What’s better than one sister saving their local news publication? Two. Dontaira Terrell and her sister Zakkiyyah Terrell White teamed up to purchase the historic Youngstown, Ohio newspaper, Buckeye Review, to continue its legacy as one of the leading Black-owned publications in the country since it was founded in 1937.
Dontaira has an extensive background in journalism contributing to various publications like HuffPost, BET, and xoNecole. Now serving as the co-publisher, co-owner, and editor-in-chief of herhometown’s publication, Dontaira is living her dream job, and coincidently, it’s at the same newspaper she had her first byline published at just nine years old. Dontaira opens up to xoNecole about her new role, the family business, and the future of media.
“Well, it's actually a full-circle moment because I told you my sister actually used to intern for the previous owners when she was in high school. So they have been family friends of ours for a very long time," Dontaira says. “It was just time for them to pass the torch and they entrusted us to move forward in terms of preserving the legacy and carrying forward the legacy. So it all moved rather quickly. Once they were aware that we would be interested in just carrying out their vision and carrying out what they've accomplished and achieved these last 30 years.”
Zakkiyyah Terrell White (L) and Dontaira Terrell (R)
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While Dontaira is a well-respected journalist, Zakkiyyah is an esteemed attorney, and their backgrounds combined make them the perfect duo to take on such an exciting yet massive opportunity to relaunch the publication. Zakkiyyah uses her skills to offload some of the business tasks, which include trademarks and reviewing contracts. Dontaira focuses on creative decisions like story ideas that appeal to the older generations who have been readers of the newspaper for decades as well as introducing fresh perspectives that the younger generation will appreciate. They are also challenging the narrative that newspapers are a dying breed.
“Yes, so I think one of the things, just in terms of overcoming those challenges, we definitely want to get the younger generation, like Gen Z, involved because I feel like Gen Z are heavily influenced by social media and by the digital landscape,” she explains. “So I feel like if we bring them into the fold and create those intergenerational conversations, we can definitely engage readers. We can also increase readership. We can also do a lot of various things on the social media aspect, from digitizing the magazine because we plan on doing a quarterly magazine as well. So that's why I said digitize the magazine, as well as the newspapers."
One of her goals as editor-in-chief is to have intergenerational conversations that will reach a broader audience in the Black community. She continues, “I felt like just being engaged with the audience and also just bringing them in for them to know that their voices are being heard and we want to hear from them. And I think also not neglecting our immediate target base, which is the older generational baby boomers, if you will.
"So that's why I feel like just creating that intergenerational approach will definitely help us in terms of overcoming those challenges. Getting people excited, again, about picking up a newspaper, about going to various websites reading a variety of articles, although with the newspaper publication, it's not CNN, and we're not trying to be CNN. We are definitely trying to bridge that gap, if you will.”
The Revamp
Dontaira shares some of the exciting things readers of the Buckeye Review can look forward to with the revamp.
Dontaira Terrell
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Expanding Its Digital Footprint
One of their focuses is to make the publication available outside of Ohio and "bring in more of the lifestyle, entertainment pieces into the forefront." She continues, "We're known as the voice of the valley, which is our tagline, and I think when people think of that, they think of specifically like Mahoning Valley, where it's located, but we have so many entrepreneurs and so many people who have left the valley and are doing amazing things in the DMV area, even in South Africa, even in Atlanta, Georgia. So just also showcasing that our roots are outside of city limits as well. They're wide-ranging, so we definitely want to hone in on that.”
Family First
Dontaira also plans to keep the business in the family, from her nieces and nephews to her sisters (she has a total of three), while using their voices and skills to reach multiple generations. “Definitely, and not even my sisters. Also, like I said, the nieces and nephews, so definitely plan on utilizing their skill sets in terms of, like I said, tapping into a younger generation, putting them as reporters. Let them talk to people their age, what are you talking about? What’s going on out there? What are those conversation starters? What do you wish older people or your parents or aunties would know or not know?" She says.
"Also, my dad; we are including him as the community liaison. So he is very excited about that. And yes, my sisters, whether they're featured in an article or contributing in some way, shape, or form, everyone will be included at some point. Even like February, Black History Month, we did do a feature on my sister, who is a Hampton graduate because she is the first Black audiologist in the Midwest.”
The Legacy Continues
Being the co-owner and editor-in-chief of such a beloved newspaper and revamping it is no small feat. However, she measures her success and the success of the Buckeye Review by the positive feedback she receives from readers. “I would like to have stories that resonate with different people. I feel like if people can say, 'Oh my goodness, I read this on your website' or 'I read this in your paper.' 'Thank you for publishing that.' Oh, my goodness.' If they can come up to me and say things like that, then I know I've done my job, or I'm doing a great job," she explains.
