baltimore’s largest underground utility companies. One year, she led our end-of-year celebration and promoted BMORENews throughout Radio One. It became a marvelous celebration I’ll never forget. She also has a whole other life. She is an author, activist, and documentarian who brings attention to missing children.
And what can I say about Jacqui Cummings, the school counselor by day who is an entrepreneur by night?
We held the press conference inside one of her five properties on West 25th Street. Through Notre Maison Connects, she continues creating opportunities for Black businesses, families, and young people. Her Black Wall Street Expo transforms multiple blocks of West 25th Street into a marketplace for entrepreneurship and community connection.
Each of these individuals has been there for me. Each has stood with BMORENews. Each has demonstrated what friendship looks like when it is backed by action.
I do not take this next iteration of BMORENews.com lightly.
My heart is filled with gratitude for every person who, through thought, prayer, encouragement, or deed, has supported our efforts to celebrate our people.
Media was always my calling
Media has been my calling since elementary school. None of my classmates from Matthew Henson would be surprised by what I am doing today.
I was named the AFRO Boy of the Month several times and had the newspaper’s largest delivery route in West Baltimore. My route stretched from Easterwood to Edmondson Avenue and from Warwick Avenue to Sandtown.
The Black Press was literally in my hands before I understood that it would become my life’s work.
When I made the honor roll during my first year at Lemmel, my reward was a CB radio. Imagine that. Amid everything happening at Lemmel in those days, academics and communications were my thing.
Somewhere during my time at Dunbar, I was given an opportunity to write. Schoolmates such as Trinette Ingram have told me that I talked about creating a publication even then. I do not remember saying it, but I find it amazing nonetheless.
My mother, Lillie Glover, typed and printed my first collection of poems. Years later, when I met Nikki Giovanni at Spelman College, I presented her with a copy. She later wrote me a letter encouraging me to continue writing.
Even Dean Carter at Morehouse College helped shape my development. He dubbed me “Poet Laureate” and had me share a piece every Sunday at Vesper Hour.
The seeds were being planted long before BMORENews.com existed.
The people who opened doors
No one accomplishes anything alone.
Charlie Dugger introduced me to WEAA in 1980. Around that same period, I began receiving opportunities at the station. Coppin State Professor Ronn Nichols also helped shape my understanding of media and communications.
Years later, Marcellus Alexander allowed “the young Doni Glover” to interview him at WJZ-TV for a Coppin project. At the time, Mr. Alexander was vice president and general manager of WJZ-TV. For a young student, that access meant everything.
Wanda Draper and Cassandra Vaughn-Fox later gave me access to WBAL-TV 11, where I provided political analysis for a decade. Cassandra is the daughter of the late Dr. A.C.D. Vaughn, the noted pastor of Sharon Baptist Church—a church with deep ties to Baltimore’s Black history and the history of the AFRO.
Wanda Draper had also been my grandmother’s neighbor.
Once again, life connected the dots.
I think of the late Charles Robinson and the example he set. I think of April Ryan, whom I began seeing at the White House around 2010. She has since become the longest-serving Black White House correspondent in American history.
And please do not let me forget Cornell Bass.
Cornell asked me why I was not going to the White House to cover America’s first Black president. I began going immediately.
These people helped show me what was possible. Some opened doors. Some encouraged me. Some challenged me to walk through doors that were already open.
Standing on the shoulders of the Black Press
I have worked in the Black Press since 1994, beginning with the Sandtown-Winchester Viewpoint. From there, I contributed to citywide publications including the AFRO and The Baltimore Times. I later blogged for The Baltimore Sun and wrote for The Final Call, the first national and international publication to carry my work.
I’ve had other newspaper, television, and radio opportunities along the way, but my appreciation for the Black Press has never changed.
I have learned from some remarkable people, including John Jacob “Jake” Oliver Jr. of the AFRO and Dena Wane of The Baltimore Times. I also think of Robert W. Bogle of The Philadelphia Tribune, the nation’s oldest continuously published Black newspaper.
Beyond those personal connections stands an even greater lineage.
We stand on the shoulders of pioneers such as Claude Barnett, founder of the Associated Negro Press; Robert Sengstacke Abbott, founder of the Chicago Defender; and John H. Sengstacke, who helped organize and strengthen Black newspaper publishers nationally.
Here in Baltimore, we must acknowledge John Henry Murphy Sr., widely recognized as the founder and great builder of the AFRO. We must also recognize Joy and Peter Bramble, who founded The Baltimore Times and built it into an enduring community institution. They are also the parents of P. David Bramble, whose leadership is helping reshape parts of Baltimore today.
These individuals understood that Black people needed the power to document our own lives.
The significance of the Black Press reaches far beyond publishing newspapers. The Black Press has documented our victories and our pain. It has challenged injustice, defended our humanity, and preserved stories that might otherwise have been lost.
