Miller, Matthew L

Description

Encyclopedia article about WAOK, an Atlanta AM radio station owned by Zenas Sears, one of the first in the nation to feature as its primary format such as African American musical forms as blues, rhythm and blues (R&B), and soul. Sears started the radio station in 1956 and instituted an all-R&B format, the first of its kind. During the late 1950s and early 1960s, he became involved with the civil rights movement under the leadership of Martin Luther King Jr., and his social views were reflected in WAOK's programing. In 1968 WAOK altered its format from R&B to soul and in 1980 became a gospel station. In 2001 it changed to "urban talk."The Civil Rights Digital Library received support from a National Leadership Grant for Libraries awarded to the University of Georgia by the Institute of Museum and Library Services for the aggregation and enhancement of partner metadata.

Record Contributed By

New Georgia Encyclopedia

Record Harvested From

Digital Library of Georgia