The Press
The media always talks about problems in our community. Now, the press reports on the economic reasons for and solutions to those problems. EE compels a new discussion on how we can help each other - by using buying power to empower our businesses and rescue our neighborhoods - not just how we hurt each other.
This is only the beginning!
EE's goal was to place the issues facing Black businesses and the resultant lack of economic power and role models in Black neighborhoods into the national dialogue. Major media are covering the Andersons and the new consumer-driven economic empowerment movement. See below for the videos of national television interviews, and links to newspaper and magazine articles and radio interviews. (Coverage listed from newest to oldest.)
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Leading up to the release of Our Black Year, Maggie Anderson talks to Roland Martin on the Tom Joyner Morning Show about her family's historic experiment, the national tour, and the message of the book. Click here for the interview.
February 3, 2012. In this second time the Anderson family was able to share The Empowerment Experiment with millions on Tom Joyner's famous show, Maggie Anderson called Our Black Year a "call to action" for consumers and Corporate America to seek and support Black businesses. The interview can be heard on Roland Martin Reports and the Tom Joyner Morning Show's "Black America Web". Click here to hear the audio.
December 2, 2011. Rolling Out magazine is there when Maggie Anderson announces the completion of her book about The Empowerment Experiment, Our Black Year at the PA/NJ/DE Minoity Supplier Development Council's Annual Choice Awards. Maggie Anderson paid tribute to Black B2Bs that are making sure our entrepreneurs play a greater role in the American economy. See Terry Schropshire's story here.
May 22, 2011. 
At the 2011 Black Enterprise Entrepreneur's Conference, Maggie Anderson, CEO of The Empowerment Experiment (EE), engaged hundreds of our top-quality entrepreneurs, and promoted self-help economics. Black Enterprise Business Report's Caroline Clarke interviewed Maggie about her family's historic experiment, the public's response, and how their little pledge is becoming a big movement. See video from the TV interview here (or click pic to the right).
The advertising and media industries are of great concern to The Empowerment Experiment (EE). The big brands, corporations, franchisers and retailers spend hundreds of millions advertising to Black consumers, yet our top-quality media outlets, like Rolling Out magazine, do not get their fair share. This is why Maggie Anderson uses every opportunity to not only encourage consumers to subscribe to Black papers and magazines and register with Black media websites - as it helps them attract ad revenue. EE urges Corporate America to spend more money with Black-owned media and ad agencies. In a recent interview with The Atlanta Post, Maggie Anderson listed some of the best Black and mainstream business we should support as community, because they employ from and locate in our community, and have Black owners and suppliers. Black-owned Rolling Out magazine, the official media partner to the EE Tour tops the list. 
December 24, 2010. Black Enterprise's holiday coverage includes informative and empowering photos, links and tips about how we can all spend more with our own. See it all here, "Nine Gift Ideas That Will Have You Buying Black this Holiday Season." And check out this story by BE's Janel Martinez about how the EE family buys gifts for the holidays, "Tis the Season for Buying Black".
December 14, 2010. Rolling Out magazine is the official media partner of The Empowerment Experiment (EE) and the EE Tour. Rolling Out showed up to cover and celebrate EE's last tourstop for 2010. Check out photos from Maggie Anderson's visit to Philadelphia to help the launch Reverse 90. Reverse 90 is an amazing program by the African American Chamber of PA, NJ, and DE (AACC) to promote and facilitate more spending with our quality businesses and professionals. Captured above: Sulaiman Rahman, President of the AACC, Maggie Anderson, and David Birts, of JTE Spirits, NJ- based Black-owned cognac and wine company. Click the picture to see more event photos on RollingOut.com.
December 6, 2010. Tri-state treasure, The Philadelphia Tribune, came out to cover the launch of Reverse 90, where Maggie Anderson delivered the keynote address to persuade local consumers to proactively support quality Black businesses. See the story here.
November 27, 2010. CNN Newsroom. While everyone else was talking about finding deals at Walmart and Target, Maggie Anderson, EE Founder, spoke up for Black businesses during the kick-off of the shopping season following the Thanksgiving holiday. During this in-studio interview with CNN Anchor Joe Johns, Maggie urges consumers to remember Black-owned businesses as they shop for gifts, as they are the key to providing more role models for at-risk youth and economically empowering underserved communities.
This interview was also the first announcement of Maggie Anderson's book, "Our Black Year".
