Just ahead on Black Issues Forum, for 40 seasons, this show has been a place where Black voices lead the conversation.

In this special episode, we sit down with the host who shaped the show over the decades and reflect on how far we've come.

Five hosts, 40 seasons, one powerful legacy.

Join us as we honor 40 seasons and look to what's ahead.

Coming up next, stay with us.

(upbeat music) ♪ Welcome to Black Issues Forum, I'm Kenia Thompson.

For 40 seasons, Black Issues Forum has stood as a mirror, reflecting our triumphs, our trials, and the unwavering spirit of Black communities across North Carolina and beyond.

This is more than a show.

It's a living archive of voices that dare to speak truth and amplify hope.

To mark this milestone, we look back through the eyes and experiences of those who helped shape this platform.

It all began with a visionary who believed in the power of perspective.

- Hi, I'm Valeria Lee, and I hosted Black Issues Forum from the beginning in 1987 to 1996.

I'm reminded of the role Dr. Paul Van de Grift played in bringing together a group of what we now label thought leaders to talk about what were some of the issues facing the Black community in 1986, 1987.

He brought people from across the state, people in higher education, in politics, in business, and philanthropy, and just community leaders as well, and said, "What's missing right now "in terms of moving the state forward "and also advancing the needs of the Black community, "especially in North Carolina, "but more broadly throughout the country?"

So he and we came up with the idea of a program that would focus on those issues affecting the Black community and the state and the country.

And that's sort of the origin of it, but Dr. Paul Van de Grift, who was on the staff of the center at that time, was the one who said, "Maybe there's a role we can play in public television "to focus on those issues, bring attention to them "in a way that would bring solutions."

And the idea from the beginning was this panel, this group of, again, thought leaders in North Carolina and from throughout the state.

We met at North Carolina Central University, and it was a conversation that sort of continued.

And the center seemed to have liked what was happening with this forum that was to be the one-time show, maybe.

But we all knew you didn't address all those issues of education, of economic disparities, of political kind of changes in North Carolina, and just the range of, you know, what was happening with the black family, what's happening with the children, and schools, and so forth.

So the whole notion then was, "We can talk about them one time with this panel, "but it's bigger than a one-shot deal.

"It's not one and done.

"We gotta maybe continue the conversation."

And we weren't sure how the Center for Public Television was gonna play into that, whether it was a one-and-done deal.

But fortunately, there were forces and voices within the center and within the university that said, "Well, let's continue this "and have another conversation."

And so, now for me to think about 40 years ago, we were starting out on a journey that we didn't know where we were going or how we were going to travel there, but we knew those issues were gonna be with us-- they were with us then, and they are still with us now.

We brought in some real controversial leaders to the program.

I mean, Maxine Waters is still an outspoken person for the black community.

And Dan Blue is still an outspoken leader in North Carolina.

And I could name others, from Cleon Thompson and Julius Chambers, who's now passed on.

But the notion was, we can look at what's going on and then envision what should be.

Oh, the legacy is 40 years of work and bringing attention to what is important to North Carolina and to the black community.

I mean, I don't know any other forum that's lasted so long and been so responsive to the needs of North Carolina from a black perspective.

So to me, that is the legacy.

- With knowledge and awareness of the issues black people grappled with from her role as program officer at Z. Smith Reynolds, Valeria's voice drove conversations centering the intelligence and research of black academia and activists.

As the forum took root, it needed a voice to carry it forward, one that could navigate the complexity of shifting times with clarity and care.

That voice was Jay Holloway, whose calm authority and thoughtful presence ushered in a new chapter.

- Hi, I'm Jay Holloway.

I hosted Black Issues Forum from 1994 until 2002, and I was also the executive producer.

I was at St. Augustine's University, where I started the first black radio and television, commercial radio and television station at HBCU and kind of followed in Vandergrift's footsteps.

And so I've known him since I was in high school, and it was great to follow in his footsteps coming here.