It has provided a platform for Black businesses, churches, organizations, political leaders, artists, educators, and everyday citizens. It has helped establish the public record of what Black people have built, contributed, and endured.
When the dominant narrative excludes us, the Black Press includes us.
When our accomplishments are minimized, the Black Press documents them.
When our communities are discussed without our voices, the Black Press speaks from within those communities.
That mission is especially critical in these Trumpish times, when civil rights gains won through the blood, courage, and sacrifice of our ancestors are being peeled back layer by layer.
The Black Press must continue—and BMORENews.com will continue telling our story for as long as God gives us the strength and resources.
Willie Brown and the power of perception
I will never forget attending the National Newspaper Publishers Association convention in Portland, Oregon, in 2014.
Former California Assembly Speaker and San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown received the NNPA Legacy Award during that convention. I had the opportunity to meet him and speak with him.
He offered a powerful message about the importance of the Black Press.
“I will always keep the Black Press at the center of exchange for me,” Brown told those gathered, “as I seem to continue participating in the struggle to one day have us perceived as who we are. We are equal. I want us to be perceived as equal, because when the perception comes, the reality follows.”
Those words have stayed with me.
Long before I met Willie Brown, my father, Donald E. Glover, had told me about him. Meeting Brown, speaking with him, and hearing him affirm the importance of our work was another full-circle moment.
Perception matters.
For generations, Black people have been forced to fight against images and narratives designed to portray us as less intelligent, less capable, less deserving, and less human.
The Black Press challenges those false perceptions.
We tell the world who we are. We document Black excellence, Black struggle, Black resistance, Black enterprise and Black humanity. We are participating in the continuing struggle for our people to be perceived—and ultimately treated—as equals.
As Willie Brown said, when the perception comes, the reality follows.
The village that poured into me
The village that poured into me extends far beyond Baltimore.
Ron Busby Sr. of the U.S. Black Chambers has been a solid and invaluable connection. We met through our late friend Michael Graham, and Ron’s work advancing Black businesses has remained closely aligned with our Black Wall Street mission.
Odessa and Rick Hopkins, formerly of Prince George’s County and now in Florida, were early supporters who helped us expand Black Wall Street into New York City. Odessa connected us with Victor Pate, who has helped coordinate several of our New York events—from Harlem to our most recent gathering in Chelsea.
Peggy Morris and Sisters 4 Sisters Network Inc. have traveled beside BMORENews for 24 years. Peggy has been the greatest kind of big sister: steady, consistent, and A1 from day one.
BMORENews.com and Sisters 4 Sisters Network began around the same time, and we have been rolling together ever since. The organization supported our first major event in New York City, the BMORENews Global Forum on Women’s Empowerment at the United Nations.
Jet Miller planted the original seed for me to take BMORENews to New York. Jet worked in fashion, cosmetology, and makeup, and she was constantly traveling there.
“Jet, where are you going?”
“Going to New York.”
Eventually, I caught the bug.
I had always loved New York, but Jet inspired me to take BMORENews to another level in that city. That seed grew. BMORENews established relationships in New York, held Black Wall Street events there, and, most recently, I was honored in the city myself.
The support has extended throughout Washington, D.C.; Prince George’s County; Montgomery County; Northern Virginia; Baltimore County; Randallstown; Owings Mills; and Woodlawn.
The Joe Manns Black Wall Street Awards were born in Woodlawn. I remain grateful to Josh and to the late Joe Manns, whose name and example continue to guide this work.
My earliest journalism teachers must also be remembered, including Mr. Kermit Williams – our 5th- and 6th-grade teacher who taught us broadcast production. We produced the school announcements each day.
Ms. Valerie, my first co-editor, trained me. Marsha Bannerman and the late Jerry Cross also helped train me. Michael Jones was the other co-editor; he was leaving as I was coming in.
Ms. Chili at the Odyssey deserves a special shoutout, too.
The whole village poured into me.
The first BMORENews advertiser
Then there was Raymond V. Haysbert Sr.
Mr. Haysbert purchased the first advertisement on BMORENews.com. If my memory serves me correctly, he may also have advertised in my earlier publication, the North Avenue Review.
He was one of the greatest mentors and friends a young businessman could have.
Mr. Haysbert was already established and accomplished. He had helped build Parks Sausage into one of the most prominent Black-owned businesses in America. He did not need anything from us, yet he never forgot everyday people or young entrepreneurs trying to find their way.
His example is one reason I make it a point to respect and encourage younger people today.
Somebody took the time to see value in me before the rest of the world knew my name. I have a responsibility to do the same for somebody else.
I could thank a thousand people and still unintentionally leave someone out. This is only one article—not the final accounting of everyone who helped BMORENews survive, grow, and serve.
