Interactive One’s surging business division will provide editorial, product, and marketing responsibilities to one of the web’s most exciting digital properties.

New York, NY— April 15, 2013—The largest urban digital media company in the world, Interactive One, announces a sales, content, technology, product and marketing partnership with GlobalGrind.com and its founder Russell Simmons.

The partnership will be managed by Interactive One Studios, the company’s business unit that packages Interactive One’s cross-platform sales force, leading suite of products, unparalleled original content library, and award-winning marketing services, into an agency that other 3^rd party publishers can utilize to increase their revenue, gain more robust content, and/or increase their traffic and engagement.

Interactive One Studios has additionally partnered with NARRATIVE: The Culture Lab; a digital marketing, entertainment and technology company focused on developing unique brand experiences and solutions, recently founded by former GlobalGrind.com Co-President, Tricia Clarke-Stone and Russell Simmons.  NARRATIVE will continue to manage GlobalGrind.com’s growing client base with marketing, revenue generation services, and sales media representation.

“GlobalGrind.com has been one of the most important urban crossover content platforms in the space,” said Tom Newman, President of Interactive One. “Joining their brand, content, and offline presence together with the core digital competencies we’ve developed is incredibly exciting.”

With work to begin immediately, the GlobalGrind.com website will migrate to Interactive One’s proprietary platform, giving them the opportunity to expand their business with the benefit of increased scale, world-class advertising media management and support, guaranteed uptimes and tech support and a unique set of features and functions that have made the channels within the Interacitve One network a leader in the space.

As part of the deal, GlobalGrind’s content team, led by co-President Michael Skolnik, will work out of Interactive’s One’s NYC headquarters.

“True to his legacy, Russell has built an online platform loved by both audiences and advertisers alike,” said Alfred C. Liggins III, CEO of Interactive One.  “I am honored to partner with him in this next phase of GlobalGrind and welcome it as an Interactive One Studios’ signature client.”

GlobalGrind is Hip-Pop!  Founded by legendary entrepreneur Russell Simmons, GlobalGrind.com is an all encompassing site that covers the “Hip” side of Pop culture across multiple verticals – Entertainment, Celebrity, Music, Style and Fashion, Culture, News and Politics.  GlobalGrind provides a platform for an active cross-cultural audience of influencers to consume and interact with compelling content and unique digital experiences.

“Having the strongest urban digital publishing partner in Alfred Liggins’ Interactive One, while retaining GlobalGrind’s unique content vision and sales representation, gives us the best of all worlds – a powerful partnership that gives us scale along with the independence and continuity to reach millions,” said Russell Simmons, Founder and Chairman of GlobalGrind.com

GlobalGrind.com is the latest addition to Interactive One Studios joining Reach Media, BlackAmericaWeb.com, BlackDoctor.org and others.

To learn more about Interactive One Studios, please visti www.interactiveone.com.

ABOUT INTERACTIVE ONE

Interactive One is one of the fastest growing digital companies reaching millions of Black and Latino Americans each month. With approximately 3 billion annual page views on its suite of sites, the company has become the definitive online resource for the urban community through its suite of social, local radio and content offerings such as HelloBeautiful (www.HelloBeautiful.com), the fastest growing lifestyle resource for today’s Black woman; NewsOne (www.NewsOne.com), which provides up to the minute, comprehensive coverage of newsworthy events relevant to Black Americans across the country and the world; TheUrbanDaily (www.TheUrbanDaily.com), the eyes and ears for the urban community looking for what’s hot online, on the airwaves, in theaters, and on the street; GIANTlife (www.GiantLife.com), the definitive urban lifestyle brand for Next Generation tastemakers and icons  Elev8 (www.Elev8.com) a site devoted to elevating the mind, body and spirit, ZONA de Sabor (www.Zonadesabor.com), the new online destination for today’s urban Latino who wants to stay current on entertainment and celebrity news in the Latino community  and our social platform anchored by the iconic BlackPlanet (www.BlackPlanet.com), the newly launched BlackPlanetNEXT (www.BlackPlanetNEXT.com), and the new BlackPlanet RADIO (www.BlackPlanetRadio.com), the digital industry’s first social radio website created for the African American community.

