Note: To navigate the sections of this PDF finding aid, click on the Bookmarks tab or the Bookmarks icon on the left side of the page. Mississippi State University Libraries Special Collections Department Manuscripts Division P.O. Box 5408, Mississippi State, MS 39762-5408 Phone: (662) 325–7679 E-mail: [email protected] WLBT archives MSS.366 Dates: 1967-1980 Extent: 155 cubic feet Preferred Citation: WLBT archives, Special Collections Department, Mississippi State University Libraries. Access: Open to all researchers. Copyright Statement: Any requests for permission to publish, quote, or reproduce materials from this collection must be submitted in writing to the Manuscripts Librarian for Special Collections. Permission for publication is given on behalf of Mississippi State University as the owner of the physical items and is not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained. Donor: Communications Improvement, Incorporated, August 1982. Scope and Contents The WLBT archives have been arranged in the following series: Hewitt Griffin joined WLBT in 1961 as program manager, the position he continued to hold throughout Communications Improvement, Incorporated’s (CII) tenure with the exception of the period from January to September 1973. Series 1, 1967-1979, consists of Griffin's files, which primarily concern programming. The series has been grouped into ten divisions: General/personal, Programming, Programs Available, Programs Aired, Network Affiliates, Ratings/research, Promotional Materials (including photographs), TV Guide (1974-1978), Programming Logs (June 14, 1971 - December 31, 1977), and Discrepancy Sheets. See also Series 7. 38 cubic feet. In 1972 William H. Dilday, Jr. was appointed general manager of WLBT, succeeding Bob McRaney, Jr. Previously the personnel manager of a Boston television station, Dilday at WLBT became the first black manager of a network-affiliated television station in the country. Series 2, 1972-1979, includes both Dilday's general files and his files concerning the Jackson-Hinds Comprehensive Health Center, the Jackson Urban League, and other organizations. Other Dilday papers are scattered throughout the collection because, as a result of his position, he was closely involved with many facets of the station's operation. 4 cubic feet. Series 3, 1971-1980, concerns the Board of Directors of Communications Improvement, Incorporated. Included are scattered minutes, memoranda, and reports. One file of particular interest concerns the interim period during which control of WLBT passed from the Lamar Life Broadcasting Company to CII. See also Series 7. 1 cubic foot. Financial records comprise Series 4. Inclusive dates are 1971-1978, with the most complete files dating 1971 and 1972. The series has been divided into the following groups: Accounts, Advertising, Annual Reports, Audits, Budgets, and Donations. 6 cubic feet. Series 5, 1969-1978, concerns the personnel management of WLBT. Included are such items as applications, resignations, work schedules, labor contracts, insurance plans, and an employee handbook. 2 cubic feet. The files of the news department make up the largest series, Series 6, which covers the years 1960-1978. The series consists of three sections: General (including editorials), Source Material, and Newscasts. The latter group, comprising the major part of the series, consists of the scripts for the local news reports broadcast several times daily on WLBT. See also Series 12. 43 cubic feet. Series 7, 1968-1978, is composed of correspondence and interoffice memoranda. The correspondence has been divided into chronological and alphabetical sections. Among the topics represented are viewer responses to editorials and programming, most prominently changes in religious programming policies. The interoffice memoranda are arranged alphabetically by staff member. 7 cubic feet. The Federal Communications Commission is the focus of Series 8, 1969-1977. Included are reports, surveys, and correspondence concerning the broadcasting license that CII held on an interim basis. 1 cubic foot. Series 9 concerns legal activities involving CII and WLBT during the years 1972-1978. The series is very small because the bulk of the legal files have been donated to Ohio State University. 0.5 cubic foot. Series 10, 1971-1978, is composed of miscellaneous files arranged alphabetically. Among the diverse subjects are the National Association of Broadcasters, WLBT's "Hunger in Mississippi" project, and a brief history of the WLBT license change. 1.5 cubic feet. Series 11 consists of videotapes, 1974-1980. Most of the tapes concern WLBT's public affairs program "Probe", which aired weekly. The other tapes concern President Jimmy Carter's visit to Yazoo City, Mississippi, in 1977. 