Malcolm X and the Media
Although the political leader central to the rise of the black power movement—Malcolm X—was a strong champion of cultural self-determination, he was not beyond using “any means necessary,” including the mainstream media, to achieve his goals.
The national spokesman for the Nation of Islam, the Black Muslim religious group, Malcolm X was a fierce opponent of Martin Luther King, Jr., and his advocacy of civil disobedience, integration, and interracial dialogue. When persecuted by racial oppression, Malcolm X argued, black Americans must not see themselves as victims, but fight aggressively, meeting brutality with violence if necessary, to maintain their freedom and independence.
Malcolm X was one of the most media-savvy black leaders of the period, readily employing television, magazines, and newspapers to spread the ideology of Islam and black nationalism. By the time of his assassination, in February 1965, he had appeared on scores of television programs, arguably more than any other civil rights figure including King. This media outreach helped build membership in the Nation of Islam from five hundred in 1952 to 30,000 in 1963, and enabled its leaders to influence African American public opinion for decades to come.
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