Atlanta Welcomes NABJ Back With More Than 4,000 Expected to Attend

By Freddrell Green

Every year NABJ brings its annual convention and career fair to some of the most prominent cities in the country. But what does that process look like behind the scenes?

2026 convention co-chair Leroy Chapman gives much of the credit to NABJ staff and volunteers who dedicate their time to scheduling, access to venues, and making sure attendees are aware of any complementary services they can provide.

“I mean, we need professional development, obviously. So there’s always that, but it’s also making sure that we’re calling on people to come and be supportive of us at a time when the business is in flux and journalism is under fire,” he said.

There are some who criticize Atlanta’s support for all ventures, but Chapman assures that the city is all in with NABJ.

“It’s especially home and hospitable to those conventions that are centered around Black organizations. So the country comes here. We just had a regional Delta Sigma Theta convention that came here to Atlanta. So Black America wants to be in Atlanta. So I’m confident that that the folks here will find Atlanta to be open arms, hospitable, all those things, and the city’s been supported,” he said.

While the national office works to sustain Black feminist careers, former NABJ president and AABJ chapter president Condace Pressley wants to make sure every attendee feels the southern hospitality at the convention, just as they did in 2005.

“Knowing how we know that Atlanta is the birthplace of the civil rights movement, as the center for Black excellence and culture in the United States, we need for that much time to pass between conferences because we want to make sure that we show up and that we show out,” she said.

Chapman says other events like the Olympics in 1996 and this year’s World Cup drew far larger crowds.

“There’s been a lot of investment and a lot of success in hosting conventions, big meetings here in Atlanta, and a critical part of that is Black America coming here,” he said.

He says NABJ’s 4,000-plus attendees ensures that the return on investment will be a story well told about Atlanta’s influence.

“If folks come here, if they have a positive experience, then that will live on, and I think that will help Atlanta as we want to tell our story to the world,” he said.

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