Collection:LPB

Genre: Newsmagazine

Place Covered: Baton Rouge, East Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana

Copyright Holder: Louisiana Educational Television Authority

Date Issued: 1984-01-15

Duration: 00:27:00

Subjects: King, Martin Luther, Jr., 1929-1968 | Civil Rights | Jemison, T.J. (Theodore Judson) | Smith, Valerian E., 1926-1992

Contributors:

• Hinton, Rob Host
• Stewart, Genevieve Host
• Brown, Janet Interviewee
• Broady, Guy Interviewee
• Jemison, T.J. Interviewee
• Smith, Valerian Interviewee

This episode of the series “Folks” from January 15, 1984, features a salute to the late Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. on the anniversary of his birth. Rob Hinton first reports on Baton Rouge radio station WTKL-AM’s essay contest for their listeners on what the memory of Dr. King means to them. He interviews Janet Brown, the general manager of WTKL-AM, and Guy Broady, the program director. Genevieve Stewart then interviews Reverend T.J. Jemison, the pastor at Mount Zion First Baptist Church in Baton Rouge and the president of the National Baptist Convention. He discusses his lifelong friendship with Dr. King and their work on civil rights, including their founding of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. Lastly, Baton Rouge composer Valerian Smith plays a preview of the oratorio he is writing in honor of Dr. King.