Celebrating Black History Month at Paramount
During Black History Month 2022, Paramount brands are engaging our audiences with important programming and content that celebrates the achievements of Black Americans and honors their impact - past, present and future.
To put this work in perspective, below is a rundown of some of the activities happening across our portfolio:
AwesomenessTV
On TikTok and Instagram, AwesomenessTV created segments to highlight many aspects of Black culture, from TikTok trends and the Black creators behind them to the importance of Black mental health and self-care all year round. It also put the spotlight on lesser-known achievements by our favorite celebs, personalities and influencers using trading card style creative and invited influencers from various AwesomenessTV shows to answer questions about their favorite Black creatives on its IG stories.
AwesomenessTV’s Black History Timeline on Instagram took audiences through the evolution of popular trends (terms, styles, inventions) originated by Black innovators.
BET
Check out the BET Black History Month page for articles, PSAs, social series and videos on trailblazers, activists, inventors, artists and more.
BET has also released “Black History is Happening Now,” a series of sponsored on-air spots tackling contemporary Black innovations in art, science, sports, business and more.
On February 26, BET will air the 53rd Annual NAACP Image Awards, honoring outstanding performances in film, television, theatre, music and literature.
CBS
CBS has aired a custom brand ID daily before primetime with a Black History Month message. On social, it featured impactful quotes from talent paired with their images, celebrating the diverse CBS roster, who’ve shown the world that diversity on TV is better TV. Marcel Spears (The Neighborhood) hosted an Instagram Live series where he met weekly with other talent from our CBS family and discussed topics surrounding themes of Black History Month.
All month, CBS owned-and-operated stations ran “Black History is Our History,” a spoken word PSA campaign sponsored by Toyota, featuring stories of Black trailblazers in business, science, the arts and more. Check it out here.
CBS KCNC-TV in Denver created custom “Elevating Black Voices” IDs, highlighting the importance of the local Black community.
CBS KSTW in Seattle aired a Black History Month PSA Campaign on linear, digital and social platforms during February, with tributes to Hayden Greene, Madam CJ Walker,?the Buffalo Soldiers and more.
CBS WBZ-TV and CBS WLNY-TV also aired “Black History Honors,” a series of vignettes that share the impact made by Dr. Paula Johnson, Amanda Gorman,?Ayanna Pressley and more, through a partnership with Project 351 in collaboration with FindMassMoney.com.
CBS WBZ-TV also reported stories relevant to the Black community, highlighting Black restaurants, cycling trailblazer Major Taylor, fashion designer Stephanie Munoz, Reverend Liz Walker and more.
CBS KTVT in Dallas/Fort Worth created a series of Black History Month PSAs featuring on-air talent and journalists. Check it out here.
WUPA-TV, Atlanta’s CW, aired “Black History Month: We Are All Connected,” a trio of PSAs spotlighting Sarah Vaughan, Carl Ware and Ava DuVernay. Watch the video here.
CBS Sports
CBS Sports aired?The Loyola Project, a two-hour film that details the story of Loyola Chicago’s journey to the 1963 NCAA University Division Basketball Championship. The film, broadcast on CBS and CBS Sports Network, explores the racial pressures of the 60s and the maneuvering it took to build a championship roster with Black and white players. See the trailer here.
CBS Sports also elevated its celebration of Black History Month by creating empowering and impactful creative that highlights the importance of sports and media to the Black community. Custom brand creative features an original poem performed by student Noah McKay to celebrate the contributions that Black and Brown athletes have had on professional sports and the integral role that sports play for Black and Brown youth. The creative is running throughout February on CBS during Sports, News and Entertainment programming, as well as CBS Sports Network, CBS Sports HQ and CBS Sports’ digital and social properties. See the full piece here.
MTV
Throughout Black History Month, MTV celebrated by turning its platforms over to Black creators?for “See Me. Hear Me. Know Me.” — an intimate look at the art, history, traditions and achievements of this incredibly diverse and dynamic culture.?Check them out:
See Me – My Black Alchemy, a film by Justice Jamal Jones
Hear Me – Our Humanity by Author and Activist Darnell L. Moore
Hear Me – I See You?by Author and Feminist Naomi Extra
Know Me – A look at Ella Baker and Bayard Rustin
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Nickelodeon
Nickelodeon released on-air spots talking about the importance of mental health, community and coping skills in the Black community, featuring That Girl Lay Lay. These spots also became shorts for social media and YouTube. Check out the conversation here.