But Dr. Vandergrift started this program and deserves a lot of credit because he went through a lot to get the program started.

UNC-TV at the time, PBS North Carolina, based on its audience size and revenue, was like the third largest public television affiliate of PBS in the country.

So we were in our own right, a major public television resource in the country.

So when you came to North Carolina, in my opinion, Black Issues Forum had the largest black audience in the state of North Carolina.

So that forum was an opportunity for national guests as well as statewide guests to get their point across and be interviewed and share their content.

Probably one of the greatest accolades is Chuck Stone.

Dr. Chuck Stone was the founder of the NABJ, National Association of Black Journalists.

He was a distinguished professor at UNC Chapel Hill.

I had him on one of my earlier programs and he said, "Uncle listen," he said, "Jay."

He said, "You ask the tough questions and you get quiet and listen, and you respond and follow up with that question."

He said, "Most interviewers give a long question and they answer it in their question."

And so I took that to heart.

What I've respected Chuck Stone very much.

The most impactful episode for me was when we got a gentleman released and exonerated and his case dismissed for being accused of committing a crime and killing someone that he didn't do, Terrence Garner.

We did a live call-in program.

I went to the governor's office and said, "Look, PBS or Frontline and Black Issues Forum and other local content on our network is about to reveal how bad North Carolina mistreated this African-American youth.

And we're gonna look like Mississippi did back in doing the civil rights era in the '50s if we don't correct this."

And unfortunately the governor's office didn't listen.

I asked him, "They should pardon this guy."

And Frontline and Black Issues Forum and other local content, we went and uncovered this story.

As a result, pressure was put on the state and they dismissed the case and this guy was gonna be serving 28 years.

He had already served four years in prison and they released him.

And I think our program and content made a difference.

I think Dr. Vandegrift would be very proud that 40 years later, we're sitting here in 2025 talking about how that program has grown.

And I think for the current management to continue to support this program says a lot, especially in the climate of today's political climate.

To do a program like this takes some leadership and some responsibility that is necessary.

And I think the management team deserves credit for continuing to do that.

And it's a shame that there's a need for a program like this in 2025 as it was in the '80s and the '60s and years ago.

Black content and programming and ownership and in employment is still grossly underrepresented.

And it is very important that the general public sees images and content from diverse audiences and from their own people.

That's important.

And you don't realize that until you don't have it.

- Jay's leadership expanded Black Issues Forum, taking the production outside of the studio and into communities, most notably through a town hall series on race relations where he visited 10 campuses in the university system and brought audiences out for lively discussions.

But every era invites a new tone.

Natalie Bullock-Brown arrived with a lens sharpened by culture and consciousness, elevating the dialogue and bridging the gap between generations.

With Natalie, the Forum pulsed with bold curiosity and fearless inquiry.

- I'm Natalie Bullock-Brown and I hosted Black Issues Forum from 2002 until 2012.

At the time that I became host of Black Issues Forum, the temperature around Black Issues seemed to be a little tepid.

I do remember that there were shows that perhaps I wanted to do, like content that I wanted to cover, that I was not always able to because it was seen as too political or too provocative.

But also I was working with Deborah Holt, who was my producer at that time.

And she was really helpful and actually really skilled at being able to craft those questions in a way that satisfied my desire, my little social justice activist bent, but also did not violate what PBS and UNC-TV in particular might've been willing to do.

So I learned a lot about the politics of being someone who was not only representing Black issues to the larger community, but also what that looks like within a public media context.

There are so many conversations though, that I had the opportunity to be a part of as host of Black Issues Forum, that when I look back, I'm like, "Wow, that is so incredible."

That even before I really knew some of the issues, I was a part of conversations around those issues.

So I'm thinking about the 1898 Commission.

I didn't even know the history of 1898 in Wilmington and the coup that happened there when that commission was taking place.

And yet I had an opportunity to talk to the folks who were behind that commission.

And Irv Joiner, who was a law professor at North Carolina Central at the time, was one of the key people.

