All results
Congratulations are in order for Faron McKenzie as he has been named the head of BBC Radio 1Xtra . Already established with the network, marketing manager, McKenzie has been credited for the evolution of BBC Radio 1, 1Xtra and the Asian Network, according to BBC . His credits not only include commissioning and developing podcasts like Dope Black Dads and Brave Conversations for BBC Sounds, but he’s also responsible for paid strategic partnerships with Link Up TV for BBC3’s The Rap Game and GRM Daily. “I am delighted to be able to creatively mold & steer the most culturally relevant leading digital youth radio brand at the epicentre of black music and culture, BBC Radio 1Xtra,” McKenzie said in an Instagram post. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Faron McKenzie (@faronmckenzie) The Birmingham native is also responsible for leading the BBC’s new Creative Diversity Xperience (CDX), which aims to bring together cultural disruptors to showcase Asian, Black, and minority ethnic...
Although you may have come across some must-watch movies and TV series while scrolling through Netflix, one hit show you won’t see is Michaela Coel’s “I May Destroy You.” Coel took her dramatic comedy series to BBC and HBO after turning down a $1 million deal with the popular streaming service. According to Pop Sugar , Coel, who’s the show’s lead actress, creator, writer, and director, rejected the deal with Netflix after a disagreement over ownership, in which Netflix denied Coel’s request for a percentage of the copyright. Corel’s moment of clarity came during a call with a Netflix representative where she asked for five percent of her show’s copyright. “There was just silence on the phone,” Coel told Vulture . “And she said, ‘It’s not how we do things here. Nobody does that, it’s not a big deal.’” Vulture reports Coel’s negotiation with Netflix went as low as 0.5 percent ownership of the copyright. Yet, the Netflix representative told Coel she’d have to run it past her...
Building a successful startup requires more than just a great idea. It demands a unique set of traits that allow founders to navigate challenges, inspire teams , and scale their businesses. While many qualities contribute to entrepreneurial success, 2 successful traits in startup founders stand out as the most critical: resilience and adaptability. These characteristics don’t just separate successful founders from those who struggle. They also determine how well a startup can survive market shifts , financial pressures, and operational hurdles. Why Startups Fail, And How These 2 Successful Traits In Founders Make A Difference The startup world is notoriously unforgiving. About 90% of startups fail, and only a small percentage reach sustained profitability. According to CB Insights , the top reasons for failure include lack of market demand, running out of cash, and flawed business models. However, a deeper look into these failures reveals that many of them could have been avoided if...
The 170 million TikTok users in the U.S., according to NBC News, will have access to the app for at least another 75 days. Is TikTok Getting Banned Tomorrow? On Friday, April 4, 2024, President Donald Trump announced plans to sign an executive order giving ByteDance, the China-based owner of TikTok, an additional 75 days to find a non-Chinese buyer. “My Administration has been working very hard on a Deal to SAVE TIKTOK, and we have made tremendous progress,” Trump wrote in a TruthSocial post. “The Deal requires more work to ensure all necessary approvals are signed, which is why I am signing an Executive Order to keep TikTok up and running for an additional 75 days.” On April 24, 2024, former President Joe Biden signed a law requiring ByteDance to sell the app to a U.S. company within one year or risk a ban, AFROTECH™ previously reported. Lawmakers and national security experts have expressed concerns over China’s potential access to ByteDance’s U.S. user data and its ability to...
A lawsuit stating Google favored white and Asian workers has been settled. According to CNN, Ana Cantu, a former Google employee who identifies as Mexican and racially Indigenous, brought forward a lawsuit that claimed the tech giant offered lower salaries and job levels to those of Hispanic, Latino, Native American, Indigenous, American Indian, Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islander and Alaska Native employees at Google. It was filed in 2021. In the lawsuit, Cantu said that during her seven-year tenure working in Google’s people operations and cloud departments, she was not given a promotion or salary increase. She alleged that white and Asian workers with the same work performance were promoted and received raises, while other workers who complained about the treatment had these opportunities withheld. Cantu left the company in September 2021, claiming Google did not adhere to the California Equal Pay Act. Additionally, leaked documents showed about 6,632 diverse employees reported...