201 videotapes. News film comprises Series 12, the final section of the collection. The film consists basically of segments aired during local news broadcasts from June 1971 through October 1974. 249 reels of 16 mm film. Administrative History WLBT began broadcasting on December 28, 1953 as the second television station in Jackson, Mississippi. Its license was held by the Lamar life Insurance Company and it was a sister station to WJDX radio, both being NBC affiliates. In 1964 The United Church of Christ's Office of Communication filed a complaint with the Federal Communications Commission charging that WLBT was guilty of racial injustice and discrimination in its programming. This was not the first such complaint; the NAACP had filed similar ones beginning in 1955. The ensuing legal proceedings lasted fifteen years, produced landmark judicial decisions, and led to a change in the ownership of the station. As a result of two rulings by the U. S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, control of the station was removed from the Lamar Life Broadcasting Company. At the time of the decisions, the Court of Appeals was presided over by Warren Burger, later Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. Because the decision to grant the permanent license was expected to take a long time, the Federal Communications Commission awarded an interim license to Communications Improvement, Incorporated (CII), a nonprofit biracial organization which was not an applicant for the permanent license. CII assumed the license on June 14, 1971 and operated the station until the end of January 1980. During those years WLBT won numerous awards and repeatedly dominated its market. CII's Board of Directors was headed by Kenneth Dean, a Baptist minister and former director of the Mississippi Council for Human Relations. As President of the Board, Dean directed the implementation of CII's policies at WLBT. Among the changes that occurred were the appointment of a new general manager, who became the first black to hold such a position in the country; a rise in the percentage of minority employees at the station; more intensive news coverage; additional public affairs programming, including the weekly program "Probe"; the hiring of a children's program director; and policy changes concerning religious programming. As a nonprofit organization in a profit-making situation, CII proposed to channel the profits generated by the station into educational interests in Mississippi. Among the recipients of CII donations were public radio broadcasting, educational television, and a communications training program at Tougaloo College. At the end of January 1980, CII turned over the operation of WLBT to the new license-holder, TV-3. TV-3 was composed of representatives from four groups that had sought the permanent license: Channel 3, Incorporated; Dixie National Broadcasting Corporation; Civic Communication Corporation; and Jackson Television, Incorporated. The WLBT archives consist of the records of the station during the period in which CII held the license, June 1971 - January 1980. Several items predate CII's operation but the bulk of the collection dates from 1971 to 1978. Included are programming logs, film and scripts of local newscasts, videotapes of the public affairs program "Probe", financial records, and office files of correspondence and memoranda. In addition to documenting both the daily and long-range operation of the station, the collection reflects the events and issues prominent in Mississippi during the 1970s. Related Archival Materials The legal files pertaining to WLBT’s license were donated by Communications Improvement, Incorporated to Ohio State University. Other records, including news film, of WLBT during the years preceding CII’s tenure were deposited with the Mississippi Department of Archives and History, Jackson: Newsfilm collection [motion picture], 1954-1971. by WLBT (Television station : Jackson, Miss.) Kenneth Dean Film collection, [motion picture], 1972. Series List Series 1. HEWITT GRIFFIN A. General/personal B. Programming C. Programs Available D. Programs Aired E. Network Affiliates F. Ratings/Research G. Promotional Materials 1. General 2. Movie/Television Promotion 3. MCA 4. Warner Brothers H. TV Guide I. Programming Logs J. Discrepancy Sheets Series 2. WILLIAM H. DILDAY, JR. Series 3. CII BOARD OF DIRECTORS Series 4. FINANCIAL A. Accounts 1. Receivable a. Billing Records b. Sales Summaries 1) daily sales summaries 2) individual and company accounts c. Network Reports 2. Payable 3. Delinquent B. Advertising C. Annual Reports D. Audits E. Budgets F. Donations Series 5. PERSONNEL Series 6. NEWS DEPARTMENT A. General B. Source Material C. Newscast Scripts Series 7. CORRESPONDENCE/MEMORANDA