Michael Eric Dyson, Ida B. Wells-Barnett University Professor at DePaul University, has been nominated for an NAACP Image Award for his latest book “I May Not Get There With You: The True Martin Luther King, Jr.”

Dyson, whose controversial tome received both acclaim and criticism for its realistic portrayal of the slain civil rights leader, was among five authors nominated in the category of “Outstanding Literary Work – Non-Fiction.” Other nominees in this category are: Miles Corwin, “And Still We Rise;” Al Roker, “Don’t Make Me Stop This Car;” Julian Bond and Sondra Kathyrn Wilson, “Lift Every Voice and Sing;” and Randall Robinson, “The Debt.”

“I’m honored to be recognized for the work I did on re-examining the reigning icon of black culture,” said Dyson. “It is especially gratifying to be recognized by a venerable institution in black America when some criticism was directed my way by folk alleging to represent the black mainstream.”

“I May Not Get There With You,” which, according to its publisher, the Free Press, sold more than 50,000 copies in hardcover, was released in paperback last December by Touchstone, a subsidiary of Simon and Schuster. The hardcover book was on Blackboard’s bestsellers list for 16 weeks and was No. 1 for four weeks.

Other nomination categories for the NAACP Image Awards include Motion Pictures, Television, Youth Actor/Actress and Recording. Nominations are submitted by NAACP officials from around the country, and by 300 arts and entertainment industry professionals.

The 32nd NAACP Image Awards will air on FOX -TV March 9 at 8 p.m. Eastern Time. The awards program was first presented in Hollywood in 1962 to recognize excellence among African Americans in all areas of communication. Founded in 1909, the NAACP is headed by president and CEO Kweisi Mfume.

Dyson, in addition to holding a university professorship at DePaul, serves as a senior fellow in the university’s humanities center. His books – praised for their scholarly depth and mass appeal – include “Reflecting Black: African-American Cultural Criticism” (1993), “Making Malcolm: The Myth and Meaning of Malcolm X” (1995), “Between God and Gangsta Rap: Bearing Witness to Black Culture” (1996), and “Race Rules: Navigating the Color Line” (1998). He is currently working on a book that addresses the generational divide, specifically as it affects hip-hop music and culture. He welcomes email at mdyson@wppost.depaul.edu.

DePaul University is the largest Catholic university in the nation and the largest private university in Chicago. The university advocates access to education for students of all backgrounds and has increased its minority enrollment by 41 percent since 1996. Total enrollment for the 2000-2001 academic year was 20,547 students, 10.4 percent of whom are African American.