November 10, 2010. Altruistic Leadership's "Take a Lesson" radio interview. Maggie Anderson explained why her family created The Empowerment Experiment, shared regrets, victories, plans for EE in the future and lessons learned. During this was a live show, she also took questions from callers from all over the country. Take and takes your calls. Recent guests include Renee Russell, CEO of Avon; Gregg Walker, SVP at Sony; Ron Allen, Chairman, Natl African American Insurance Association; Two-time Olympic Medalist, Dr. Mark Crear. For more on Take-A-Lesson and Altruistic Leadership, visit www.altruisticleadership.com.
September 3, 2010. After hosting EE at her exclusive fashion boutique, TAGS, Grammy winning songstress and songwriter, and Real Housewives of Atlanta star Kandi Burruss issues a Buy Black challenge to her fans. See the video Kandi Burruss taped with EE Founder Maggie Anderson below. The video airs on her online show, "The Bitter and The Sweet." For more on the "Sippin Cognac, Buying Black, Giving Back" tour, please visit the EE's The Movement page.
September 2, 2010. Tuskegee News promotes The Empowerment Experiment's participation in its 15th Annual Booker T. Washington Economic Development Summit in this story, "TU's BTW Economic Summit to focus on smaller economies".
August 27, 2010. BlackNews.com reports on Maggie Anderson's visit to Montgomery, Alabama and EE's participation in the historic Booker T. Washington Economic Development Summit, held at Tuskegee University. Visions TV, the area's leading Black-owned media outlet, covers EE in Alabama and the BTW conference. See the story here.
August 14, 2010. See Rolling Out magazine's ongoing coverage of the EE Tour. "Sippin Cognac, Buying Black, Giving Back". Rolling Out is the official media partner to The Empowerment Experiment. We ask all of you to support this top-quality Black-owned publication by registering on the website and advertising your business on its site or in the print magazine.
August 14, 2010. The Examiner covered EE's Sippin' Cognac, Buying Black, Giving Back event at TAGS boutique in Atlanta, co-hosted by Atlanta TV and music celebrity. "Kandi Burrus Hosts The Empowerment Experiment at TAGS Boutique."
July 22, 2010. The Washington Informer covered the DC EE tourstop. Check out this piece by columnist William Reed on reigniting the Buy Black discussion, "What About Buying Black?". Just click here.
July 6, 2010. Renowned journalist Harold Fisher of WHUR has been covering EE since the beginning. Maggie Anderson gave his "Daily Drum" listeners an update on the project before the DC tourstop.
June 26, 2010. Maggie Anderson shared the EE journey and updates on the EE Tour with CPA and attorney, Lou Hutt, host of the Lou Hutt Show on XM's The Power (Saturdays at 5pm EST, Ch. 169). Click here for Pt 1 of the interview, and here for Pt 2.
May 23, 2010. The Oakland Tribune and KPOO, the first Black-owned radio station on the West Coast, cover EE's Bay Area visit. "Couple Brings National Campaign to 'Shop Black' to Oakland". See the story here. Listen to our interview here. (Remember to download/save the interview first, then open it!)
April 26, 2010. The National Alliance of Market Developers (NAMD) honored Maggie Anderson for her work as Founder of The Empowerment Experiment at their 58th Annual national Conference. Rolling Out magazine covered the event. See the story here.
"First Business Morning News", March 23, 2010. "First Business" is a national syndicated business news show, conducted an in-studio interview with the Anderson to discuss racism and Black buying power. See the video here. (The video is called "Purchase Power".)
The University of Chicago Magazine, February 2008 issue. Witness the everyday challenges of the experiment as the Andersons try to give their daughter Cori a big birthday party and live after the one Black grocery store in Chicago closes down in the compelling piece by the global, critically acclaimed University of Chicago magazine. Read it here. (Story by Carrie Golus. Photo by Chris Strong.)
"nextTV", Fox 32 Chicago, April 11, 2010. Emmy award-winning nextTV is produced by the Chicago Urban League. It is Chicago's premiere lifestyle show for African Americans. It showcases Chicago's top Black entrepreneurs. See the EE update here. (Episode 201).
KC Woman Buys Black for One Year, NBC Action News, Kansas City. Lora McDonald, a social worker in Kansas City has pledged to exclusively support Black businesses for one year, just like the Andersons just did in 2009. Click here for the local news story. Click here for the EE official statement.
Page 5, Washington Post, January 24, 2010. Washington Post reports on EE journey, like other national media picking up the Chicago Tribune story.
Front page, Chicago Tribune. In EE's first interview of 2010, Tribune writer Ted Gregory gives an overview of the historic year. See how the Andersons spent the last days of the experiment and how EE changed lives. Read it here.
