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GUEST: Sonja D. Williams, Professor in the Department of Media, Journalism, and Film at Howard University, winner of three Peabody awards as a radio producer. Her credits include ‘Wade in the Water: African American Sacred Music Traditions’, and ‘Black Radio: Telling It Like It Was’.

You just heard the opening minutes of Destination Freedom, the pioneering radio program written and hosted by Richard Durham, a man most Americans have not heard of, but who was one of the most important voices on radio during his time. Durham broke ground with his inventive style, focusing on the stories of black activists and change makers. He went on to become editor of two black newspapers, Chicago Defender and Muhammed Speaks, and eventually became Muhammad Ali’s biographer. Now, after years of in-depth original research, my guest Sonja Williams has written a book about Durham’s life and work, cementing the brilliant journalist and activist’s legacy.

To learn more about her book, visit www.press.uillinois.edu/books.