• by Sara Guaglione , February 4, 2020

Verizon Media is rolling out a range of programming for Black History Month across its various brands.

Guru Gowrappan, CEO of Verizon Media stated the company wants to be a "trusted place that provides a platform for diverse perspectives. We feel we have the opportunity to play a crucial role and elevate stories in a meaningful way across our portfolio as we celebrate Black History Month.”

For example, HuffPost unveiled a multimedia project yesterday called “Black Hair Defined,” which explores the history of black hairstyles, traditions and products throughout the years. The initiatives serves to "amplify Black discussions about Black hair," HuffPost reporter Ja’han Jones wrote in an introduction to the hub.

A “digital hair museum” features interviews, photos, video and illustrations of black hair.

“HuffPost has long been a committed leader in bringing to life stories for, by and about the black community,” Lydia Polgreen, editor-in-chief of HuffPost, noted in an email provided to Publishers Daily. “For Black History Month this year, we felt compelled to publish a series of features that explore how black people have shaped their own culture in a country that has too often denied and denigrated their contributions.”

This year’s theme, Polgreen noted, is “We Belong Here.”

HuffPost will host a “We Belong Here” live event on February 26. A panel will discuss the brand’s South Carolina project, moderated by Polgreen, and another panel will address the Black Hair Defined project, moderated by Jones.

HuffPost Politics will focus on the many definitions of what it means to be a black voter in America today. The vertical will focus on Columbia, South Carolina, ahead of the primaries at the end of the month. 

The HuffPost Life vertical will focus on the cuisine of black chefs in America and “what it means to carry on the culinary traditions of their ancestors today."

RYOT, Verizon Media’s branded content studio, is the production partner on Time’s immersive exhibit that recreates the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. “The March” will debut at the DuSable Museum Of African American History in Chicago on February 28. 

In addition, Yahoo Finance will conduct a series of on-camera interviews with black business leaders and entrepreneurs, including TIAA CEO Roger Ferguson and Jide Zeitlin, CEO of luxury fashion holding company Tapestry. They represent two of just four black CEOs at Fortune 500 companies.

Yahoo Sports will profile black leaders and pioneers in the sports community and examine how the major sports leagues hire and treat minority coaches. 

Verizon Media's live event series “BUILD by Yahoo” will also host several events throughout Black History Month. Its short-form video network “In The Know” will publish a profile focused on an up-and-coming member of the black community each week, including photographer Myles Loftin and R&B singer UMI.