On YouTube, Blaze and the Monster Machines took viewers on a race through time to meet Black inventor Garrett Morgan, while Blue’s Clues & You! featured a Mail Time segment all about Black Joy and the power of affirmations.
Nick Jr.
Nick Jr. created on-air spots for its viewers, showing how to use affirmations to empower and build confidence. These spots also became shorts for social media and YouTube. Check out the 30-second version here.
The animated musical series Rhymes through Times features Nick Jr. characters celebrating the Black experience, with a focus on civil rights, leadership, performing arts and science. Check it out here.
Paramount+
In celebration of Black History Month, Paramount+ is amplifying the voices of Black creators and talent with a month-long Black Voices campaign that will feature a curated collection of incredible content on the service such as The Game, The Good Fight, The Neighborhood, The Ms. Pat Show, Dream Team, Black in Space: Breaking the Color Barrier and more. Explore the collection here.
The Black Voices campaign will also include a creative series that will roll out through the month of February, featuring individual stories from Paramount+ stars, as well as their contribution to the broader storytelling community. These campaign activations and product experiences will be supported by a Black Voices media campaign that includes spots across digital and social. See a trailer here.
Paramount Veterans Network
The Paramount Veterans Network, which leads our company's efforts to support veterans, veteran employees and their families, created a tribute video saluting the rich history of African American creators, entertainers and entrepreneurs who have answered the call to serve.
Pluto TV
The streaming service’s Black Cinema will show a new movie daily this month, including documentaries I Am Not Your Negro, Michelle Obama: Hope Becomes Change, and Muhammad Ali: The Greatest via the Pluto TV Documentaries and History channels.
Content will also be available via Pluto from the BET Her, Showtime Selects and BBC Kids channels, and themed videos in the Pluto TV Music category via Vevo’s genre channels.
Save The Music Foundation
Save The Music will create a series of social and blog posts highlighting its case study in Dayton, OH and the community's ties to funk music, HBCU graduates leading the field of music education, BIPOC-led and founded music venues and its partnership with Successful Inc. During J Dilla Week (February 7-13), Save The Music invited everyone to learn more about its J Dilla Music Tech Grant – sharing videos and providing the opportunity to have a grantee teacher attend and document the festivities in San Francisco.
SHOWTIME
SHOWTIME celebrated Black History Month with programming featuring talented Black creators and performers in documentaries such as The One and Only Dick Gregory and ATTICA, the Oscar?-shortlisted documentary feature from Emmy? Award-winning filmmaker Stanley Nelson. Hit series highlighted throughout the month include The Chi and late-night variety shows Desus & Mero and Ziwe, in addition to films such as Against the Tide, Crash, Lee Daniels' The Butler, Kevin Garnett: Anything Is Possible and Get Rich Or Die Tryin'.
On February 11, SHOWTIME premiered Everything’s Gonna Be All White, a docu-series about the experiences of people of color that marries humor with history as it confronts the facets of racism, exploitation and discrimination that contributed to the formation of America.
Simon & Schuster
Simon & Schuster created a Black History Month reading list that invites everyone to join in celebrating and honoring Black voices with reads from award-winning fiction to poignant memoirs to stories for all ages.
Smithsonian Channel
Produced by MTV Entertainment Studios for Smithsonian Channel, One Thousand Years of Slavery, a four-part limited series created in partnership with Angela Bassett and Courtney B. Vance, uncovers the truth of a 1,000-year story of slavery around the world featuring leading Black actors, celebrities and influencers including: Debbie Allen, Valerie Jarrett, Lorraine Toussaint, Soledad O’Brien, CCH Pounder, Senator Cory Booker, Marc Morial and Dulé Hill. See a trailer here.
VH1
VH1 has merged Love & Hip Hop?and?Black Ink Crew to create Love & Hip Hop: Lineage to Legacy, a two-part special that explores African ancestry. Hosted by Dometi Pongo of MTV News, the program celebrates Africa’s rich history while addressing the aftermath of slavery and stereotypes in Black culture. Part one premiered February 7 on VH1, while part two aired Valentine’s Day, February 14. Check out the trailer here.
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Internally, our company's Office of Global Inclusion and Black Employee Resource Group BEAT+ are hosting virtual events with partners and talent to educate and engage employees around the importance of Black History Month. Highlights include:
Thank you to everyone across our global organization who has helped create, support and amplify these initiatives celebrating all that Black History Month represents, including the need to continue championing cultural advancement, equity and inclusion.