I wrote this column while waiting at Delta gate B5 in Cleveland Hopkins International Airport. I was on my way home to Atlanta, having spent four wonderful days in downtown Cleveland for the annual NABJ convention. Part family reunion, part networking event, NABJ is a must-do for me, both personally and professionally. Another must-do every time I travel to another city is grabbing the local newspaper. The Sunday Cleveland Plain-Dealer was available at one of the airport stores, and I made sure to get a copy to read while I waited for my flight to board.
On page A4 in the news section was a story on the NABJ convention, its headline focused on this year’s convention having fewer sponsors than the Chicago convention in 2024. Along with nearly three dozen fewer corporate sponsors, something else was different this year. The line to register was shorter than I remembered. I arrived on Wednesday afternoon and was immediately able to walk up to a volunteer and receive my convention credential. It could be argued that the panels, even the one I was a speaker on, were well attended, but it felt different. Not as packed as they were in Chicago, for example.
The Chicago convention set an all-time NABJ convention attendance record with 4,600 attendees. The year before in Birmingham, Alabama, 3,800 attendees made the trip south to take part in the revelry. This year in Cleveland, it didn’t look or feel like it had in the past two years. There was a reported 3,096 people registered for the convention, including sponsors and exhibitors. Those numbers will work for Cleveland in 2025, but they simply will not do for Atlanta in 2026.
What gives, you ask?
Well, let’s not blame this on the destination. Downtown Cleveland rocks! It’s clean, extremely walkable, and has plenty of hotels, restaurants, and sights to see. Cleveland was a perfect destination for a convention.
But Numbers don’t lie.
Atlanta is hosting the 2026 NABJ convention, and the pressure will be on the Atlanta Association of Black Journalists (AABJ) to put on a show similar to the ones Vegas did coming out of the COVID pandemic, Birmingham did a year after Vegas hosted, and Chicago did last year. Even with the distraction of a certain then presidential candidate’s appearance, Chicago was memorable.
Atlanta will have to be responsible for setting new records for attendance, and delivering a renewed energy in 2026. Working the door and handing out drink tickets during the AABJ kickoff party on Saturday night, the anticipation for the Atlanta convention was more than palpable. Every other person I made contact with said they are looking forward to Atlanta. It quickly became the theme of the night as attendees danced to music by Atlanta-based artists.
Next year will be here soon enough and Atlanta will be the midst of a year like no other. Part of the 2026 FIFA World Cup will take place at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, including the semifinals. The voters will choose a new governor in November and the majority of those votes will come from Atlanta’s Fulton County. And the National Association of Black Journalists will hold its annual convention in downtown Atlanta.
There’s only one Atlant and despite the convention having taken place in Atlanta in 1984, 1994, and 2006, the year of our Lord 2026 will be the first of its kind, and like no other before it.
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