Tony Brown (journalist)
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| Tony Brown | |
|---|---|
| Born | April 11, 1933 Charleston, West Virginia, U.S. |
| Occupation | Journalist, College Dean - Hampton University, President/CEO - Tony Brown Productions |
| Website | TonyBrown.com |
William Anthony "Tony" Brown (born April 11, 1933) is an American journalist, academian,comedian and businessman. He is best known as the commentator of the long running syndicated television show, Tony Brown's Journal.[1]
Brown is a member of Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity.
Contents
[hide]Accomplishments[edit]
- 1959, he received a BA in Sociology from Wayne State University.
- 1961, he received an MA in Psychiatric Social Work from Wayne State University. He is a former faculty member at Central Washington University and Federal City College.
- 1971, he became the founding dean of Howard University's School of Communication.
- 1989, he wrote, directed, produced and distributed a dramatic movie with an anti-drug message, The White Girl.
- 1998, wrote Empower The People: A 7-Step plan to Overthrow the Conspiracy that is Stealing Your Money and Freedom
- 2002, he was inducted into the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences' Silver Circle.
- 2004, he became the dean of Hampton University's Scripps Howard School of Journalism and Communications. He held the position until 2009, when he stepped down.
In 1988 he wrote, produced, and directed the film The White Girl, which dramatized an African American student's struggle with cocaine addiction.[2]
He joined the Republican Party in 1990.[3]
Anti-Hindu controversy[edit]
In 2001, Tony Brown, made several derogatory anti-Hindu remarks in his talk show on WLS 890 AM that began with the concern among American workers about the influx of software engineers from India. He evoked anti-Hindu canards such as exaggerating the importance of the Caste System in Hinduism, and made remarks about Human rights in India. Protests by Indian-American community leaders led to a public apology by Brown for his remarks against Hindus and Hinduism. In his apology, Brown said:
After his apology, Brown also invited Swami Atmajnanananda of the Washington branch of the Ramakrishna Mission and an Indian journalist based in Chicago, J V Lakshmana Rao, to participate in the talk show. Atmajnanananda said one must draw a distinction between caste and casteism. He said:
Clearing Brown's misconceptions about lower castes "being persecuted in India", Rao spoke of affirmative actions in favor of the lower castes by the Government of India.
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Tony Brown, in full William Anthony Brown (b. April 11, 1933, Charleston, West Virginia), American activist, television producer, writer, educator, and filmmaker who hosted Tony Brown’s Journal (1968–2008; original name Black Journal until 1977), the longest-running black news program in television history.
Brown was the son of Royal Brown and Catherine Davis Brown. Segregation and poverty were a part of Brown’s upbringing and influenced his view that freedom can be achieved only through economic means. Brown attended public schools in Charleston, West Virginia, where he joined the track team and excelled in academics, especially English and drama. He performed in school plays and, shortly before graduating in 1951, performed segments of Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar on WGKV radio in Charleston.
After serving in the army from 1953 to 1955, Brown enrolled in Wayne State University in Detroit where he studied sociology and psychology, graduating with a bachelor’s degree in 1959. Primarily concerned with the suffering caused by poverty that plagued the African American community, Brown continued his studies at Wayne State, focusing on psychiatric social work. He earned a master’s degree in 1961 and began a career as a social worker but quickly discovered that he did not like the work. Changing careers, Brown became a drama critic for the Detroit Courier in 1962. He soon rose to the position of editor at the newspaper, but in 1968 he decided to move on to a job in public-affairs programming at WTVS, Detroit’s public television station.
Over the next 30 years, Brown hosted and produced programming that concerned the black community. While at WTVS, he produced Colored People’s Time, the station’s first show aimed at a black audience, and Free Play, another community-oriented program. In 1970 Brown became executive producer and host of Black Journal, a New York-based program that aired nationally and had begun in 1968. The program consisted of commentaries, documentaries, and surveys. Brown’s approach to Black Journal garnered much criticism. His view of the United States government and its effect on African American life, as well as his seeming arrogance when focusing on the struggles of black people, caused a stir in both the broadcasting and black communities. As a result, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which funded the program, announced that it would not fund the 1973–74 season of Black Journal. The national black community protested the decision, however, and the show was aired, although on a limited basis. In 1977 Brown negotiated a contract with the Pepsi-Cola Company to sponsor the show, changing its name to Tony Brown’s Journal and moving it to commercial television. The show was later moved back to public television after Brown experienced trouble getting desirable viewing times on commercial television stations.