"The Grio", on MSNBC.com, is dedicated to African American life and issues. lve Shamara Riley describes her attempt to live like the Andersons. It's a compelling insight into John and Maggie's sacrifice, the plight of Black business and the economic state of Black areas. Click here for the story, " Only Buying Black is a Tough Sell."
EE was recognized and discussed by award-winning journalist, Ann Tripp, and the rest of the crew during the Steve Harvey Morning Show.
Maggie Anderson gave holiday shopping tips and explained the importance of supporting Black manufacturers and distributors with Shawna Renee, on "The Cocoa Mode," during Joe Madison's national show, "The Black Eagle", on The Power, XM Radio Ch. 169. Click here for the podcast. Choose "The Empowerment Experiment."
The Philadelphia Tribune covered Maggie Anderson's visit to Philadelphia for the 8th Annual Buy Black Shopping Extravaganza, hosted by the National Alliance of Market Developers and EE Executive Advisor, Norm Bond. Read the story here.
The Cincinnati Herald covered Maggie Anderson's speech at University of Cincinnati and her meeting with business leaders at the lovely Six Acres B&B, hosted by EE Executive Advisor, Jim Clingman, and the African-American Chamber. See the story here.
Toure Muhammad spends a day with the Andersons to discover why and how they EE. See his story, "Buying Black Should Still Be a Priority" in Rolling Out magazine here.
"Take Heed of the Greed" in the Minnesota Spokesman Recorder recounts how Americans have been victimized by the Wall Street and corporate raiders, but also highlights the everyday EE revolutionaries who counter this corruption with service and activism.
The Final Call spent a week with the Andersons and followed EE's work in the community. Click here for the story published in The Final Call.
The Network Journal, leading publication for Black professionals and small business owners, recognized and examined EE's role in our attempting to leverage our buying power to improve our struggling communities. Click here for the TNJ story .
John, Maggie, Cara and Cori Anderson can be seen in the Sept. issue of the world's leading publication for Black business and economic development. BE delves into how EE has changed the family's life, and its potential to change their community. See the story here.
And Maggie Anderson shared the inside scoop of their life in EE with the Black Enterprise audience in her The Empowerment Experiment's BE blog.
For the first time ever, a Black family shares with the world the necessity and power of using their buying power to improve their community, in an historic interview with CBS News anchor Harry Smith. CBS offers comprehensive coverage of their project.
The Andersons present a mid-year update on their experiment and the EE movement on WTTW's "Chicago Tonight". Some reduce EE to "ethnic cheerleading"...see why and how EE is much more than that. Christian Farr reports. Click here for the video.
The Huffington Post puts an interesting twist on EE. "In the Black: Should There Be a Latino Version of the Empowerment Experiment?" by Daniel Cubias. Click here for the editorial and the discussion.
This Philadelphia Tribune article explains how EE lifts up consumers, not just businesses. See the editorial here.
The Andersons shared updates on their EE journey and our national movement with Roland Martin and the TJMS Crew on the Tom Joyner Morning Show. The interview is archived here. Choose the "Roland Martin" link in the Thursday, June 11 section.
Maggie Anderson spent some time on NPR's "Talk of the Nation". See NPR's coverage of EE and listen to Maggie's interview. "The Andersons Experiment with Buying Black".
Is EE about spending power or ownership power? Check out Jim Clingman's piece in The Seattle Medium, "Blackonomics - Black Selling Power".
MSNBC picks up the Associated Press' article on EE. "Buy-black experiment gathering momentum".
Fox News reports on the movement-making capacity of EE. "Chicago Family's 'Buy Black' Experiment Becoming a Nationwide Movement".
The Charlotte Observer reports on our campaign. "Couple Aims to Corral Power in Black Dollars".
EE was featured in a two-part segment on this nationally aired TV show, "First Business Morning News." The report analyzes the macroeconomic impacts of EE as the Andersons support Black businesses in Chicago. Watch and be inspired. Click here for Part 1, and here for Part 2.
When was the last time TIME talked about buying Black? Or interviewed Black small business owners from the South Side of Chicago? Check out TIME's coverage of EE.
It's official. EE is inspiring a movement. Check out the cover of N'Digo on April 23, 2009.
CNN’s Don Lemon chats with the Andersons about why EE is important. Check out the CNN interview here.
Our first national television interview! was on MSNBC! The Andersons explain and defend The Empowerment Experiment on MSNBC.
