CAROLINE JONES

CO-FOUNDER, MINGO-JONES ADVERTISING

Jones broke racial and gender barriers to become one of the most prominent black women in advertising. During the Mad Men era, she rose from the secretarial pool to become the first black senior copywriter at J. Walter Thompson and by 1977, her brilliant writing talent and uncanny insight into consumer preferences led her to become the first black female vice president of a major agency, BBDO. Always pushing for African American representation in advertising content as well as Madison Avenue executive suites, the late Jones launched a series of black ad agencies throughout her career, including such trailblazers as Mingo-Jones Advertising and her own eponymous firm which counted American Express and Miller High Life as clients. By conjuring up successful, brand-building slogans such as Kentucky Fried Chicken’s “We Do Chicken Right,” this Clio and Obie Award winner was able to convert advertising targeted to black consumers to general market campaigns.

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