I remember having the opportunity to talk to 9th Wonder before he became as popular and as large as he's become and talking about his work related to a documentary that I believe was about Princeville.

All of those conversations, all of that exposure for me really helped me to get to know North Carolina and to understand something about not only the state of black affairs, I'll say, in this area, in the Triangle area, but throughout the state.

And it gave me a real appreciation for how fortunate I personally am, how I have been privileged to be situated in a particular seat where I can see, I can gather perspective that helps me to better understand what's happening, but also how I can contribute.

And then to make contacts with people who can both help me to accomplish my goals, maybe in the classroom or even on set with Black Issues Forum, and that I've, in a lot of ways, stayed in touch with and I've been able to help them as well.

They are so grateful for the fact that Black Issues Forum not only existed or exists, but that it played a role in getting things that their community is concerned about, issues that perhaps even local news was not covering.

And we went deep, as deep as we could in the hour that we had to talk about things that no one else was talking about, or very few people were talking about.

The show matters.

I mean, let me just say that.

The show matters.

And I think Black Issues Forum is seen as sort of a beacon in ways that I'm not sure we will fully appreciate until and if it's gone.

- As our conversations deepened, so did our commitment to truth.

Enter Mitchell Lewis, a familiar face as the anchor of UNC-TV's North Carolina Now, bringing with him journalistic integrity, professionalism, and an unwavering belief in the power of honest storytelling.

Under his guidance, Black Issues Forum didn't just report on the world.

It asked us to reckon with it.

- My name is Mitchell Lewis.

I was the host of Black Issues Forum, let's just say for several years.

When I first came to the station, Ms. Lee was the host of Black Issues Forum, because I remember there was one time that she came to me and asked me to help her time out a show.

And she was interviewing Dr. Cornel West.

And I'm sitting there, I'm getting a little starstruck because I see this man, "Oh, that's Dr. Cornel West."

So I walk up to him and I'm like, "Dr. West, it is an honor to meet you."

And he's just sitting there and he just kind of leans back in his chair.

"Ah, come in, Cornel."

(laughs) - Although the show was called Black Issues Forum, when you really sit down and look at it, it wasn't just about issues dealing with the African-American community.

Of course, when it comes to issues, yeah, African-American communities are deeply involved in them, but there were issues that dealt with everybody.

Everybody wanted safe places to live.

They wanted great schools.

They wanted to be away from crime.

And the issues that we tackled were basically everybody's issues.

One of the formats that we used to do was the town hall forum, where we would go to different parts of the state, depending on the issue, and then we would bring the folks in, not just always say bringing in the officials, but bringing in people to tell the real story.

And that's what, I mean, I really felt that that helped to make those town halls work.

I think the most memorable town hall that I was a part of was in Edenton, North Carolina.

It was around 2003, after Hurricane Isabel.

We went down and we were actually gonna do the show and then send it back by satellite to the station to air that same night.

And it took us a while to get there because there were still trees in the road and we're trying to maneuver just to get to the place where we were having the event.

They were still pumping water out of the event.

And then once we actually get into the show, people are starting to stand up and say, "We need water.

We don't even have water.

We don't have electricity.

We don't have this.

We don't have that."

And I was standing there and I'm listening to these people, and it was really starting to hit me because I'm thinking, "Oh, well, you know, after we get through with the show, we're going to head back to Raleigh.

Everything is cool."

But it really started getting to me when you saw people actually in pain.

Afterwards, there are people who are coming up to me and they're saying, "Thank you.

We felt like we were not being heard.

You all helped us to be heard.

Thank you."

And that touched my heart.

And I remember that to this day.

And it made me feel grateful that we were able to do something like that to make sure that we just weren't about, okay, talking about issues that hurt people, that we were talking about issues to try to help people.

Because the show and what we wanted to present sometimes we would get feedback from people that wasn't too positive.

But in spite of that, I feel that we continued to trudge on.

We kept on trying to present the issues.

