1979 to 2009

KJLH-FM celebrated its 30th anniversary in 2009, but its history goes back decades prior to Stevie Wonder's purchase of the station. KJLH has had a strong legacy in serving residents, especially the African-American community - residential and the larger community. KJLH is a rare gem in this day and age, as black-owned radio stations disappear off the dial at an alarming rate. KJLH's story proves that ownership by African-Americans means allowing for significant representation over the airwaves dominated by mainstream media., particularly during crisis. But the story KJLH offers to us all is that we should be serving our communities far before any crisis situation - this is the story of KJLH, as presented in KJLH and the Los Angeles Riots of 1992. This book is also available through Amazon.com. The term riots is not used by my choice, but it is how it is perceived to mainstream media and how such events are typically categorized, historically. Perhaps a better description would be civic unrest, a term I heard over and over by many of those I interviewed, suggesting a more accurate way to contextualize the events as they unfolded. The point is - issues at times become overshadowed by the sheer violence of riots - yet there was a message that KJLH's listeners wanted the world to hear. This book is intended to tell the "birds eye" story from the perspective of KJLH and its community of license surrounding this crisis (as well as events and station management philosophies leading up to and following these events). It was a story not communicated accurately through the lens of mainstream media for the most part. I welcome you to listen to the audio segments that weave author interviews with key personalities into KLJH's live radio broadcast, excerpted from hours and hours of on-air tape. Some of these excerpts are included as text within the book. There are no visuals to these live broadcasts - the audio is powerful alone - and by doing so, I emphasize the power of radio, Black Radio owned and operated by African-Americans. Thank you to KJLH staff and management for their invaluable assistance on this project.

Live KJLH-FM Radio Broadcasts (YouTube - "VirtualMcLuhan")
Segment 1
Segment 2
Segment 3
Segment 4


KJLH-FM and the Los Angeles Riots of 1992
Table of Contents
Preface i
Chapters
1: KJLH on Location: Soundscapes from South Crenshaw
2: KJLH’s Sphere of Influence: Assessing Black Radio’s Role in the Community
3: Lighting the Torch: KJLH and Its Black Radio Roots
4: Fueling the Passion: The Wonderful Community Mission
5: False Prophets of Corporate Radio: The Business of Black Radio
6: On-Air Vigil: KJLH’s Transformation to Talk
7: Tuned In & Out Front: Communicating Social Responsibility on Black Radio
8: Change the System: Politics of Empowerment
9: Owning a Legacy – And Hanging On to It
10: Keeping the Peace: Concluding Remarks

Epilogue: The Soul of Black Radio, E. Steven Collins
Bibliography
Index

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VirtualMcLuhan is the author's media blog with links to her work in new media.
About the author: Dr. Phylis Johnson is a long-time media professional, associate professor of media, and scholar and creative artist in radio, new media, and virtual platforms. Her book, Second Life, Media, and the Other Society (Peter Lang, 2010), explores the cultural role of media in virtual world platforms, namely Second Life. Her first book, Queer Airwaves (2001, M.E. Sharpe), with Michael Keith, examines the rise of queer media.