EE visited Detroit and chatted with radio legend, Frankie Darcell, on Mix 92.3. Take a listen to the Andersons discuss the possible impact an EE movement can have on our buying habits and our perceptions of Black business. http://www.mix923fm.com/pages/middaymix_uncut.html
The Empowerment Experiment explains its goals for the Black business community in Black Enterprise. “Empowerment Experiment Shines Light on Black Business Blight” http://www.blackenterprise.com/wealth-for-life/2009/03/20/empowerment-experiment-shines-light-on-black-business-blight/
The Andersons had a heart-to-heart with Essence magazine. See the in-depth interview called, “Couple Buys Black in 'The Empowerment Experiment'”: http://www.essence.com/news_entertainment/news/articles/couple_buys_black/
Ted Gregory, of the Chicago Tribune, took EE to the next level with his front page piece, “Oak Park Couple travel far and wide to buy from Black-owned businesses”. http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/chi-buying-black-09-mar09,0,5889126.story
EE Founder Maggie Anderson’s graduate school, University of Chicago, is presenting an academic view of EE and showing how the project was impacted by her business school education there. “Alum hopes to empower community by supporting black-owned businesses” http://www.chicagomaroon.com/2009/4/14/alum-hopes-to-empower-community-by-supporting-black-owned-businesses
James Clingman commends and defends EE in The Atlanta Voice. http://www.theatlantavoice.com/downloads/AV_Mar20-26_FNL_LR.pdfJames Clingman of Frost Illustrated understands EE. Please see his piece, “Blackonomics”. http://www.frostillustrated.com/full.php?sid=5382
More journalists and academics come to EE’s defense in American Chronicle. “Pros and Cons of Buying Black”: http://www.americanchronicle.com/articles/view/94495#
The NAACP praises the Andersons for their activism. "Supporting Their Community: The Andersons Have Vowed to Buy Only from Black-Owned Businesses." The Crisis, Spring 2009. See a picture of the article here.
The Wall Street Journal wants to talk about The Empowerment Experiment and its impact on entrepreneurship. http://blogs.wsj.com/independentstreet/2009/03/11/the-ebony-experiment-buying-only-at-black-owned-businesses/
EE makes it to LA. Read “Their Year of Buying Black” in the Los Angeles Times. http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-buy-black10-2009mar10,0,6352514.story
NBC’s coverage of The Empowerment Experiment. “Oak Park couple goes out of their way to only support African-American economy”. http://www.nbcchicago.com/news/business/Buying-Black.html
FAMU is watching The Ebony Experiment. See this article in the FAMUan "Family Develops The Ebony Experiment": http://www.thefamuanonline.com/news/family_develops_ebony_experiment-1.1371239
In her column for Advertising Age, esteemed economist Pepper Miller explains how The Ebony Experiment can stimulate growth in underserved Black communities, "Buying Black Isn't Racist, It's Necessary":http://adage.com/bigtent/post?article_id=134293
Essence magazine readers are discussing EE in the Community Forum. See and join in on the conversation, "The Empowerment Experiment: Buying Black For a Year": http://community.essence.com/forum/topics/the-ebony-experiment-buying
"No bigotry behind shopping black" In this editorial by Terry Dean, business writer for the Austin Weekly News and the Wednesday Journal, the issue of whether or not buying Black is racist is addressed: http://www.wednesdayjournalonline.com/main.asp?SectionID=3&SubSectionID=3&ArticleID=13559&TM=84037.73
The Austin Weekly News, "The Andersons' Ebony Experiment" http://www.austinweeklynews.com/Main.asp?ArticleID=2096&SectionID=1&SubSectionID=1
The first national headline. Chicago Sun Times, "Their Year of Buying Black" http://www.suntimes.com/business/1341775,CST-FIN-buyblack21.article
Farai Chideya, host of NPR's News and Notes, interviewed the Andersons about how The Empowerment Experiment came about, the goals and the challenges:
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=99249368
The Wall Street Journal's "Opinion Journal" analyzes the economic possibilities of "buy black" campaigns, through the lens of The Empowerment Experiment. (this editorial discusses several stories, please see "The Color of Money" in this piece.)
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122995798707726315.html?mod=sphere_ts&mod=sphere_wd.
The Empowerment Experiment goes global! See our press release in the International Business Times:
http://www.ibtimes.com/prnews/20081222/il-ebony-experiment.htm
Diversity Spectrum, the world leader in global diversity news and information, has spread the word to an international audience:
http://www.diversityspectrum.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=4604&Itemid=2450
Reuters, one of leading sources for business news and intelligence, is talking about The Empowerment Experiment:
http://www.reuters.com/article/pressRelease/idUS104710+22-Dec-2008+PRN20081222
To see our presskit, click here.