And once again, not to make it just a "Black thing," that it was a people thing.

And I believe that that was accomplished.

I believe that when we did these various issues that at the end of the day, it left people thinking, "Well, where am I on this issue?

Maybe I need to do a little more research."

I felt we were making some leeway.

We still have a ways to go.

I'm not gonna sit there and try to blow smoke or anything.

We still have a ways to go.

But step-by-step, we'll improve.

- And then came a host whose heart for community and ear for storytelling made the forum feel like home.

Deborah Holt Noel infused the show with cultural richness and enduring commitment to illuminate stories about Black life and heritage, everyday people in communities, and their points of pride, pain, and joy, often left in the shadows and creating space where every voice could rise.

- I'm Deborah Holt Noel.

And in 1998, I began as the producer of Black Issues Forum.

In 2012, I became the host of Black Issues Forum and hosted the show through 2022.

And now I'm the executive producer of the show.

I always wanted to be true to the original mission, to highlight those issues and to talk about the disparities in education and health and economics and justice.

But I think a turning point for me was around 2012 on the occasion of the murder of Trayvon Martin.

It was such a sad time, such a sad incident.

And for me, it left me feeling powerless.

But in that feeling, I said to myself, "You have to realize that you actually do have power, find out where your power is and see what you can do."

And I realized I have this platform, Black Issues Forum, and the issues haven't disappeared, but perhaps I can be instrumental in changing the narrative.

And it was with that interest that I think the storytelling came out.

Let's tell the story, not necessarily of solutions, but tell the story of the testimonies, the lived experiences of people in the community who are doing the things that everybody does in the way that we do them.

So we'll have a show about Black folks who swim and ride horses.

I'll never forget that for Christmas, we went to North Carolina A&T State University because I knew that they had this choral group and they had this conductor who was worthy of note.

And I wanted our audience to see these young African-Americans and to hear beautiful choral voices coming from these young people and to hear a little bit about each one's story, at least a couple of them's story.

And I thought that rather than saying, "We can do this," we just show, we show through the story.

What I've learned over the years is how important it is to be authentic, how important it is to hear back from the community and make sure that their voices and their faces are seen and heard, to make sure that our platform is not a place where we sit back in a studio and push out information that we want to push out, but that we listen to the community, that we involve the community, we engage with them.

So what we can do here at Black Issues Forum is take you into community, whether you're African-American or not, but take you into community, show you something that's familiar because it's familiarity and connectivity that help us to see each other's humanity.

I recognize that I represent a certain generation and certain beliefs and norms that go along with the generation that I was raised in.

And we live in different times now.

And I realize that it's important to bring someone else with different eyes to this program.

I've done what I can, I believe, but I think there's more.

I think there is a different way to see things.

And that's why I invited Kenya to come and host the show.

I value her perspective.

I value that she comes in and she's bringing her own style, her own way of thinking.

She's bringing in knowledge of technology and a certain flair.

And it's up to me to lift her up and to let go.

And that took a lot for me, but what's more important is that the audience receives the message the way that they need to hear it.

And I knew that Kenya could do that.

And I'm so proud of her.

- Each of these hosts carry the torch in their own way, lighting paths, raising questions, and holding space for voices that matter.

Now, 40 seasons later, Black Issues Forum stands as a living testament to the power of legacy, truth, and Black excellence.

I am honored to carry that legacy forward, not just in name, but in purpose.

My vision each week is to create a space where our stories are seen, our voices are heard, and our communities feel both informed and inspired.

As we celebrate this milestone, we do so with deep gratitude for the journey and the bold intention for the road ahead.

I'm Kenya Thompson, and I hope you enjoyed this special episode of Black Issues Forum, kicking off the celebration of our 40th season.

To keep up with what we have in store this season, make sure to engage with us on Instagram using the hashtag #BlackIssuesForum.

You can also find our full episodes on pbsnc.org/blackissuesforum, and on the PBS video app.

I'll see you next time.

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