April Ryan

April Ryan
April Ryan interviewed by Mahogany Books in 2016
Born April Danielle Ryan
(1967-09-05) September 5, 1967
Baltimore, Maryland, U.S.
Residence Baltimore County, Maryland, U.S.
Education Morgan State University
Occupation Journalist
Notable credit(s) American Urban Radio Networks

April Danielle Ryan (born September 5, 1967) is an American journalist and author. Since 1997, she has served as a White House correspondent and is the Washington, D.C., bureau chief for American Urban Radio Networks.[1] In 2017, she joined CNN as a political analyst.[2] In May 2017, the National Association of Black Journalists named Ryan as the "Journalist of the Year".[3]

Career

Ryan is a graduate of Morgan State University with a B.S. in broadcast journalism, and was awarded an honorary doctorate from her alma mater in 2017.[4] Ryan also holds an honorary doctorate from Claflin University. She began her media career as a jazz disc jockey before turning to reporting.[5]

Prior to working for the White House press corps, she worked for various radio stations, including North Carolina A&T University and WXYV-FM in Baltimore, Maryland, where she served as their news director.

Ryan has been a member of the White House press corps for American Urban Radio Networks since January 1997. She is a member of the National Press Club and is one of only three African Americans to have served on the board of the White House Correspondent's Association.[3]

As a White House correspondent, Ryan has covered four presidential administrations. Following the election of President Donald Trump, Ryan participated in notable exchanges with him and his press secretary Sean Spicer.[5] At a February press conference, when Trump began talking about "inner city places" and urban crime, she asked him if he planned to meet with the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC). He responded by telling her to set up the meeting with them before asking, "Are they friends of yours?" Ryan responded that she was only a reporter and not a member of the CBC.[6][7][8] In March 2017, Spicer accused her of having an agenda when she asked about Trump's ties with Russia and then berated her for shaking her head. [9]

As one of the few African Americans in the White House press corps, Ryan frequently asks questions on issues concerning minorities and has made statements suggesting that she resents that other journalists do not ask such questions as often. She said in an interview in May 2017, "Why can't the dynamic of all people be in that room? Why can't it be? All people are covered under the White House. Am I correct? So I really dislike that, but I have no qualms with it. If you want to call me a black reporter, I am the black reporter who also asks other issues and questions on China, Russia, Syria, North Korea. So if you want to label me a black reporter, I take it with a badge of honor."[5]

Ryan, whom The A.V. Club dubbed "stalwart and professional" in her approach, said on an appearance on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert that the purpose of the press remains unchanged by the Trump administration's hostile attitude to the mainstream media. Ryan stressed that the journalists must "get accurate information, facts for the American public. It's not about us, it's about freedom of the press. It's about informing the masses."[7]

In May 2017, the National Association of Black Journalists named Ryan as the "Journalist of the Year".[10] She joined CNN as a political analyst in 2017.[3]

Her first book, The Presidency in Black and White: My Up-Close View of Three Presidents and Race in America, was published in 2015 and won an NAACP Image Award. Her second book, At Mama's Knee: Mothers and Race in Black and White, was published in 2016. Her work has also appeared in Politico.[11] Her blog, Fabric of America, is devoted to minority issues and stories in the United States.[3]

Controversies

At an April 2018 White House press conference, Ryan asked whether or not Trump has considered resigning, which drew the ire of White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders, who called Ryan's question "absolutely ridiculous." Ryan asserted that soon after she had received death threats.[12]

Bibliography

  • The Presidency in Black and White: My Up-Close View of Three Presidents and Race in America, Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Incorporated, 2015, ISBN 9781442238411
  • At Mama's Knee: Mothers and Race in Black and White, Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Incorporated, 2016, ISBN 9781442265639
  • Under Fire: Reporting from the Front Lines of the Trump White House. Rowman & Littlefield. 2018. ISBN 9781538113363.

References

  1. ↑ "White House Report with April Ryan on AURN : American Urban Radio Networks". aurn.com. Retrieved March 4, 2015.
  2. ↑ Master, Cyra (April 3, 2017). "CNN signs April Ryan as political analyst".
  3. 1 2 3 4 Zurawik, David (May 2, 2017). "April Ryan named NABJ journalist of the year". The Baltimore Sun. Retrieved May 26, 2017.
  4. ↑ Sciullo, Maria (May 20, 2017). "April Ryan's wild ride in Washington". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved May 26, 2017.
  5. 1 2 3 Ordoñez, Franco; Douglas, William (May 12, 2017). "'Majority Minority podcast': April Ryan invites Donald Trump to dinner". McClatchy. Retrieved May 26, 2017.
  6. ↑ Flores, Reena (February 16, 2017). "Trump asks black reporter to "set up the meeting" with Congressional Black Caucus". CBS News. Retrieved May 26, 2017.
  7. 1 2 Perkins, Dennis (May 26, 2017). "White House correspondent April Ryan tells Stephen Colbert why "fake news" is nonsense". The A.V. Club. Retrieved May 26, 2017.
  8. ↑ "WATCH: Trump Awkwardly Assumes April Ryan Is 'Friends' With Congressional Black Caucus". News One. February 16, 2017. Retrieved May 26, 2017.
  9. ↑ Grynbaum, Michael. "For April Ryan, Clashes With the White House Bring a New Kind of Prominence". The New York Times. Retrieved January 20, 2018.
  10. ↑ "Baltimore Journalist, White House Correspondent April Ryan Honored". WJZ CBS. May 21, 2017. Retrieved May 26, 2017.
  11. ↑ "Grading the Presidents on Race". Politico. March 1, 2015. Retrieved March 7, 2015.
  12. ↑ "Reporter April Ryan says she got death threats for asking if Trump considered resigning". www.msn.com. Retrieved 2018-04-12.
External media
Audio
Mike Vuolo (February 28, 2015). "April Ryan on Race and the White House". Slate.
Video
"April Ryan, "The Presidency In Black and White" at Politics and Prose". YouTube. March 5, 2015. Retrieved March 6, 2015.
After Words with April Ryan, C-Span, January 28, 2015.
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