Our lineage
The National Reformer was founded in 1838 by William Whipper as the journal of the American Moral Reform Society. It was one of the first Black newspapers in the United States. Whipper was a Black abolitionist, businessman, and nonviolence advocate — a full century before Martin Luther King Jr. made the philosophy famous.
We take our name from Whipper’s paper. The modern venture is a new legal and editorial entity carrying that lineage forward.
Our stance
We are Black and American. Both, fully. We are finishing the argument William Whipper started: that a people can be fully Black and fully American at the same time, with neither waiting on the other. That belief shapes what we cover and how. It does not decide our conclusions for us. The facts do that.
We are independent, not neutral. We are not a Democratic paper and we are not a Republican paper. Our read is simple: neither party has delivered what Black Americans were promised, and both earn our scrutiny on the same terms.
What we cover
We report in six sections at equal weight:
- News — politics, policing, courts, voting, the economy.
- Culture — music, film, television, literature, the culture Black America makes and shapes.
- Technology — the tools, platforms, and companies changing daily life and work.
- HBCUs — the institutions, the enrollment, the funding, the outcomes.
- Black Athletes — from HBCU programs to the pro leagues, on the field and off.
- Op-Eds — commentary and opinion, clearly labeled.
How we work
We publish our basic standards so readers know what to expect. See our Editorial Policy, Ethics, Corrections Policy, and AI Use Policy.
Contact
Reach the newsroom at hello@nationalreformer.com. Story tips: submit here. Corrections: corrections@nationalreformer.com.