Interactive One was launched by Radio One, Inc. in 2008 to complement Radio One’s existing portfolio of media companies targeting Black Americans. Since its launch, Interactive One has quickly become the #1 online platform for the African American and urban community.

ABOUT GLOBAL GRIND

GlobalGrind is The New American Mainstream. Based on the vision of Russell Simmons, GlobalGrind.com is the only Hip Pop site that’s all encompassing; bringing the broadest array of content across multiple verticals – entertainment, celebrity, music, style & fashion, culture, news and politics, to an active cross-cultural 18-34 year old audience; Today’s most influential and active consumers growing from a niche segment to the center of American culture.

###

Media Contacts:
Natarsha Gilliard
NGilliard@interactiveone.com

646-695-3814

I missed the first one.  When Barack Hussein Obama was sworn in as our first African-American president with an agenda that I believed passionately in, I watched history unfold on a flat screen.

I was not going to miss the second time around.  In fact, to make sure I gave myself the most memorable of experiences, I chose to go to the Capitol as part of a radio broadcast team, giving me the kind of 20-feet away access that laypersons – and even fellow journalists – would only dream of.

We arrived in the middle of the night and I honestly did not know what to expect. Would this be the moment of a lifetime?  Or would this be, as all the pundits were claiming, a disappointing repeat with less people and less enthusiasm and less meaning?

Let me say this:  Folks turned up to be a part of the 2nd inauguration of Barack Hussein Obama with hope in their hearts and a dream in their eyes.  America was alive that day in Washington, what makes us great pulsed through the men & women, boys & girls, young & old who had to be exactly where they were in that moment. Exactly where he was.

“We the people,” the President proclaimed over and over, not just as a patriotic turn of phrase, but as a unifying call-to-arms that, still, a few days later, I can’t shake the promise of.

“With the Bush inaugural we were the 1%,” an African-American Secret Service veteran remarked to me.  Staring at the wonderful plurality of the crowd in front of us both, with proud black and brown faces everywhere, he did not want anyone to underestimate how special that was.  His 4th inaugural, he clearly remembers looking at the nearly all-white crowd that showed up not that long ago.

“And it probably would’ve gone back to exactly that if Romney won…”

His voice trailed off, but the thought didn’t linger, because our President, our own Black Shining President, just emerged to take his Oath in front of us all…

How To Reach The Emerging Social, Mobile and Multicultural User

“Media snacking” the concept that audiences are no longer consuming media from one media source at any particular time and are rather snacking on various forms of media is a modern day phenomena that is heighten for the multicultural consumer.  Audiences continue to consume content through traditional media sources such as Radio and Television but in growing numbers consumers are spending more on more time on mobile smart phones  and social network sites to access premium content.

In various multicultural research articles and advertising publications we continue to read how multicultural consumers over index on mobile and social media consumption and marketers are grappling with new strategies to reach this mobile and social media conscious consumer.  With African American and Hispanic buying power growing at encouraging rates each year the top brands and marketers are focused on partnering with the best publishers and content curators to help them reach the emerging social, local and multicultural consumer.  

During Social Media Week NYC, on Thursday February 21st at 5pm EST join the IAB Interactive Advertising Bureau, and hear from the top leading media companies AOL, NBC, Interactive One and Nielsen as they discuss how they’re reaching this audience with some of the best strategies in the business.

Click here for event details: http://socialmediaweek.org/newyork/events/?id=53452#.UQAgxuhwi1x 

SPONSORED BY LEXUS

Zona de Sabor Continues to Grow and Serve the Latino Audience

in Partnership with Lexus and Boost Mobile

NEW YORK, NY—December 28, 2012—Digital media leader Interactive One has expanded its Latino market influence with the launch of Zona de Sabor, an entertainment news website targeting young, urban Latino Americans. Zona de Sabor serves as a Latino entertainment and news hub, joining an expanding family of Interactive One websites that are leading the category. ZonadeSabor.com is a complement to MiGente.com, Interactive One’s social media site targeting the same demographic, and serves up the hottest music, television, film, and fashion news for acculturated Latinos.

