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Go To Black

In the infancy of tv news, these local reporters were true journalists: covering the battle for civil rights in communities that didn't want to hear the truth.

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Go To Black

Go To Black

Go To Black

Go To Black

Go To Black

In the infancy of tv news, these local reporters were true journalists: covering the battle for civil rights in communities that didn't want to hear the truth.

In the infancy of tv news, these local reporters were true journalists: covering the battle for civil rights in communities that didn't want to hear the truth.

In the infancy of tv news, these local reporters were true journalists: covering the battle for civil rights in communities that didn't want to hear the truth.

In the infancy of tv news, these local reporters were true journalists: covering the battle for civil rights in communities that didn't want to hear the truth.

Andrew Gobeil
Andrew Gobeil
Andrew Gobeil
Andrew Gobeil
1 Campaign |
Providence, United States
$630 USD 12 backers
2% of $30,000 Flexible Goal Flexible Goal

Go To Black

The Book

More than a half-century ago, the United States found itself torn apart over the issue of civil rights.  In the decades leading up to the 1950's, the treatment of blacks in the American South went unreported in the mainstream press.  The murder of Emmit Till changed all that as a nation saw -for the first time- the horrors inflicted upon their countrymen who, save for the color of their skin, were no different from themselves. The civil rights battles that waged from lunch counters in Greensboro to a bus stop in Montgomery to a high school in Little Rock were well documented by national broadcasters who, at the end of the day, returned home to New York or Boston or Chicago.  Go To Black is the story of the local broadcast journalists who called those southern cities home.  It's a story about the men and women - the photographers, the producers, the reporters - who stood up for what was right in their home towns even as their bosses were telling them to stand down. 

The Author


Andrew Gobeil has been a broadcast journalist for nearly forty years.  As a high school student, he'd ride his bike to anchor the news on the Cape Cod radio station where he was employed part-time.  He worked -and paid- his way through Fitchburg State College in Massachusetts and, after graduation, was named one of the youngest NPR affiliate news directors in the country.  He made the jump from radio to television in the 1990s and, after a number of promotions, found himself as a Washington, DC correspondent for network of television stations.  He's interviewed presidents, walked through forest fires, flown into hurricanes and even taken the stick (briefly!) of an F-16.  His unique skills as a reporter, interviewer, editor and writer will serve him well as he produces the Go To Black project. A native of Cape Cod, Andrew fell in love with the South as soon as he arrived there.  Andrew's sons -16 year old Devin and 12 year old Jack- live in South Carolina.  

The Campaign

The heroes -and they were truly heroes- who tried to report the truth during these tumultuous times have aged considerably.  Their stories haven't been told in full, and time is passing far too quickly for us to hold out any longer.  Your support of the Go To Black campaign will allow us to travel and interview these men and women, record their words, and let their voices be heard.  With full funding, we'll be able to purchase the rights to broadcast reports they produced fifty years ago, produce web-based video updates on the interviews, and then write and publish the book Go To Black.  Ideally, we'd like to produce a companion web component that would include the interviews conducted this year combined with the pieces produced decades ago.       

The Appreciation 

Mere words can't begin to express our thanks for your assistance in funding this important campaign.  If you're unable to offer financial support to the endeavor, you can still help:

  • Get the word out! Mention (and link via the Indigogo share tools) us on Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest.  To our friends in the media, book us on your talk shows, invite us on air, and/or produce stories about us to drum up support 
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Choose your Perk

A mention....

$50 USD
A handwritten note of thanks from the author, and a mention in the book's acknowledgments.
1 claimed

An appreciation

$100 USD
A handwritten note of thanks from the author, a mention in the book's acknowledgments and a signed copy of Go To Black.
1 claimed

A Christmas Gift

$150 USD
Looking for the perfect gift for your literary friend or relative? Support the Go To Black project in their name. The gift will include a personal, hand-written note of thanks from the author, personal notes from the author updating the progress of the book, a signed copy of the completed book and a mention in the appreciation page.
Estimated Shipping
December 2013
0 claimed

A collaboration

$1,000 USD
A handwritten note of thanks from the author, a mention in the book's acknowledgements, a signed copy of Go To Black, and conversations with the author about the interviews, writing process and publication.
0 claimed
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