A recent Your Black World Survey found that over three-fourths (78.2%) of black female respondents were unhappy with a recent decision by the magazine to hire a white male managing editor. Michael Bullerdick was chosen to be the managing editor for the magazine that considers itself to be a leading voice for African American women.
Most of the black male respondents shared a sentiment that was similar to that of black women, but not as strong. The majority (69.5%) of black male respondents also replied that they were not happy with the decision. Only 14.8% of the survey pool said they were happy with the decision, with the rest saying that they weren’t sure.
Participants were also asked if they felt that both the Editor-in-Chief and Managing Editor positions should be held by a black woman. Both genders agreed that it should. A total of 71.8% of survey respondents said that both positions should be held by a black woman. A total of 18.5% said that this was not necessary, while the remainder were undecided.
Finally, survey participants were asked if they felt Essence to be an accurate voice for black women in America. In response to this question, only 45% of black women said that they believe Essence to be an accurate voice for African American women. Men were even more skeptical, with only 38.1% of them agreeing with this assessment.










