Baltimore Times

The Baltimore Times
Type	Weekly newspaper
Owner(s)	Joy Bramble
Founded	November 1986
Headquarters	2513 N. Charles Street, Baltimore, MD 21218
Website	baltimoretimes-online.com

The Baltimore Times is a free weekly newspaper founded in 1986 that covers the African-American community in Baltimore County, Maryland. The newspaper circulates to 32,000 people, and its tagline is "positive stories about positive people."^[1]

History

The Baltimore Times was founded in November 1986 by Joy and Peter Bramble in their Baltimore home.^[2] The Brambles focused coverage on positive stories as a way to counteract negative press of the African American community.^[3] In a 2019 interview with Black Enterprise magazine, Joy Bramble described what she recalls thinking when she decided to launch the Baltimore Times:

"I was looking at the local news one evening listening to the catalog of murders, crime, and mayhem committed reportedly mostly by African Americans. I glanced at the front page of the daily paper on our coffee table with similar headlines. It struck me that the radio news pretty much had the same tune. I realized that if black folks were constantly reading, seeing and hearing that we are criminals it then becomes the self-fulfilling prophecy for young people and the society. I knew so many positive things that were happening in the black community and none of these things ever made the news. My husband and I right there and then decided to start a newspaper that would only publish the positive things happening in the black community: successful young people; working, happy families; churches making a difference; teachers producing students despite lack of resources."^[4]

In 2017, The Westside Gazette reported that after more than thirty years, Joy Bramble said the Baltimore Times, and its companion, the Annapolis Times, have continued to only publish positive stories about Black people.^[5] In her 2019 interview with Black Enterprise magazine, Bramble described the ongoing development of the Baltimore Times, including online at the newspaper's website and through social media, stating "we are fast becoming a media company as we introduce video, a possible radio station, and podcasting to attract millennials as our new readers (online of course) of the coming generation."^[4]

Community activities

The company expanded to offer community workshops and seminars to increase awareness of opportunities related to business, education, healthcare, and finance.^[4] Eunice Moseley of The Washington Informer reported that it "was the first company to offer community events in Baltimore that provided free services with its Housing Expo (onsite pre-approvals), Health Expo (free health care screenings), Men’s Expo (free health care screenings) and Women’s Expo (free seminars)."^[6]

Positive People Awards

The newspaper founded the Positive People Awards in 1992 to acknowledge leaders in Baltimore.^[7]

Times Community Services

In 1998, the Times Community Services was formed as a 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to philanthropic efforts.^[1]

Circulation

The newspaper was originally founded as a monthly publication, but it transitioned to a weekly newspaper one month after its first edition.^[1] Due to the popularity of The Baltimore Times, the Brambles began publishing Black-focused newspapers dedicated to other areas of Maryland: The Annapolis Times, The Shore Times, The Prince George's County Times, and The Baltimore County Times.^[1]

The newspaper publishes each Friday.^[8] In 2020, the Baltimore Times was estimated to have a circulation of 32,000.^[8]

Recognition

In 2019, publisher Joy Bramble was honored in Baltimore with a wax figure placed in the National Great Blacks In Wax Museum, and a proclamation from the Maryland House and Senate before the unveiling.^[6]^[4]

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d "About Us | The Baltimore Times Online Newspaper | Positive stories about positive people". The Baltimore Times, Inc. Positive Stories. Retrieved 2020-12-02.
^ Brill, Phyllis (April 5, 1992). "Entrepreneurial Priest Rev. Peter Bramble takes his philosophy beyond the pulpit". The Baltimore Sun. Retrieved 14 December 2020.
^ Gately, Gary (September 17, 1991). "New Annapolis Paper to Present 'Positive Stories' About Blacks". The Baltimore Sun. Retrieved 14 December 2020.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Webb, Nicole K. (February 5, 2019). "How One Black Woman Built A Media Empire In Baltimore From Her Kitchen Table". Black Enterprise. Retrieved 15 December 2020.
^ Henry, Carma (March 30, 2017). "Black Women Publishers Drive the Black Press". The Westside Gazette. Retrieved 14 December 2020.
^ ^a ^b Moseley, Eunice (May 1, 2019). "Baltimore Times Publisher Joy Bramble Immortalized in Wax". The Washington Informer. Retrieved 16 December 2020.
^ "Positive People Awards Hosted By Times Community Foundation". The Baltimore Times, Inc. Positive Stories. Retrieved 2020-12-12.
^ ^a ^b "Baltimore Times newspaper in Baltimore Maryland - MondoTimes.com". www.mondotimes.com. Retrieved 2020-12-02.