“We’ve built a reputation for launching and growing new websites like HelloBeatiful.com, TheUrbanDaily and BlackPlanet Radio, as well as enhancing content and increasing traffic for established ones through our work with brands like American Airlines’ BlackAtlas.com,” said Tom Newman, President, Interactive One. “Zona de Sabor extends our reach in the growing Latino community, allowing us to provide our content expertise and digital services to a broader urban audience.”

“We’re thrilled to have Boost Mobile and Lexus partner with us in launching Zona de Sabor.  Together we will build stronger relationships with the Latino community by providing best in class content,” said Keith Bowen, Chief Revenue Officer of Interactive One. “Lexus recognizes the value of ensuring our readers can access our content anytime, which led them to partner with us to launch Zona de Sabor on the tablet with the goal of providing content for today’s active and on the go consumers.”

New Tablet Experience

The launch of Zona da Sabor on the tablet leveraging the Onswipe platform allows readers to engage with content through a touch enabled experience. Onswipe creates the functionality for a pixel perfect layout that is customized to both the branding and audience. Zona de Sabor readers will enjoy the same high quality editorial they access on the desktop, now on their tablet, plus a highly-engaging, full-page interstitial from Lexus, reminiscent of the print experience.

“Onswipe is reinventing the way the world experiences the web for touch,” said Onswipe CEO Jason Baptiste. “Our platform makes it incredibly easy for a publisher like Zona de Sabor to provide an engaging, app-like experience in the mobile browser.”

For Latino lifestyle and entertainment news, visit http://www.zonadesabor.com.

ABOUT INTERACTIVE ONE

Interactive One has more than 15 million members and reaches millions of Black Americans and Latinos each month. With approximately 3 billion annual page views on its suite of sites, the company has become the definitive online resource for the urban community through its suite of social, content and radio sites such as the iconic BlackPlanet (www.BlackPlanet.com), the newly launched BlackPlanetNEXT (www.BlackPlanetNEXT.com), and the new BlackPlanet RADIO (www.BlackPlanetRadio.com), the digital industry’s first social radio website created for the African American community. Interactive One is also home to several leading content sites including: NewsOne (www.NewsOne.com), which provides up to the minute, comprehensive coverage of newsworthy events relevant to Black Americans across the country and the world; TheUrbanDaily (www.TheUrbanDaily.com), the eyes and ears for Black Americans looking for what’s hot online, on the airwaves, in theaters, and on the street; HelloBeautiful (www.HelloBeautiful.com), the definitive lifestyle resource for today’s Black woman; Elev8 (www.Elev8.com) a site devoted to elevating the mind, body and spirit.

Interactive One was launched by Radio One, Inc. in 2008 to complement Radio One’s existing portfolio of media companies targeting Black Americans. Since its launch, Interactive One has quickly become the #1 online platform for the African American and urban community. 

Media Contact:

Natarsha Gilliard

ngilliard@interactiveone.com

646-695-3814

I know who my colleagues think I am. I’m pretty sure they’ve accepted me as the lightest Black dude in the office. My job demands that I constantly engage co-workers around racial issues, so I have opportunities to represent my Black experience all the time which I’m sure gains me some points.

But it’s different in the street. My what-is-he? scorecard for strangers who pass me by in New York City is as follows:

• 60 percent think I’m Latino
• 25 percent think I’m Black or interracial
• 15 percent think I’m White

Pretty good percentages for me because I’m only comfortable when my see-me-as-a-person-of-color index is above half. That was my problem in Baltimore. Living there for a few years to teach sixth grade at Booker T. Washington Middle School made me vulnerable to mis-identification in a southern environment without a significant Latino population. My white quotient jumped to above 50.

