Tom Joyner Joins The 2 Live Stews for Mentoring

Nationally syndicated media personality Tom Joyner has responded to syndicated sports radio hosts The 2 Live Stews' Mentoring Brothers challenge to use his influence and star power to encourage Black men to mentor. Joyner, a media personality and philanthropist, is heard by more than 8 million listeners in 115 markets as host of the number one syndicated urban radio show in America.

This month, The 2 Live Stews, Doug and Ryan Stewart, biological brothers who are also mentors with Big Brothers Big Sisters, are urging their sports and urban media buddies to use the airwaves and websites to help them spread the word about the need for African American men to become mentors. While more than a third of the Little Brothers served by the Big Brothers Big Sisters volunteer network are African American, only 15 percent of the nonprofit organization's male mentors are black. The 260,000 Children served by Big Brothers Big Sisters are among America's most vulnerable - those who live in poverty, single-parent homes or households where a parent is incarcerated.

"By the end of the campaign in March, we expect to have more broadcasters and their circles of friends, listeners and family members on board to continue the conversation as long as our boys need us. Black men in media, leaders of African American fraternities and others who have a nationwide audience or platform owe it to our little brothers to use their influence to make mentoring a major movement in our communities," The 2 Live Stews said.

The Stews will be guests on the Tom Joyner Morning Show February 16 at 7:45 a.m. Eastern to talk about their Mentoring Brothers campaign.

In addition to Joyner, attorney/radio host Warren Ballentine; radio personality Rickey Smiley; ESPN's Stephen A. Smith; ESPN the Magazine executive Keith Clinkscales and Rolling Out Magazine publisher Munson Steed will use their formal and informal networks (email lists, social networking sites, radio broadcasts, ad space, etc) to encourage African American men to go to MentoringBrothers.org to join their mentoring movement. In March, ESPN the Magazine and the broadcasters' websites will run an ad featuring images of all media/influencers who joined answered the Stews' call.

Independent research finds children mentored by Big Brothers Big Sisters volunteers are more likely than their peers to be successful in school and avoid harmful, risky and illegal behaviors and activities.

"The Tom Joyner Foundation gives money directly to Historical Black Colleges and Universities to help our students complete their education," Joyner said. "We know that when kids have a good support system they do better in school and have a better chance of continuing their education, that's why I am helping the 2 Live Stews spread the Mentoring Brothers message to get more Black men to mentor our kids."