Profile America - John Johnson
WASHINGTON -- Following is the daily Black History Month feature from the U.S. Census Bureau for Thursday, February 3:
JOHN JOHNSON Profile America for the third day of Black History Month. Clipping newspaper and magazine articles about African-Americans gave John Johnson an idea — one that not only made him wealthy and honored, but changed the self-perception of the black community. The idea was to publish a magazine about African-Americans. Borrowing $500 from his mother, Johnson brought out "Ebony" magazine in 1945, profiling rising African-American figures in business, politics and the arts. Later, he added the weekly magazine "Jet." Both proved to be widely read and influential. Now, there are 1.9 million black-owned businesses in the U.S., generating over $137 billion in annual revenue.