One day I revealed my Black ethnic background to my students (thanks to the urging of a veteran who was looking for ways to help this first-year teacher not quit before Christmas), and it was the talk in the lunchroom all week: Did you know Mr. Fontaine was Black?? What??

Because of how I look, I’ve never been called the n-word, but I’ve been called out in other ways. Attempts to label me as a “white boy” hurt primarily because it came in an all-Black context (can’t you just accuse me of being Puerto Rican like my building superintendant did my whole life?) but it didn’t surprise me. I was the one who pinched my own skin as a twelve-year-old to explain to my mother (an interracial woman herself) why I didn’t feel Black 100 percent. Mirrors don’t lie, I told her.

CNN’s latest installment of their top-rated Black In America series handles these complex issues of identity, asking young African-Americans of various shades and backgrounds to discuss their experience. First, I’m surprised that it took them so long to address this topic (especially given series hostess Soledad O’Brien’s interracial heritage), but I was most struck by how the young people’s experiences were so similar to mine and those of my (not all-Black) friends 20 years ago. It was like I was watching a video of a college I-Pride meeting from 1995.

That’s not necessarily a bad thing. Every generation’s naivete drives their passion to figure out the world and clearly the show’s goal is to raise more questions than it answers. But as cultural critic Stuart Hall liked to say, “cultural identity is one of becoming as well as being. Like everything which is historical… [identities] undergo constant transformation” and I didn’t feel that in the show.

There is a cultural upheaval going on in our country that is expanding ideas about Blackness. Latino, Asian and even white identity are also being affected (don’t get it twisted: the identity of caucausian culture is as dependent on people of color as the other way around). But this shift was not loudly represented by all the great young folks in Black In America talking about how they see and socialize themselves.

No one can argue anymore how demographics (age, race, gender, where you live) and psychographics (behavior, personality, what you do) continue to lose their accuracy whenever considered in isolation, so becoming more aware of the choices people make to culturally affirm themselves has become a vital part of modern life. And not just for marketers or academics or chief content officers like me. That subconscious drop-down menu that we all use to define someone we meet for the first time (that used to just be tall/short, black/white, hot/not) has gotten as long as the ever-expanding definitions of race on the Census forms. And the younger you are, the longer your list is.

My own career has been an attempt to document these cultural phenomena. The word “America” was my perfect descriptor for a Black-centered culture and fashion magazine. No misspelling with a “k” needed. “Hello beautiful” is the perfect statement of self for a digital network dedicated to all African-American women.

That being said, even I stress videographers whenever I’m on camera to “get my tint right,” because I’m scared of being washed out on screen. I’m very comfortable as an interracial African-American man but I know my perception percentages deteriorate fast if I’m running around town with a bad haircut. And that bothers me. So clearly, even for me, racial life continues to be complicated.

What I’ve learned is that when there is a gap between how someone feels about themselves and how they’re perceived by others, you get conflict. Even within my own interracial family, there are darker-skinned folks who take on their Italian maiden name as an homage to the white mother that raised them (and a dis to the Black father who didn’t), and lighter-skinned folks who refuse to ever straighten their hair to avoid any more obvious connections to a European heritage.

Progress has been made for sure since I was accused of looking like Jon B (or Vanilla Ice, worse). Scores of light-skinned African-Americans have bucked stereotype and shown themselves to be culturally authentic and “not tragic.” Just like our children have many brown-skinned role models nowadays who are smart, qualified and insanely beautiful. And the first Black president has a white mother.

