Remembering Inside Bedford-Stuyvesant

The folks from WNET recently emailed me about a series they’ve produced called Broadcasting While Black. The series focuses on groundbreaking television that catered to black audiences. One of most interesting shows profiled is Inside Bedford-Stuyvesant, a show that began in 1968 and ran for two years.

In the late 60′s Bed-Stuy’s name had become sullied by the media as it focused only on the crime and poverty the neighborhood. (The more things change…) The television show Inside Bedford-Stuyvesant , the brainchild of Robert F. Kennedy, was created to change these negative perceptions. It featured neighborhood residents, artists, musicians, activists, and poets.

WNET has posted some wonderful episodes on their website. It’s really neat to see what Bed-Stuy was like in the years before I was born. Here’s a clip an episode featuring Harry Belafonte in what looks like Fulton Park.

Here’s a clip of the show’s producer, Charles Hobson. He was a producer at WBAI prior to taking on the role of producer of Inside Bedford-Stuyvesant. In this interview he talks about his experience working on the program. He even remembers that a young Lenny Kravitz was sometimes on the set since his mother, Roxie Roker, was one of the hosts of Inside Bedford-Stuyvesant. Inside Bedford-Stuyvesant episodes can be viewed by clicking here.

All of the programs in the Broadcasting While Black Series can be viewed by clicking here. I haven’t gotten the chance to look at all of them yet, but I definitely will. I did get a chance to look at one of the music shows. I really enjoyed viewing a Soul! episode featuring Ashford and Simpson in 1972! Check it out!