The larger truth is simple: A village poured into me, and whatever BMORENews has become carries a piece of that village.
Why print, and why now?
Some people will understandably ask why BMORENews.com is launching a newspaper when so many newspapers are closing.
The answer is simple: Print is another part of our media vertical.
We already have a website, radio programming, podcasts, television broadcasts, premium video, social media, special events, and community partnerships. The newspaper is the next iteration. Each platform supports and promotes the others.
The printed newspaper is not replacing BMORENews.com. It strengthens the entire network.
It gives us a physical product that can reach people inside bookstores, markets, restaurants, churches, businesses, and community organizations.
Through the QR code on its front page, readers can move directly from the printed newspaper to our website, interviews, videos, and premium content.
It all works together.
BMORENews.com is preparing to enter its 25th year as the Black Press prepares to commemorate its 200th anniversary.
We are a digital baby born in 2002. Unlike legacy newspapers such as the AFRO, we began online and are now expanding into print. In that sense, we are doing something few people expected.
Still, we understand that we stand on the shoulders of Black Press pioneers.
In the United States, Samuel Cornish and John Brown Russwurm published the first edition of Freedom’s Journal on March 16, 1827.
Black Press outlets throughout America are now preparing to commemorate the bicentennial in 2027. How beautiful that BMORENews.com’s 25th anniversary will coincide with the Black Press’s 200th anniversary.
We are not separate from that history. We are part of its next chapter.
The meaning of March 16
March 16 carries deep personal meaning for me.
It is the day my mother got her wings. She had been gone for 38 years when I heard a sermon about the man at the Pool of Bethesda who had suffered for 38 years before receiving his healing.
Around that same time, I began paying closer attention to the fact that March 16 is recognized as the birthday of the Black Press in America.
It felt like a full-circle moment—as if God had kissed me on the forehead and said, “Job well done. Let me give you another reason, My child, to celebrate this day.”
I had already been using March 16 to hold events honoring my mother. Now that same date connects her memory to the work God has given me through the Black Press.
That reminds me to treat every day like Christmas.
Taking our stories into the community
BMORENews.com will continue telling stories from East Baltimore, up Harford and Belair roads, across Park Heights, up Reisterstown Road and Liberty Heights Avenue, out Liberty Road to Randallstown, and throughout South and West Baltimore.
The inaugural print edition is currently available at:
- Rasoul’s Bookstore inside Northeast Market
- The Bea Gaddy Family Center on Chester Street
- Everyone’s Place African Cultural Center on West North Avenue
- The Chill Spot, 36 W. 25th Street
- The Lord’s Church, 5010 Park Heights Avenue
- Island Quizine/IQ Bar at Liberty Rd. & Milford Mill
Additional distribution locations will be announced.
Businesses, churches, and community organizations interested in becoming distribution partners should contact me at Doni@BMORENews.com or 443-858-2684.
We are accepting advertisements and encouraging businesses to submit coupons and special offers for readers.
This newspaper should do more than inform people. It should help direct customers and dollars toward businesses serving our communities.
A message to the next generation
If there is one thing I hope a young person takes from this journey, it is this: Do not be afraid to pursue your dreams.
Use the gifts and talents God gave you—and multiply them.
Be the best at what you do. Outwork the competition. Save more than you spend, and invest in top-tier technology.
Stay abreast of your industry and your genre. Study the market. Look globally. Understand other markets, and learn what the gold standard is in whatever field you choose.
Most importantly, remember that the only person you are truly competing against is the person you were yesterday.
I am eternally grateful for everyone who has prayed for us, spoken life over us, encouraged us, and supported BMORENews.com throughout the years.
Wednesday’s gathering was about the inaugural newspaper and Saturday’s Black Wall Street Expo, but it was also about something even more fundamental: friendship.
True friends show up.
Bishop Elliott, Renny, Symbolie, Jacqui and the others in that room showed up. They have been showing up for years.
Many thanks to William Hopson, J. Howard Henderson, William Poinsette, Thomas Hardnett, John Bugg, Dot Towler, Pat Tunstall, J. Wyndal Gordon, Esq., William “Billy” Murphy Jr., Esq., and Tony Garcia, Esq.
And I surely can’t forget my STEM CITY USA Family and our G. Grant Griffin Media collaboration. Dr. Tyrone Taborn is the GOAT, in my estimation. He is doing what no Black publisher in America is doing – pioneering digital empowerment in our communities for forty years.
A special shout-out in heaven to Mr. Edward Hooks and Ms. Shirley—and, of course, to my parents and grandparents.
Rest in power. I appreciate you all.
As I present this inaugural newspaper, I do so with respect for the ancestors, appreciation for my mentors, love for my friends, and hope for the next generation.
I hope you like it.
Friendship is essential to the soul.
To God be the glory.