But Black In America reminds me that we still have work to do. So despite its obviousness to me, in broadening the lens Black folks look at each other through, the show will help motivate the self-reflective conversations that will push our culture forward. Strength in numbers. Black Power through Black diversity. And if it doesn’t work well enough, just put Raekwon’s “Ice Cream” song on repeat. The rapper’s lustful boast seemed to have it all figured out many years ago: “French vanilla, butter pecan, chocolate deluxe…”

 INTERACTIVE ONE’s RAPIDLY EXPANDING STUDIOS ROSTER

Interactive One’s newest business division will host BlackAmericaWeb.com on its platform as well as collaborate on the site’s marketing and editorial initiatives

New York, NY—December 7, 2012—Leading urban digital media company Interactive One announces a content, sales and marketing partnership for BlackAmericaWeb.com with website parent company Reach Media and the website founder Tom Joyner. The partnership will be managed by Interactive One Studios, the company’s business unit that leverages Interactive One’s deep knowledge of the digital landscape and offers product, technology, content, advertising sales and marketing services to digital publishers wishing to increase revenue, provide more robust content, and amplify traffic to their properties.

BlackAmericaWeb.com will migrate to the Interactive One proprietary platform and leverage Interactive One’s editorial content, audience and marketing.  Reach Media will benefit from Interactive One’s experienced programming team and state-of-the-art technology.  Reach will also work with Interactive One to expand its sales opportunities – taking their premium brand offering to Interactive One’s breadth of digital advertising partners.

“Having Reach Media as a Studios partner is a terrific opportunity,” said Tom Newman, President of Interactive One. “This relationship combines our expertise in digital with their tremendous brand, content, and offline presence.”

Reach Media, partially owned by Interactive One’s parent company Radio One, was founded by leading syndicated urban radio host Tom Joyner and comprises various broadcast and live event initiatives as well as the website BlackAmericaWeb.com.  BlackAmericaWeb is the digital home to The Tom Joyner Morning Show, the Allstate Tom Joyner Family Reunion and various offline programs.

“Collaborating with Interactive One means more enriching digital content for listeners of the Tom Joyner Morning Show and readers of BlackAmericaWeb,” said David Kantor, Reach Media CEO. “We look forward to expanding our relationship within the Radio One family through this new partnership.”

ABOUT INTERACTIVE ONE

Interactive One has more than 15 million members and reaches millions of Black Americans and Latinos each month. With approximately 3 billion annual page views on its suite of sites, the company has become the definitive online resource for the urban community through its suite of social, content and radio sites such as the iconic BlackPlanet (www.BlackPlanet.com), the newly launched BlackPlanetNEXT (www.BlackPlanetNEXT.com), and the new BlackPlanet RADIO (www.BlackPlanetRadio.com), the digital industry’s first social radio website created for the African American community. Interactive One is also home to several leading content sites including: NewsOne (www.NewsOne.com), which provides up to the minute, comprehensive coverage of newsworthy events relevant to Black Americans across the country and the world; TheUrbanDaily (www.TheUrbanDaily.com), the eyes and ears for Black Americans looking for what’s hot online, on the airwaves, in theaters, and on the street; HelloBeautiful (www.HelloBeautiful.com), the definitive lifestyle resource for today’s Black woman; Elev8 (www.Elev8.com) a site devoted to elevating the mind, body and spirit; and ZonaDeSabor, an entertainment news website targeting young, urban Latinos (www.ZonaDeSabor.com).

Interactive One was launched by Radio One, Inc. in 2008 to complement Radio One’s existing portfolio of media companies targeting Black Americans. Since its launch, Interactive One has quickly become the #1 online platform for the African American and urban community.

ABOUT REACH MEDIA, INC.

Reach Media, Inc. was founded in 2003 by Tom Joyner and David Kantor. It is a cross-platform media company featuring radio, online, events and initiatives relevant to the African-American community. The company provides the nation’s #1 syndicated urban morning show, The Tom Joyner Morning Show, which airs in more than 105 markets reaching nearly 8 million listeners, distinguishing itself over the years as continuously giving back to its audience with quality programming, highly popular promotions, special events and philanthropy. Joyner’s website, BlackAmericaWeb.com, has more than 1.5 million registered users and delivers news with exclusive reports as well as interactive elements with on demand audio. Reach Media, Inc. also executes The Allstate Tom Joyner Family Reunion, The Tom Joyner Foundation Fantastic Voyage Cruise and Tom Joyner’s Take a Loved One to the Dr. Day health initiative.

