How Meeting Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Influenced Rick Wright G'93 and Inspired His Broadcasting Career

Roosevelt "Rick" Wright G'93 had a front-row seat as the Civil Rights movement took off across the American South in the late 1950s and early 1960s, participating in the sit-ins and demonstrations as a teenager in Elizabeth City, North Carolina. At the heart of the movement were the non-violent, civil disobedience teachings of the late Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., the Civil Rights leader who inspired Black citizens around the country to speak out and stand up for their rights. Wright had the pleasure of meeting and eating with Dr. King several times as a teenager, with King imparting many valuable life lessons on the impressionable Wright. On this 'Cuse Conversation, Wright recalls the powerful impact Dr. King made on him, shares how Dr. King utilized the radio to preach his non-violent message, and how Dr. King's oratorical prowess inspired his successful career as both a radio broadcaster and television, radio and film professor at the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications. Wright, who became the first Black communications professor at Newhouse, was the first faculty advisor for the student-run radio station WJPZ and served as an invaluable resource for the thousands of students who took one of his classes. He's the definition of "Major Market."