The BMC's joint chairs are Tony Adams and Roger McKenzie. The council monitors discrimination in employment practices in the media industry, promotes best practice, and works with NUJ members in chapels and branches.
Tony Adams
I’m a freelance Investigative journalist and broadcaster with over thirty years’ experience both within the BBC and the commercial radio sectors, specialising in news and current affairs and court reporting.
I know the challenges ahead in these turbulent times are many but confident my perspicacity, negotiation skills and union experience will keep me steadfast as the new chair of the BMC.
I’m a trade union and human rights activist and the National Union of Journalists Chair of the Birmingham and Coventry Branch, also the NUJ chair of the Black Members Council, the NUJ’s regional representative of the midlands Trades Union Council and also member of the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ); my work consists of challenging the rhetoric and narrative of media conglomerates, impunity, protecting union gender rights, implement proportional representation, promote inclusivity and diversity and uphold the NUJ code of conduct and conventional journalism ethics.
Roger McKenzie
Roger McKenzie is the international editor of the Morning Star. Prior to that he was the parliamentary reporter for the paper. Roger has a long history of activity within the labour and trade union movement and is well known internationally as a leading anti-racist campaigner and trade union organiser. He is a founding member of the Global African Workers Institute.
Before joining the Morning Star, Roger worked for 11 years as the assistant general secretary of Unison with responsibility for organising, recruitment and education programmes for members and activists. He was also a member of the TUC general council and the Unionlearn board. Prior to that Roger was the West Midlands regional secretary of Unison and before that the Midlands regional secretary of the Trades Union Congress. He was the first black trade unionist to hold any of the posts mentioned within Unison.
George Viner Memorial Fund
The council celebrates and supportes the George Viner Memorial Fund , which provides bursaries for Black and minority ethnic journalism students. Applications for this year close on 31 July, find out more, apply and share the information within your networks.
The council works to support initiatives to increase the diversity of newsrooms and representation of people of colour in the media. The BMC traditionally holds events based on issues close to our member’s hearts. This has included an online event on World Racism Day, and on racism in the media, giving members the opportunity to share experiences with the union and network.
The council is also responsible for representing the union at the TUC Black Workers’ Conference and will be sending representatives and putting forward motions to inform the TUC’s campaigns and policies. We issue statements, such as our reaction to the killing of George Floyd and the Blacks Lives Matter movement. We support Black History Month, Stand Up to Racism and the anti Zwarte Piet campaign in Holland.
The BMC monitors discrimination in employment practices in the media industry and promotes best practice. We have produced the Race Reporting Guidelines , which help members when they are writing about race relations and suggest the best language to use. The BMC supports the notion that NUJ members have a responsibility to stop racism being expressed in the media. Motions at Delegate Meeting set out the agenda for the council’s two-year session and present action includes boosting diversity in the photographic industry; recruitment of Black journalists; combating racism in the industry and defending the rights of refugees and migrants.
The BMC organises the Claudia Jones Memorial Lecture in honour of the West Indian journalist and activist. Watch previous recordings of lectures on the NUJ's YouTube page.
In June, the NUJ responded to the UK government's consultation on the Equality (Race and Disability) Bill: mandatory ethnicity and disability pay gap reporting. The BMC shared views to inform the consultation.