###

Media Contacts:
Natarsha Gilliard
NGilliard@interactiveone.com 646-695-3814

Martin Raab

Marty.Raab@ReachMediaInc.com 972.371.5810

By Smokey D. Fontaine

Chief Content Officer, Interactive One

This felt like a racial moment, but, then again, it didn’t. The re-election of Barack Hussein Obama (love to the New York Times every time they print his whole name) at first triggered the same emotional cues as four years ago when the history making of the “first African-American became President” powered the excitement.  But this time something was different.  This was a Black thing, to be sure, but it wasn’t, as the t-shirts used to proclaim, “A Black Thing, You Wouldn’t Understand.”  Many others did understand Obama’s triumph on November 6th because this was about African-Americans maintaining our visibility. This was about all people of color — all of Langston Hughes’ “darker-skinned selves” — proving to the world, and more importantly, to ourselves, that we’re not a fluke, we’re not a one-off moment in history the white establishment can erase after a proclamation that they will make our hero a “one term President.” This was about all groups on the outside who have pushed for generations to get a seat at the American table –– to stay in the seat we earned four years ago, and forever reject the term “minority” as a factually inaccurate description. Blacks, Latinos, Asians, women, gays…we are the real Super Pac, bigger, smarter, and a whole lot more effective than the groups with the not-so-anonymous billions who are so obviously just trying to hold on to that old power that doesn’t exist anymore. It was good while it lasted.

The smart ones, the Buffets and the Bloombergs and the Christies, jumped off that crippled bandwagon before the cliff came, before bloggers would dust off centuries-old maps of free and slave states and match them line for line with the red & blue electoral college results of 2012 to reveal a terrifying truth about our history.

Over the years, I always felt a hopeful warmth whenever I saw a Black man and a white man high five eachother or hug it out in public (even more when I saw a Black and white woman show their affections). But even in the safe space of a summertime pickup game after a winning basket the embrace was always a bit self-conscious.  Now we see the love on the presidential stage, behind the presidential podium, in front of the world.  Springsteen’s “We Take Care Of Our Own” blaring alongside Jay-Z’s “Run This Town” because ultimately they are the same song.

It’s all in the faces.  Not the tight-lipped faces of Bohener or McConnell or Rove, but the buoyant multi-colored faces in the crowd that was behind Obama on stage cheering for a Black, interracial, of-the-world man winning again for us all. JFK meet Daymond John.  For us by us no longer on the low, but the slogan for a kickstarted cultural moment that is forging a new cultural identity right before our eyes.

Obama said his voters this time were more “determined” than excited.  He was right. We were determined to not have to wake up our children and tell them the Black man lost, determined that we will never again be victim to the most egregious attack of white power. Don’t you ever try to take my vote away.  (Or for my Latino friends also under attack: no vuelvas a tratar de echarme del país.)

If what happened on Nov 6, 2012 is surprising to you then you haven’t been listening. I’ve always believed that entertainment, music in particular, drives our American culture because of the influence beats and rhymes have on our young people. So ignore Kanye if you wish, but what he’s saying, what he’s wearing, even who he’s dating, can reveal more about our country’s identity than the best ethnographies. Today’s weirdos are tomorrow’s heroes.  Yesterday’s lonely dreamers are tomorrow’s unifying leaders. Just ask Barry.

But what can we call all this?  All this change and disruption to the status quo?  Is it cross-culturalism?  Yes.  The “browning of America?”  Yes. That Time magazine cover was ten years ago (!) But if you want to expand a demographic lens into a psychographic one, a transition Obama has subconsciously begun for us, we need a new phrase to help us make sense of it all.  What do we call the mindset of the outsiders who have become insiders but have retained our perspective, our history, our creativity, our power?  Let’s go “new urban.” New urban, not just a demographic, but a description of that wonderful thing that socializes everything about who we are, what we do, and how we feel.

