The Tennessee Tribune Publisher Rosetta Perry celebrates milestone birthday

By Jackie Hampton,
Publisher,

Rosetta Miller-Perry, publisher of The Tennessee Tribune and long-time member of The National Newspaper Publishers Association, celebrated her 90th birthday on July 8, 2024. When asked by The Mississippi Link how was her 90th year birthday celebration, she softly responded, “It was nice, kind of over the top.”
Perry had a pre-birthday celebration Saturday, July 7th, where family gathered at her home for a family brunch and photos with the birthday girl. On Sunday, family and friends gathered again at her home at 3:00 p.m. for a surprise gathering. It was orchestrated by her daughter Wanda and other family members.
Perry, a low-profile individual by nature, has received numerous honors for her many achievements over the years but to celebrate her 90th birthday at her home was more than over the top according to her nephew, James Artis.’ He said his aunt was honored in a way she truly deserved.
Her daughter Wanda Miller-Benson said, “Our family was blessed to come together to celebrate my mother’s 90th birthday and acknowledge what it truly means to reach such an extraordinary milestone.” Benson is the associate publisher of The Tennessee Tribune. She went on to say, “Although it has not been without challenges, her unique journey has been purposeful. She has touched lives in the Nashville community and beyond and has left an indelible print that will live on in the pages of history and through the voices of griots.”
Perry founded The Tennessee Tribune in 1991 and still works full-time from the office and sometimes from home.

She has been a freedom fighter for justice all her life, having worked closely with the SCLC and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. She also worked for the U.S. Civil Rights Commission in the 60’s and the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in the 70’s. As a journalist, she covered the Memphis Garbage Strike as well as the chaos following the murder of Dr. King.
On Friday, Jan. 25, 2019, Perry received the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA) Lifetime Achievement Award before a festive and appreciative gathering at the Hilton Orlando Hotel during the NNPA Mid-winter Training Conference in Florida.
On the 30th Anniversary of the TN Tribune, Dr. Benjamin Chavis, president & CEO was the keynote speaker. It was held at the Lighthouse on the Lake in Hendersonville, TN in December 2019. Chavis stated in his message, “For 30 years, The Tennessee Tribune and its publisher Rosetta Miller-Perry have set the standard for news covering Nashville and beyond. As of this day, we claim Rosetta Miller-Perry as the Queen Mother of the Black Press of America.”