Allissa V. Richardson is Assistant Professor of Communication and Journalism at the University of Southern California's Annenberg School.

Winner, 2022 Dorothy Lee Award for Outstanding Scholarship in the Ecology of Culture, Media Ecology Association
Winner, Tankard Award, Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication
Winner of the 2021 International Journal of Press/Politics Hazel Gaudet-Erskine Best Book Award
Winner of the Frank Luther Mott/Kappa Tau Alpha Research Award for the Best Book on Journalism and Mass Communication Published in 2020

"This is a thought-provoking, sometimes illuminating treatment of a vitally important subject." -- R. C. Cottrell, CHOICE

"A significant contribution." -- Kelli Moore, International Journal of Communication

"A love letter to the Black Press" -- Dr. Kelli Moore, Assistant Professor, Media, Culture, Communication, New York University, International Journal of Communication

"...well researched and engagingly written, the book offers a fresh critical lens on the Black Lives Matter movement and on the possibilities and perils of efforts for social change more generally, adding significantly to both scholarly and broader public conversations. It will be of particular interest not only to media and journalism scholars, but also scholars of race/ethnicity, social movements, technology and history, as well as social activists and organizers for whom it bears lessons." -- Elizabeth E. Sine, Boom California

"Allissa Richardson's impeccably researched book provides an eye-opening account of how African American citizen-journalists have harnessed the power of cell phones and social media to document the deeply entrenched nature of anti-Black racism in the U.S. Impeccably researched and engagingly written, Bearing Witness While Black raises the bar for studying how ordinary people work for social justice in their everyday lives." -- Patricia Hill Collins, author of Intersectionality as Critical Social Theory

"This book weaves together compelling arguments about contemporary digital media use for racial justice activism, rich context about historical antecedents, and theoretical sophistication that enriches both theory and our understanding of digital witnessing. This is a rare combination for academic works, which makes Richardson's work unique and meritorious." -- Charlton D. McIlwain, author of Black Software

"Richardson offers a compelling inquiry into how activism and journalism work together for Black communities intent upon articulating the inequities of racial and civil discrimination. The author's careful work in interviewing significant figures in Black activism over the last half decade provide a substantial resource for scholars interested in hearing the voices of change." -- André Brock, author of Distributed Blackness