By Tennessee Tribune
NASHVILLE — The Tennessee Tribune has announced that its founder, publisher and chief executive officer, Rosetta Miller Perry, passed away Friday, June 26, 2026. She was 91.
A trailblazing publisher, civil rights pioneer and entrepreneur, Miller Perry dedicated her life to ensuring the stories, achievements and voices of Tennessee’s African American community were told with accuracy, dignity and purpose. Before founding the Tennessee Tribune, she spent more than 25 years in public service, including working for the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights and serving with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
In 1991, after being unable to secure financing from local banks, Miller Perry invested $70,000 of her personal savings to launch the Tennessee Tribune. Under her leadership, the newspaper grew into one of Tennessee’s most influential Black-owned newspapers and a trusted voice for civil rights, community advocacy and Black-owned businesses. She later moved the newspaper’s headquarters to historic Jefferson Street, establishing its permanent home in the heart of Nashville’s historic Black community.
She was also founder of the Nashville Black Chamber of Commerce and charter member of Nashville’s Les Gemmes.
The work Miller Perry began more than three decades ago and will continue, the Tribune said in a statement.
Funeral arrangements and additional information will be shared as they become available.
