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TheTrue Citizen, Wednesday, September 28, 2011 — Page 3
From Waynesboro to Washington
Burke County native carves out place in publishing, broadcast
By Don Lively
livelycolo@aol.com
T he Pacific Northwest is about as far as you can go
from the coastal plains of Georgia and still be in the
lower 48 states.
But one Burke County native has carved out a niche
for himself and his family in the newspaper and radio busi
ness in the nation’s northwest corner.
Christopher Harold Bennett, known to those around him
as Chris, was born and raised in Waynesboro and attended
Burke County schools. After graduation in 1961, he spent
four years and nine months in the Air Force and then at
tended Everett College and the University of Washington on
the G.I. Bill.
Four decades later, Mr. Bennett is the owner, chairman
and C.E.O. of the Seattle Medium Newspaper Group, which
includes The Seattle Medium, The Metro Homemaker, and
The Portland Medium. He also owns The Tacoma True Citi
zen, which got its name thanks to Bennett’s memories from
his hometown.
His newspaper group is now the largest African-American
owned group in the Pacific Northwest and reaches more than
84,000 households and more than 211,000 weekly
readers. Mr. Bennett also owns four radio stations that serve
the Seattle, Tacoma and Portland markets.
And he points to his roots here in Burke County as the
starting point for his current success. Some of Mr. Bennett’s
earliest journalistic undertakings were during his high school
years, which were spent at Waynesboro High and Industrial
School.
He served as editor of the yearbook his senior year and
also competed in a statewide essay writing contest.
“If there was ever a time when I honed my writing skills it
was when we prepared for that contest,” he says, reaching
back in the file of his mind some 50 years. “We studied and
prepared for months. The competition was held in Sylvania.
Each student contestant was provided a topic and given a
certain amount of time to write their essay. Our school won
first, second and third places. I placed third behind our class
valedictorian and salutatorian.”
His English teacher and competition sponsor, Mrs. R.E.
Blakeney, strongly encouraged him to continue to work on
his writing skills, telling him that he was a better writer and
should have finished first.
“She was a great lady who taught enhanced English and
she always encouraged her students to push themselves to do
more,” Mr. Bennett says.
Chris Bennett and his wife Gloria are the par
ents of five children, most of whom work for
his media group. They also have four grand
children and one great-grandchild.
MAKING A MARK
Mr. Bennett’s career in media spawned from his desire to tell
about a pivotal time in our nation’s history.
“I began the newspaper during what we called the riot years,
when there was still a lot of racial unrest in the country,” Bennett
explained, noting the motto of his newspapers is Message from
the People to the People. “I wanted to use the media as a means to
get into the cause and effect of that unrest.”
He has been publishing ever since and become a leader in his
field. Mr. Bennett served two terms as president of the National
Newspaper Publishers Association and currently serves on the
board. He has been named as one Ebony Magazine’s 100 Most
Influential Black Americans four different times. Additionally, he
has been listed in the Who’s Who In Black America, was the found
ing vice president of the West Coast Black Publishers Associa
tion and was named by Pacific Magazine as one of the 100 Most
Influential Washingtonians.
explains, remembering his time playing football and basket
ball under legendary coach Jesse Gray and classes that helped
him later in life.
“Given the circumstances of the times, our school system
was second to none in turning out successful students.”
He also credits the small town atmosphere for much of his
accomplishments.
“When you know that you’re going to be seeing the teach
ers out in the community, at church or shopping, and not
just at school, they tend to become more than just instruc
tors. They are your friends and neighbors ... your role
models.”
He said that many of his teachers were
very involved in his life outside the con
fines of the school and that familiarity cul
tivated a high level of respect that might
not be found in larger school systems.
And although he has built a very suc
cessful life and business in Washington
State, he still comes back for a taste of small
town life from time to time.
"You know, here in the Northwest, the ‘big
fish’ is the salmon,” Mr. Bennett says.
“Those fish swim hundreds of miles to
spawn but they always return home. It’s al
ways good to get back to Burke County. “
He still has many friends and family in the
area including former Georgia State Representative Alberta
Anderson.
WHERE ARE THEY NOW?
Mr. Bennett named a number of schoolmates who also embarked
on successful careers after graduation.
The late John H. “Jack “ Ruffin eventually became Chief Judge of
the Georgia Court of Appeals.
Bettieanne Childers-Hart was named the first female judge in the
Augusta Judicial Circuit.
He graduated a decade before local schools were fully in
tegrated but believes he received a very good education.
“Even though those were still the days of the segregated
South, memories of my school days are mostly positive,” he
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