Activism was important to Brown. He maintained a strong presence in community-oriented programs as well as launching initiatives of his own. His belief that education was the key to success prompted him to initiate Black College Day to highlight black colleges and the need for African American youth to pursue a college education. He also formed the Council for the Economic Development of Black Americans; the organization’s Buy Freedom campaign encouraged African Americans to patronize black businesses. To address the problem of drug addiction, he wrote and produced a film about the issue, The White Girl (1990).
Brown held academic positions throughout his career. He founded the School of Communications at Howard University in Washington, D. C., in 1971 and served as the school’s dean until 1974. He later served as dean of the Scripps Howard School of Journalism and Communications at Hampton University in Virginia from 2004 to 2009.
In addition to writing a syndicated column for many years, Brown also wrote the books Black Lies, White Lies: The Truth According to Tony Brown (1995), Empower the People: A 7-Step Plan to Overthrow the Conspiracy That Is Stealing Your Money and Freedom (1998), and What Mama Taught Me: The Seven Core Values of Life (2003).
_________________________________________________________________________
Tony Brown, in full William Anthony Brown (born April 11, 1933, Charleston, West Virginia, U.S.), American activist, television producer, writer, educator, and filmmaker who hosted Tony Brown’s Journal (1968–2008; original name Black Journal until 1977), the longest-running black news program in television history.
Brown was the son of Royal Brown and Catherine Davis Brown. Segregation andpoverty were a part of Brown’s upbringing and influenced his view that freedom can be achieved only through economic means. Brown attended public schools in Charleston, West Virginia, where he joined the track team and excelled in academics, especially English and drama. He performed in school plays and, shortly before graduating in 1951, performed segments of Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar on WGKV radio in Charleston.
After serving in the army from 1953 to 1955, Brown enrolled in Wayne State University in Detroit; he studied sociology and psychology, graduating with a bachelor’s degree in 1959. Primarily concerned with the suffering caused by poverty that plagued the African American community, Brown continued his studies at Wayne State, focusing on psychiatric social work. He earned a master’s degree in 1961 and began a career as a social worker but quickly discovered that he did not like the work. Changing careers, Brown became a drama critic for the Detroit Courier in 1962. He soon rose to the position of editor at the newspaper, but in 1968 he decided to move on to a job in public-affairs programming at WTVS, Detroit’s public television station.
Over the next 30 years, Brown hosted and produced programming that concerned the black community. While at WTVS, he produced Colored People’s Time, the station’s first show aimed at a black audience, and Free Play, another community-oriented program. In 1970 Brown became executive producer and host of Black Journal, a New York-based program that aired nationally and had begun in 1968; it consisted of commentaries, documentaries, and surveys. Brown’s approach to Black Journalgarnered much criticism. His view of the U.S. government and its effect on African American life, as well as his seeming arrogance when focusing on the struggles of black people, caused a stir in both the broadcasting and black communities. As a result, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which funded the program, announced that it would not fund the 1973–74 season of Black Journal. The national black community protested the decision, however, and the show was aired, although on a limited basis. In 1977 Brown negotiated a contract with the Pepsi-Cola Company to sponsor the show, changing its name to Tony Brown’s Journal and moving it to commercial television. The show was later moved back to public television after Brown experienced trouble getting desirable viewing times on commercial television stations.
Activism was important to Brown. He maintained a strong presence in community-oriented programs as well as launching initiatives of his own. His belief that education was the key to success prompted him to initiate Black College Day to highlight black colleges and the need for African American youth to pursue a college education. He also formed the Council for the Economic Development of Black Americans; the organization’s Buy Freedom campaign encouraged African Americans to patronize black businesses. To address the problem of drug addiction, he wrote and produced a film about the issue, The White Girl (1990).
Brown held academic positions throughout his career. He founded the School of Communications atHoward University in Washington, D.C., in 1971 and served as the school’s dean until 1974. He later served as dean of the Scripps Howard School of Journalism and Communications at Hampton University in Virginia from 2004 to 2009.
In addition to writing a syndicated column for many years, Brown also wrote the books Black Lies, White Lies: The Truth According to Tony Brown (1995), Empower the People: A 7-Step Plan to Overthrow the Conspiracy That Is Stealing Your Money and Freedom (1998), and What Mama Taught Me: The Seven Core Values of Life (2003).
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