1. Changing the Digital World
Among the influential people at the forefront of closing the digital divide, opening doors in Silicon Valley and promoting digital entrepreneurship, Angela Benton is the woman.
Benton’s bona fides extend from her experiences at InterActive Corp., where she worked for several digital companies including RushmoreDrive.com, a search engine targeting African Americans. Today, the single mother of three is founder and CEO of Black Web Media, publisher of BlackWeb20.com, which is now rebranded B20 and curates content targeting innovators and entrepreneurs. She describes herself as a design-centric technophile.
In 2011, under the Black Web Media umbrella, Benton launched her most ambitious projects: the NewME Accelerator and NewME Conference. It is her effort to “accelerate, educate and empower underrepresented tech talent around the world” and build a more diverse and inclusive knowledge economy. “The New Promised Land: Silicon Valley” focused on Benton and her project as part of “Black in America,” Soledad O’Brien’s award-winning documentary series on CNN.
WOMEN 2.0: Angela Benton discusses entrepreneurship for Walker’s Legacy, a professional collective for women in business named for Madam C. J. Walker.