Opinion
Hughes: The NFL's diversity apology is illegitimate while Kaepernick remains blackballed
“How dare the NFL commissioner talk about how they support diversity, and they, Literally blackball Colin Kaepernick. All right, until he gets a job, their apology is not legitimate in a lot of black folks' mind, including mine.”
Opinion
Hughes: Jay-Z should not have accepted his NFL partnership deal
“They gave Jay-Z a contract to do the entertainment, which Jay-Z should not have taken, which is not going to be a popular opinion, ok, but we should have stood strong behind Colin Kaepernick, and he's one of the greatest quarterbacks alive today, still, ok?”
Opinion
Hughes: Only white people can solve institutional racism
“Only white people can solve the problem of institutional racism.”
Opinion
Banks readily finance flashy cars for Black entrepreneurs but deny working capital.
“So often it's been easier for an entrepreneur to buy a new flashy car than it's been For them to meet payroll, which is a tragedy of us not having as many lending institutions in our community as we need and want.”
Insight
Founders should avoid discussing early business struggles with close loved ones
“When you're starting off in business, you have to be so very careful about who You discuss your hard times with, because those who love you and care for you the most, like your mother, like your best friend, they'll give you the worst damn advice in the world.”
Opinion
Hughes: The NFL's $250M 10-year social justice fund is negligible
“Plus, two hundred and fifty million dollars spent over a 10 year period is equivalent to the celebrations that they finance when they win the Super Bowl. That's no money for the NFL.”
Opinion
Hughes: Corporate consolidation and big-box retailers drove the 30-year decline in entrepreneurship
“Because of consolidation, because of the big boxes. Because of these major corporations buying out everybody and putting them all under one umbrella. It has been an incredible decline.”
Assertion Partly supported
Hughes: 480,000 Black-owned businesses closed permanently between February and April 2020
“We've lost almost a half a million black businesses between February and April. It's like 480,000 black businesses have closed forever. 90 days we're talking about.”
Assertion Partly supported
Hughes: Urban One reaches 92% of Black America weekly
“We touch on a weekly basis. 92% of all of Black America interacts with one branch of my company in one form or fashion.”
Insight
Cathy Hughes warns founders that loved ones give the worst business advice.
“When you're starting off in business, you have to be so very careful about who You discuss your hard times with, because those who love you and care for you the most, like your mother, like your best friend, they'll give you the worst damn advice in the world.”
Assertion Not checkable as stated
WHUR's "The Quiet Storm" initially found a predominantly gay audience
“Interestingly enough, my first audience was gay, predominantly gay. I put the first openly gay air personality on the air at Howard and almost lost the top of my head because of it. So the gay community absolutely loved The Quiet Storm, and then the black comm…”
Insight
Entrepreneurs find consumer car loans easier to secure than business payroll
“So often it's been easier for an entrepreneur to buy a new flashy car than it's been for them to meet payroll, which is a tragedy of us not having as many lending institutions as In our community as we need and want.”
Opinion
Hughes: George Floyd's murder made racism a corporate deal-breaker
“If you had any level, like I said, you may not have been a racist, but the issue of racism was not a deal-breaker for you. It wasn't a deal-breaker with the company that you worked for, or owned, It wasn't a deal breaker for you in terms of the neighborhood or…”
Insight
Hughes: COVID-19 pandemic primed public empathy for 2020 racial justice protests
“And I think that started with COVID 19. COVID 19 was an equal opportunity killer. Does not care about anything other than taking you out of this life. And when you're faced with this whole issue of death, you start becoming sensitized, I think. And then with t…”
Assertion Supported
Hughes: Black business closures were driven by non-essential sector classifications
“One of the problems I think with you know, a significant decrease In black businesses, so many of us are in businesses that are classified as non-essential.”
Insight
Hughes: Entrepreneurs should stop work based on task completion, not the clock
“I have been reared to believe, which again, so critical for entrepreneurs, that you don't stop based on what the clock says, you stop based on the accomplishment of the task.”
Assertion Partly supported
Cathy Hughes faced severe backlash for airing Howard's first openly gay host.
“I put the first openly gay air personality on the air at Howard and almost lost the top of my head because of it.”
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Thirty-two lending institutions rejected Cathy Hughes before she secured station financing.
“Said no. 32 lending institutions.”
Insight
Stop working when tasks are completed, not when the clock strikes
“I have been reared to believe, which again, so critical for entrepreneurs, that you don't stop based on what the clock says, you stop based on the accomplishment of the task.”
Assertion Supported
Muhammad Ali and Senator Edward Brooke bid on a D.C. station
“Senator Edward Brooke had just left the United States Senate the first time since, you know, Reconstruction days. That's right. He was a bidder. Muhammad Ali was bidding for it.”
Assertion Not checkable as stated
32 lending institutions rejected Hughes's first radio station loan application
“Said no. 32 lending institutions.”
Insight
News-talk is the most expensive radio format to operate
“As you well know here at NPR, it's the most expensive format that you can do.”
Insight
Lenders invest in the individual operator, not the business idea
“Lenders don't invest in ideas. Everybody's got ideas. They invest in you. People loan money to the person, not to the business, not to the idea. They have to feel good about you.”
Insight
Entrepreneurs of color face a systemic lack of available capital
“One of the issues that has always faced entrepreneurs of color is the lack of available capital for them to go into business or to maintain their business.”
