By NAN Staff Writer
News Americas, NEW YORK, Fri. July 9, 2021: Recently, the New York Daily News announced that the long-time Caribbean column, Caribbeat is on a two week “vacation.” It’s not known if or when the column will be back, since the creator has ended a 44-year career at the paper.
Jared Lawrence McCallister, a long-time friend of the Caribbean and Caribbean American community as well as News Americas, Hard Beat Communications and Invest Caribbean, ended his career as a news editor and writer of the Caribbeat column two weeks ago.
McCallister reportedly took a buyout and left the News, according to his friend Clem Richardson on Facebook.
The Brooklyn-born McCallister joined the paper as a newsroom clerk in 1977 and moved up quickly to the posts of reporter where he serve from 1982 – 1990.
In 1990 he was named senior production editor and in 1993, founded the Caribbeat column, the only regular feature of its kind in a major, mainstream New York newspaper. Each Sunday, the column appeared in online and Daily News’ print editions in the five boroughs and on Long Island. He also was instrumental in the creation of the short-lived Caribbeat magazine.
McCallister is big on helping others. He was instrumental in recruiting professional, minority journalists to the paper, at the career fair of several minority associations’ annual conventions, such as the National Association of Black Journalists, the National Association of Hispanic Journalists, and Unity: Journalists of Color.
McCallister, a graduate of St. John’s University and Institute for Journalism Education’s Management Training Institute at Northwestern University, was also the editor of many special supplements, including for Black History Month and Harlem Week. His consistent commitment to writing Caribbeat weekly, without fail, ensure the huge population of Caribbean nationals in New York City, were given coverage in one of the US’ daily newspaper, one of two papers to cover this demographic consistently.
For his dedication to the Caribbean and Black communities in New York City, McCallister won many awards. In 2004, he entered into a partnership to launch an essential media organization of national and international communications to serve the Caribbean community.
“Thank you, my Brother, thank you!,” Richardson wrote on Facebook.
Felicia J. Persaud, a long-time friend of McCallister and CEO of Invest Caribbean, told NANN that the Daily News has lost a “loyal, committed” employee with a “heart of gold.”
“Jared has been my friend, cheerleader, confidante and supporter for almost two decades already,” said Persaud. “His commitment to the Caribbean region and its US and New York Diaspora is beyond pale, especially since he has no known roots in the region beyond being a honorary “Caribbean” by way of Brooklyn. I know he is looking forward to the next chapter of his life and I wish him all the love and light in the world, but I also hope the New York Daily News will continue to keep the Caribbeat column and its coverage and commitment to one of New York’s largest immigrant blocks, Caribbean New Yorkers.”
We at News Americas echo Richardson’s and Persaud’s sentiments on behalf of the Caribbean Diaspora and the Caribbean community and all of the Caribbean looks forward to the Caribbeat column returning from “vacation” soon.