See, in 2012, you can be Black and be a whole lotta other things too. And that’s ok. The experience of race & ethnicity is as powerful today as it has ever been. New urban does not describe the loss of anything, the watering down or melting away of the racial cultures that make us unique and proud and give us a history. But new urban is more expansive. Lets for more in. No sell out. So Obama’s win was not about a racial moment or something else. It was about the proudest of Black moments and the signifier of cultural shifts soon to transform our world.

Or maybe November 6^th just finally proves that we are all just children of the Revolution.  Not Che’s Revolution, but Prince’s one. You remember his band from 25 years ago? Now that was new urban for sure! Who’s crazy now?

By: Latha Sarathy

Now that the dust has settled, the euphoria or shock cooled, one thing stands out about the re-election of President Barack Obama.  History was made once again.  Yes, it was the first time a Black man was re-elected to a second term in office, it was the first time that a sitting president was re-elected when economic growth was sluggish and unemployment numbers high, but it was also the first time when a coalition of minorities cast the deciding vote.

According to one analysis in Time Magazine, ‘The Nov. 6 election signaled a demographic tipping point: A record number of Latino and Asian voters, the country’s fastest-growing voting bloc, formed a coalition with Black and White Democratic voters to re-elect the country’s first African American President.  A new American majority – a multiethnic majority – has not only arrived but is in fact reordering the political landscape.’

The power of this new minority majority or multiethnic majority played out in several key states.  In Ohio  where African Americans make up 12% of the Ohio population they gave President Obama the leading edge by turning out in greater numbers than in 2008 growing from 11% to 15% of voters.  In Virginia, a state that not too long ago exemplified the Jim Crow South, exit polls showed that Obama won 93% of Black voters, 65% of Latino voters and 66% of Asian voters.  While Obama’s support among White Virginians was only 38%.  Mr. Obama’s victories in Colorado, Nevada and Virginia came in part because Hispanics turned out in droves and voted Democratic. In Colorado, 14 percent of the voters were Hispanic, and Mr. Obama won three-fourths of them. In Florida, Hispanic voters were almost one-fifth of the electorate, and Mr. Obama won about three-fifths of them.   The rise of the minority majority has been happening for some time, but the power of its impact has been particularly felt in the last two elections. “We are a much more diverse country than we were just a generation or two ago”, said Paul Taylor, who oversees the Pew Social and Demographic Trends project and the Pew Hispanic Center.

The Minority Majority is the new America and they are the New Deciders.

The influence of this new majority is now playing out on the national political stage but it has already long been felt in our music, fashion, food and overall culture.    As a media company with a long standing focus on African Americans it makes sense to embrace and pivot towards the Minority Majority as they continue to change our country and our culture.   Interactive One and Radio One are right in the center of the changing demographics of America.  And it is perfectly in line with the focus of marketers today. Understanding and connecting to women, African Americans and Hispanics are a key priority for major brands. With our proven expertise in the African American space we are well positioned to do the same for other diverse audiences.

Sources: Time.com, 11/8/2012, Reuters.com 11/8/2012

Senior Vice President, Interactive One Local

Dan Shelley is responsible for strategy, revenue, and programming for more than 50 websites representing Radio One’s various radio stations around the country, as well as radio shows syndicated by Radio One such as The Russ Parr Morning Show, The Rickey Smiley Morning Show, The Yolanda Adams Morning Show and CoCo Brother Live. Additionally, he leads Radio One’s mobile platforms, its personalized Internet streaming experience, BlackPlanet Radio, and develops other digital businesses for Radio One’s radio division. Prior to joining Radio One in 2009, Dan was Director of Digital Media at WCBS-TV in New York City, where he transformed wcbstv.com from fifth place to first place in traffic and revenue among the five local broadcast television news websites in the nation’s largest media market. Dan’s career also includes 26 years of programming management experience in small and medium market radio stations. He was news director and assistant program director at WTMJ-AM in Milwaukee, Wisconsin’s highest rated station. Before Milwaukee, Dan was news director at KTTS-AM/FM in his hometown of Springfield, Mo. Dan is a former chairman of the Radio-Television Digital News Association and the Radio and Television Digital News Foundation. He continues to serve on the boards of both organizations. Dan is a graduate of Missouri State University.