Issa Rae is applauding those who are upholding DEI efforts. During SXSW 2025 in Austin, TX, the actress, producer, and newest part-owner of San Diego FC participated in a keynote conversation where she shared her thoughts on the evolving diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) landscape, according to The Hollywood Reporter. A racial awakening occurred in 2020 following the death of George Floyd due to police brutality. This led to an influx of support and a record-breaking $4.3 billion in venture capital and corporate investments towards Black-owned businesses, per ABC News, as well as a 55% increase in DEI roles created, notes NBC News. As time has gone on, many of these bold commitments around DEI have faded out. This has only worsened due to pressures from conservative groups challenging such efforts in litigation, with some success. Legal wins for the right have included the dismantling of Fearless Fund’s Strivers Grant program, which awarded Black woman-owned businesses, and the...
The thing about economic policies is that they don’t operate in a vacuum. Every decision — every tax, every regulation, every tariff — sends ripples through the system. Some people surf the waves. Others get drowned by them. Tariffs have long been used as a tool of economic warfare, a way for nations to protect their industries or punish their rivals. But under President Donald Trump, tariffs have become something else entirely: a high-stakes bargaining chip in a trade war that seems to have no end. According to CNN, his latest round of 25% tariffs on Canadian and Mexican imports, along with another 10% levy on Chinese goods, has thrown American businesses, workers, and consumers into a state of economic uncertainty. The White House insists tariffs will protect American industries, but history tells a different story. Prices are rising, businesses are struggling, and working-class families — many already battling inflation — will be forced to make tough choices. Tariffs In Context:...
The fashion industry is a massive global market that relies on consumer demand to shape trends and production. Every purchase a consumer makes influences how fashion brands operate, from luxury houses like Dior to fast fashion retailers like SHEIN . Consumer responsibility plays a major role in the ethical, environmental and labor aspects of the fashion industry. Trends change quickly, and consumers are always looking for the next big style. Social media and celebrity culture drive these shifts, making people want to buy new clothes frequently. For fast fashion this means the priority is to create low-cost, trendy clothing at a rapid pace. Companies like Zara, H&M and Forever 21 design and produce new styles in just weeks, while SHEIN keeps a stable of designers on hand to release new looks daily. This ensures that customers always have something new to buy . However, this system comes with significant consequences. The Environmental Impact Of Fast Fashion (Fernand De...
The Trump administration is reportedly looking to dismantle the Department of Education. According to CNN, sources close to the matter stated an executive order is in the works. President Donald Trump’s intentions were present in Project 2025, which is a list of proposals across 900 pages that imposes a conservative agenda, BBC mentions. It was created by the Heritage Foundation, a right-wing think tank, and is supported by more than 100 organizations with a mission “to take down the Deep State and return the government to the people” through policy, personnel, and training, its website notes. Within the lengthy proposal, it states the closing of the Department of Education. NPR reports Betsy DeVos suggested during Trump’s first term, while she served as the Secretary of Education, that the department should reinvest money benefiting lower income students through the Title I program and instead allocate it towards grants proposed in Project 2025. This signals that the closure of the...
Editorial Note: Opinions and thoughts are the author’s own and not those of AFROTECH™. Last week, DeepSeek , a Chinese artificial intelligence company, upended the tech industry by debuting its AI chatbot. Since its debut, the stock market has taken a dive for other tech companies, and American investors are left with their heads spinning. Just as powerful as OpenAI’s ChatGPT, DeepSeek is built at a fraction of the cost. Its technology is open-source, which means it’s available to the public. It even reportedly requires less memory and energy than ChatGPT, reducing the cost of performing tasks. DeepSeek quickly became the most downloaded free app in the U.S., overtaking ChatGPT and causing AI chip-making giant Nvidia to decrease $600 billion in market value in one day on Jan. 27. DeepSeek has been able to power the app with a measly $6 million in comparison to the billions of dollars OpenAI has raised to train its own AI. DeepSeek’s CEO, Liang Wenfeng, has been able to do this with...
