Winston-Salem Publisher Ernie Pitt Dies at 80
The co-founder of the Winston-Salem Chronicle, who spent four decades guiding the paper, passed away on October 23.
By Aiko Sato ·
Ernest Harold “Ernie” Pitt, a veteran and civil rights leader who co-founded the Winston-Salem Chronicle, died on October 23, 2026. He was 80. Pitt had led the weekly newspaper for 43 years, serving as a central figure in the Black Press community.
His family announced that he died of natural causes. The Winston-Salem Chronicle, which he established with Ndubisi Egemonye, became a key voice for African American residents in North Carolina. Pitt’s death leaves a gap in the National Newspaper Publishers Association, the group representing Black-owned newspapers across the country.
Pitt’s career in journalism began in the late 1960s. Born in Raleigh in 1945 and raised in Greensboro, he participated in segregation demonstrations as a teenager. At 17, he attended the 1963 March on Washington, where he heard Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. speak. After graduating from Dudley High School, he studied architecture at North Carolina A&T State University before enlisting in the U.S. Army and serving in Vietnam.
His path to publishing included personal hurdles. Following a 1970 drug conviction, Pitt served two years in prison while continuing his education. He later earned a journalism degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1974. During his studies, he investigated disparities in bar exam passage rates among Black law graduates. When mainstream newspapers declined to publish his findings, Pitt decided to start his own publication.
The Chronicle published its first edition on September 5, 1974. The front page read, “We Salute All the People of Winston-Salem.” Pitt held multiple roles to keep the paper running, including reporter, editor, advertising salesman, circulation manager, and printer. He often delivered the newspapers himself. His former wife, Elaine Lynch Pitt, served as business manager and helped sustain the operation.
Under his leadership, the paper covered racial inequities, public education, and criminal justice. It famously questioned the conviction of Darryl Hunt, a Black man who was wrongfully convicted of murder and later exonerated. Pitt also supported youth athletics and the National Black Theatre Festival. He served as chairman of the Board of Commissioners for the Housing Authority of Winston-Salem. In 2009, Pitt faced federal fraud convictions related to a land transaction, but a federal appeals court overturned both convictions in 2012.
Pitt sold the Chronicle to Chronicle Media Group in 2017, ensuring the paper’s continued operation. In 2022, he was inducted into the North Carolina Media & Journalism Hall of Fame. The NNPA issued a statement on November 3, with President and CEO Benjamin F. Chavis Jr. offering condolences and prayers to the family.
Pitt is survived by his children, Khalilah, Jaeson, and Wali Pitt; four grandchildren; his former wife, Elaine Lynch Pitt; his brother, Clarence Allen Pitt; and his partner, Vicki Gordon. His son, Wali Pitt, said in a family statement, “He was a leader and a great man. He loved his children. He loved his grandchildren, and he loved journalism. He gave us a great life.”
Public viewing took place on November 5 at Russell Funeral Home in Winston-Salem, followed by visitation at Clemmons United Methodist Church. Funeral services were held on November 6 at 11 a.m. at Union Baptist Church, located at 1200 N. Trade St. in Winston-Salem. A private interment is scheduled for Monday, November 9, at Salisbury National Cemetery.
The family requested donations to the NC Black Publishers’ Scholarship at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s Hussman School of Journalism and Media in lieu of flowers. Dorothy R. Leavell, publisher of the Chicago Crusader, described Pitt as a longtime colleague with a genius mind and a terrific personality who will be greatly missed.