 Working alongside tour organizers and gospel legends Marvin Sapp, Kirk Franklin, Donnie McClurkin and Israel Houghton, the faith and family website is the online headquarters for the historic tour

NEW YORK, NY—September 26, 2012—Elev8.com, an Interactive One website devoted to family and faith, announces its position as the number one digital media destination for the King’s Men Tour, the premier gospel music tour traveling to 15 cities across the country this fall. Gospel music legends Kirk Franklin, Marvin Sapp, Donnie McClurkin and Israel Houghton will share the same stage for the first time as the show crosses the country through October 14. Elev8.com, which has seen 29 percent growth in 2012 according to comScore, will serve as the online headquarters, capturing the magic of the tour with daily content.

Elev8’s coverage of The King’s Men Tour will include exclusive interviews with each of the artists as well as exclusive video footage from each show.  Gospel fans can rely on Elev8.com for an inside look at the tour that can’t be found anywhere else on the Web.

“The Elev8 editorial team is working closely with Marvin, Israel, Donnie and Kirk and the tour organizers to bring our gospel-loving readers news and updates from behind the scenes of the King’s Men Tour,” said Smokey D. Fontaine, Chief Content Officer, Interactive One. “We’re proud to be the only online destination to provide this breadth of coverage for such an historical musical event.”

From video premieres to interviews, Elev8 has worked with each of the King’s Men Tour artist since its inception. In the spring, the website began an editorial partnership with Marvin Sapp who pens the exclusive “From A Man’s Point of View” column which explores marriage and fatherhood as well as his role as a pastor and gospel music star.

“Elev8′s coverage of The King’s Men Tour has been very impressive,” said Kymberlee Norsworthy, head of publicity for Verity Gospel Music Group. “With constant tour updates, unique content and behind the scenes coverage, Elev8 is doing a great job of galvanizing fans around this enormous moment in Gospel music. They have essentially made themselves a one-stop for everything King’s Men tour.”

The King’s Men Tour opened September 16 and will travel to 15 cities including Miami, Atlanta, Houston, Philadelphia and Washington DC.  The tour’s final stop will be in New York City at the new Barclays Center in Brooklyn.

For more about Elev8.com and the King’s Men Tour, visit http://www.elev8.com.

ABOUT INTERACTIVE ONE

Interactive One has more than 15 million members and reaches millions of Black Americans and Latinos each month. With approximately 3 billion annual page views on its suite of sites, the company has become the definitive online resource for the urban community through its suite of social, content and radio sites such as the iconic BlackPlanet (www.BlackPlanet.com), the newly launched BlackPlanetNEXT (www.BlackPlanetNEXT.com), and the new BlackPlanet RADIO (www.BlackPlanetRadio.com), the digital industry’s first social radio website created for the African American community. Interactive One is also home to several leading content sites including: NewsOne (www.NewsOne.com), which provides up to the minute, comprehensive coverage of newsworthy events relevant to Black Americans across the country and the world; TheUrbanDaily (www.TheUrbanDaily.com), the eyes and ears for Black Americans looking for what’s hot online, on the airwaves, in theaters, and on the street; HelloBeautiful (www.HelloBeautiful.com), the definitive lifestyle resource for today’s Black woman; Elev8 (www.Elev8.com) a site devoted to elevating the mind, body and spirit; and ZonaDeSabor, an entertainment news website targeting young, urban Latinos (www.ZonaDeSabor.com).

Interactive One was launched by Radio One, Inc. in 2008 to complement Radio One’s existing portfolio of media companies targeting Black Americans. Since its launch, Interactive One has quickly become the #1 online platform for the African American and urban community.

 ###

Media Contact:
Kristen Tate Communications
kristen@kristentate.com, 646-452-8747