theGrio staff on 'Rock Center' (VIDEO)

VIDEO - David Wilson, founder and executive editor of TheGrio.com, a division of NBC News, recently spoke with 'Rock Center' about why he founded the website and how Trayvon Martin's death has affected him...

David Wilson, founder and executive editor of theGrio.com, a division of NBC News, recently spoke with Rock Center about why he founded the website and how Trayvon Martin’s death has affected him.

“At theGrio, our focus is on African American news,” Wilson says. “I just didn’t see a lot of black men given an opportunity in our business. When you look in the Grio’s office, you see black men. That means a lot to me.”

Wilson says the website began coverage of Trayvon Martin’s death on March 8. He admits that when he first herd of Martin’s story, he didn’t think as much of it then as he does now.

WATCH: DAVID WILSON AND THE GRIO STAFF
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“It’s a shame to say … we get a lot of stories like this at the Grio, and a lot of them don’t bubble up to the top.”

TheGrio has published over 60 stories, to date, focusing on Trayvon’s story, and had reporters on the ground in Sanford during the height of the case. Wilson points out that it’s because of stories like his, that the founder originally decided to join this business.

“I think the thing with Trayvon’s story, for me, was to remember why I got into this business, why I specifically started the Grio, which was because there are so many Trayvon Martins that the world will never know, and if I can’t be one of the people who gives these young men a name, then I’m not doing my job.”

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