"I feel like the power of words is so unique, so amazing. There's strength in words. So just having this platform is a responsibility not just to myself, but like I said, for FAMU, you know, the institution that shaped me, for my hometown in Youngstown that molded me, and also for my family because this is like a family legacy and also for other aspiring journalists or other journalists who I've always admired.
"I feel like it's like a great responsibility, and I just hope to showcase journalism integrity. I hope to showcase quality content. I hope to showcase something that resonates a little bit for everyone. And I hope that people are seen, they're heard, they're valued, and they know if they come to the Buckeye Review, it will definitely be worth their while.”
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The pair often says they’re two sides of the same coin. Skylar is an Aquarius. She attended art school, paints, and loves poetry. She’s more than happy to let the couple’s management firm and agency, Kensington Grey, handle their admin work. And, she loves to sleep in. Temi, on the other hand, wakes up early. He’s a Virgo. He loves a to-do list and regularly checks in on the couple’s brand partnerships spreadsheet to make sure everything is on track.
Because his storytelling was steeped in his love of technology, he didn’t always think of himself as a creative person. “Where I [am] the dreamer who wants to pluck things out of the sky and spend all day with my head in the clouds, Temi [is] so good at grounding me and helping me figure out how to make things make sense on paper. We just work together in such a complimentary way,” Skylar says.
It’s been more than six years since Brooklyn-based couple Temi and Skylar started dating, and nearly four since they cemented their working relationship. On TikTok and Instagram, the couple’s travel, fashion, and home content regularly rack up hundreds of thousands of views. They’ve worked with brands such as Coach, Aesop, Away, and Liquid IV, bringing their vibrant perspectives to every campaign they execute. Still, nearly two years since both Temi and Skylar committed to full-time content creation and creative directing, the couple says their romantic connection remains their priority.
“We told each other we would much rather go back to full-time jobs and preserve our relationship than to be full-time freelancers, barely getting a night's rest [and] barely kissing each other because we're so busy shooting,” Skylar says.
Working from home can make it hard to separate work from personal life for any entrepreneur. It can be even more challenging when your business partner is also your lover. Temi and Skylar had already used couples therapy as a tool to help them effectively communicate with one another. When they ran into challenges while working together, their therapist helped them set physical boundaries to help combat the issues.
"We told each other we would much rather go back to full-time jobs and preserve our relationship than to be full-time freelancers, barely getting a night's rest [and] barely kissing each other because we're so busy shooting."
“It actually took us doing very specific physical things to create boundaries between work and play in our relationship,” Skylar says. “So, for instance, we will only have conversations about work when we're out of bed or we're at the table or in the office. Initially, when we started, we had to light a candle to say that, 'Okay, this is a space where we're connecting, we’re not talking about work.' We needed really hard boundaries at the top. And then it became a little bit more organic.”
The boundaries have been crucial to implement, especially because the couple began working together so naturally. When the pair first met, Skylar was NY-based a social strategist for BuzzFeed and was using content creation to drive business to her lingerie company. She was shooting her own content. Temi was working for Microsoft in D.C. He’d recently traded in his DJing equipment for a camera. “I've always loved taking pictures,” he says. “Even when I was a kid, my African mother would wake me up at 3:00 a.m. [during a] party, and be like, 'Come take the family picture.'”
Growing up, Temi says he watched his parents support each other and be the true definition of partners. He knew he wanted the same for his own relationship. But, the couple also wanted to make sure they were being financially responsible. The pair didn’t quit their traditional jobs until they’d saved up two years' worth of their cost of living. And, Temi received his Master of Business Administration from New York University with the knowledge that it could either help him advance in his corporate career or be applicable to his business with Skylar.
Temi and SkylarCj Hart @hartbreakToday, they say their working relationship is more of a “quiet dance.” They still implement some of the boundaries they learned in therapy, but they also lean into their natural strengths and deep love for one another. When we speak, Temi has planned a date for the couple to see Princess Mononoke in 4K IMAX and added it to their Notion so they can factor it into their busy schedules. “I fully plan to date for the rest of my life,” he says.
Skylar says the couple doesn’t just wait for date nights to check in with one another, though. This often happens in the mornings, after Temi has made her peppermint tea and poured himself a cup of coffee. When they ask each other how they slept, she says, it’s not just a “nicety.” It’s a genuine question meant to foster connection.
“A lot of it happens during the day in the midst of work. We'll stop and we'll hug. Or we’ll slow dance in the kitchen,” she says. “Sometimes it's hard to set a whole date night when you have 7,000 things going on. So, we must grasp these moments and check in when we can. And I think it's become so organic to us that I actually didn't even realize how often we do it. But all day long, we're like, 'Are you good? I felt like your energy shifted,' because we're best friends, we just know. We just feel it happen.”
What’s better than being in love? Building wealth while doing it. Watch Making Cents here for real stories of couples who make money moves together.
Featured image by Cj Hart @hartbreak