[:3-1] "About Us | The Baltimore Times Online Newspaper | Positive stories about positive people". The Baltimore Times, Inc. Positive Stories. Retrieved 2020-12-02.

[2] Brill, Phyllis (April 5, 1992). "Entrepreneurial Priest Rev. Peter Bramble takes his philosophy beyond the pulpit". The Baltimore Sun. Retrieved 14 December 2020.

[3] Gately, Gary (September 17, 1991). "New Annapolis Paper to Present 'Positive Stories' About Blacks". The Baltimore Sun. Retrieved 14 December 2020.

[Webb-4] Webb, Nicole K. (February 5, 2019). "How One Black Woman Built A Media Empire In Baltimore From Her Kitchen Table". Black Enterprise. Retrieved 15 December 2020.

[5] Henry, Carma (March 30, 2017). "Black Women Publishers Drive the Black Press". The Westside Gazette. Retrieved 14 December 2020.

[Moseley-6] Moseley, Eunice (May 1, 2019). "Baltimore Times Publisher Joy Bramble Immortalized in Wax". The Washington Informer. Retrieved 16 December 2020.

[7] "Positive People Awards Hosted By Times Community Foundation". The Baltimore Times, Inc. Positive Stories. Retrieved 2020-12-12.

[:0-8] "Baltimore Times newspaper in Baltimore Maryland - MondoTimes.com". www.mondotimes.com. Retrieved 2020-12-02.

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v t e Ethnic history of Baltimore
Groups	African Americans Africans Appalachian Americans Asian Americans Caribbeans Czechs Ethiopians French Germans Greeks Hispanics and Latinos Irish Italians Jews Koreans Lithuanians Native Americans Poles Romani Russians Syrians Ukrainians White Americans
Ethnic enclaves	Chinatown/Little Ethiopia Corned Beef Row French Town Greektown Koreatown Little Appalachia Little Bohemia Little Italy Little Lithuania Little Poland Little Ukrainian Village Otterbein Spanish Town
Institutions	Baltimore American Indian Center Baltimore Hebrew University Bohemian National Cemetery Christ United Church of Christ Concordia Hall Grand Lodge Č.S.P.S. of Baltimore Greek Orthodox Cathedral of the Annunciation Hebrew Orphan Asylum Holy Cross Roman Catholic Church Holy Rosary Church Holy Trinity Russian Orthodox Church Jewish Museum of Maryland Lithuanian Hall National Great Blacks In Wax Museum National Slavic Museum Oblate Sisters of Providence Otterbein Church Our Lady of Pompeii Church Polish Home Hall Reginald F. Lewis Museum of Maryland African American History & Culture Royal Theatre Russian Night School St. Alphonsus Church St. Casimir Church St. Elizabeth of Hungary St. Francis Xavier Church St. Leo's Church St. Michael the Archangel Ukrainian Catholic Church St. Peter the Apostle Church Sts. Peter & Paul Ukrainian Catholic Church St. Vincent de Paul Church St. Wenceslaus in Baltimore Transfiguration of our Lord Russian Orthodox Church Young Men's and Young Women's Hebrew Association Building Zion Lutheran Church
Events	Baltimore riot of 1968 2015 Baltimore protests
Media	Ethnic press in Baltimore (Baltimore Afro-American Baltimore Jewish Times Baltimore Times Baltimore Wecker Czas Baltimorski Der Deutsche Correspondent Latin Opinion Telegraf Where What When)