The advent of the internet aided the demise of a lot of media. Black media, which was always on a perilous tightrope, suffered even more. Black folks were quick to say how they can get it free from the internet, so they didn’t need to support traditional sources of information. But as we’re seeing in real time, without investigative journalists who have their feet to the ground, our stories are getting lost. And to have what we need, we’re going to have to reach into our pockets to pay to support it.

Let’s look at the current case of Aaliyah Ivory, the young woman who was driving northbound on I-57 and had a road-rage encounter with another driver. Something happened between the time she got on the expressway and being shot near Vollmer road. At the Lincoln Highway entrance, I-57 northbound is two lanes. But just north of Vollmer Road, traffic on the right is slowing down as it heads toward I-80 east, or is attempting to merge to the left to continue north, while traffic on the left is merging into the same single file lane. It’s a nightmare!

Aaliyah, who is black, and another driver, who is a white male got into it.

Something caused a road-rage moment. Published reports say words were exchanged, to the point where the situation got extremely heightened. Both people had weapons. And in the end, Aaliyah ended up getting shot six times. Five bullets went through her rear window and one bullet went through the side. We haven’t heard the shooter’s version, and I’m curious to hear what it is.

This is where we need investigative journalists. I’m not going to take sides although I have some strong suspicions. But I want to know the facts. And let the chips fall where they may.

I haven’t seen any reports of witnesses to this road-rage situation coming forward. I find that very interesting. The Illinois State Police did not arrest the shooter, and that has caused Aaliyah’s family to become very upset. But the man also didn’t run. And he knew she had a gun. So the details that we are being given are being managed to put each of the individuals in a better light.

We need journalists to stay on this kind of story, as well as the hundreds of other stories that have happened in the past that get forgotten about as we move on to the latest.

And one of the latest is the very sad story of the two little girls being ignored by the character at Sesame Place. People are jumping on the location, but I want to know who was in that costume? I want them to be publicly identified. Because right now, nobody knows who was in the costume. We don’t know their race, their sex, or anything about them. We just know that the person purposely ignored those two little girls.

I hope we have a budding Ida B. Wells, Robert S. Abbott, or John H. Johnson who can come out and put forth a media platform to address the need that has never gone away.