Just under two weeks of occupying the role of President, Donald Trump has made major money and policy moves. He signed a record number of executive orders on the very day he was inaugurated, and has since terminated all federal DEI programs . Removal of the guidelines that promote fair treatment in and beyond the workplace has been met by a public uproar. The subsequent order to plan a mass layoff of DEI employees has since been in effect. According to the title of Trump’s memos, this change was made as a way of “Ending Radical and Wasteful Government DEI Programs and Preferencing and Initial Rescissions of Harmful Executive Orders and Actions.” But that’s not nearly the end of his changes – there have been other significant efforts to downsize the federal government. As of Jan. 28, 2025, federal employees have been notified of a deferred resignation program which is still being demystified. Breaking Down The Deferred Resignation Program (Iwaria Inc/Unsplash) In a mass email, the...
Editorial Note: Opinions and thoughts are the author’s own and not those of AFROTECH™. “Oligarchy” is the word that has been spread across the internet and used to describe what has been observed during Donald Trump’s inauguration. “Oligarchy” is defined as “a country, institution, or organization led by a small group of people.” Observers saw the leaders of the most powerful tech companies in the world not just in attendance but sitting where friends and family sit. They had better seats than Trump’s cabinet. It’s not uncommon for business leaders to convene in Washington D.C. to usher in the exchange of power, but the previous relationship that Trump had with these tech CEOs, and its change to what is seen now, is something to take note of. Mark Zuckerberg, founder and CEO of Meta; Jeff Bezos, founder and CEO of Amazon; Sundar Pichai, CEO of Alphabet; Tim Cook, CEO of Apple; and, of course Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, were all close to the president during his swearing in. Each one of...
Microsoft reportedly has an interest in acquiring TikTok. According to BBC, President Donald Trump has revealed the tech company would like to purchase the platform and adds that there is “great interest in TikTok” from several companies.” At the time of this writing, Microsoft nor TikTok have confirmed or denied the matter. The update comes after 170 million users in the United States were temporarily left in the dark on Jan. 18, 2025, a day ahead of the app’s mandated ban by the U.S. government. As AFROTECH™ previously told you, last year former President Joe Biden signed a law requiring TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, to sell the app to a U.S.-based company or it would be banned on Jan. 19 due to national security concerns. The Supreme Court unanimously voted to uphold the ban. Despite this, TikTok maintained its position on not selling to a U.S. company and took TikTok and its other applications — such as Marvel Snap, Lemon8, Hypic, and CapCut — offline in the U.S. The apps...
Editorial Note: Opinions and thoughts are the author’s own and not those of AFROTECH™. President Donald Trum p, who was once a cryptocurrency skeptic, has now yielded to many of the industry’s demands, such as easing federal regulations and oversight. From appointing cryptocurrency advocate and former Securities and Exchange Commissioner Paul Atkins to reprise his old role, to launching his own meme coin, Trump has chosen to embrace cryptocurrency . A few years ago, cryptocurrency was touted as the new form of currency. We wouldn’t be using archaic financial currency and stick to this revolutionized way of transactions. Although some people have made a lot of money off of crypto, its intended use as a decentralized banking system hasn’t been realized. Cryptocurrency is still very new, so new that engaging in it feels comparable to gambling. Trump lifting regulations to give cryptocurrency his blessing bodes well for the industry. A day after announcing Paul Atkins as his pick, the...
Rap duo Krept and Konan are giving back to their community by opening a supermarket. BBC reports the pair will open a 15,000 sq ft. supermarket in Croydon, a diverse area that includes Black and Asian populations, with the help of their business partner, Kaysor Ali. “It’s an honor for us to partner up on this venture,” Krept and Konan said in a statement, per All HipHop. “We are all about representation in the community and finding solutions; we are all from underrepresented communities, so this is a perfect partnership. Saveways is game-changing for our community, and we are excited to bring this vision to life.” Krept reflected on his personal connection to supermarkets, drawing on memories of his upbringing and the frequent need to visit multiple locations to shop for groceries — a reality that remains all too familiar for many in the South London town of Croydon. “Having the experience of going shopping and having to go to multiple places, have to go here for my meat, here for...