COLUMBIA, S.C. - The National Newspapers Publishers Association (NNPA) has named Isaac Washington, publisher of the award-winning South Carolina Black Media Group, as its 2002 Publisher of the Year. Washington, publisher of the Black News newspaper in Columbia, was presented with the award during the Merit Awards Dinner, as part of NNPA's 62nd annual convention, held in Jacksonville, Fla. recently.

Washington, who is the president of NNPA's Southeastern Region (Region II), is the first known publisher from the Palmetto State to be honored in such a manner. The NNPA has more than 220 newspaper members.

Said Washington of his achievement, "My goal is to make my newspaper and NNPA better organizations, but for receiving this award, 'I give God all the praise.'"
Black News community based newspapers are also involved in helping the needy. Washington doesn't mind getting out, rolling up his sleeves and helping others. "We let young people know that you can achieve," he said.

"The solution, he added, is paving the way for future generations through motivating and stimulating them to do a better job."

A graduate of C.A. Johnson High School, he earned a bachelor's degree from Benedict College. He got his start in the media business at Columbia's WIS-TV, where he served as assistant program director and director of sales traffic and operations. He helped to pioneer the "Awareness" program, WIS-TV's foray into minority affairs reporting and programming.

His diverse media experience prepared him for his leadership role as president/publisher of the South Carolina Black Media Group.

Within a few years, SCBMG began marketing its product statewide, eventually evolving into eight newspapers published in virtually every major market of the Palmetto State and in Fayetteville, N.C. In 1997, SCBMG consolidated its newspapers into one statewide publication, Black News.

As publisher of one of the leading minority newspapers, Washington has witnessed his staffers win nearly a dozen NNPA Merit awards in virtually every aspect, ranging from news and sports coverage to advertising to circulation promotion. Within the last three years, Black News has twice been a finalist for the coveted A. Philip Randolph Messenger Award, which honors Black newspapers for journalistic excellence in the field of civil rights.

Washington's community outreach also extends far beyond the walls of the newspaper office. He is a member of Zion Baptist Church in Columbia, where he serves as an ordained deacon and member of the Men's Committee. He also serves as a board member of the American Red Cross and the Will Lou Gray Foundation, and also is a commissioner with the S.C. State Housing Authority. He is also a lifelong member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Inc. and the NAACP.

Through his newspaper, Washington also established the S.C. Black Media Foundation, a nonprofit organization that focuses on providing opportunities for youth in the community through tutorial and job training programs and for providing public housing and other services for the elderly.

Washington has been bestowed with many honors and has had the opportunity to meet some of the world's most influential leaders. He received an honorary doctorate of Religious Education from the C.E. Graham Bible College. He is also one of only a select few who have been honored with a mural on the Columbia Housing Authority's Wall of Fame. He was also finalist for South Carolina's Father of the Year in 2000.

Allen Friend and Bernard Legette write for the S.C. Black Media Group.