Media Commentator

When I was in college at South Carolina State University [Orangeburg, South Carolina], before the '70s [1970s] to get into SC State you had to submit a photo. And if you're not what they consider high yellow, you were not admitted. When my father--after my grades were very good after my freshman year, when my father encouraged me to run for student body president at State--I had this advisor, I don't want to call his name, he was fair-skinned; and I said to him that I was gonna run for president of the student body. And his whole attitude towards me changed. And I could not figure it out. And finally my girlfriend at the time, Myra [ph.], I talked to her about it, and she said we should confront him. But I confronted him alone, and I asked him what the problem was. He said he did not feel I could run--I should run, and I asked him why, because he felt I was too dark. Now I'm going to tell you what was weird about that. My father and I had been having a discussion--no, actually it was not my father's idea that I run for student body president, it was mine. But my father felt my sophomore year was too soon, which means I would be a rising junior. He wanted me to wait until my junior year as a rising senior to run, and I said no, I said I think I can do it, it would be history too if I could do it two years in a row. But this, but I never could convince my father, if my father said I couldn't run, I couldn't run because I'm not gonna dishonor my father. But when this guy said to me I was too dark, it was the best news, 'cause I knew that I couldn't wait to take that two-hour drive home to tell my father that story. (Laughter) I knew exactly what he was gonna say, so it was a blessing. And you know I never saw that as racism until this interview. I just saw it as ignorant, but I saw it as a blessing for me 'cause I needed a reason to get my father behind me so I could run. And I never forget, I went home, we're sitting in the living room, I went home that weekend, I said, "Daddy, you're not gonna believe this." I had to pretend I was upset. I said, "I know you don't want me to run, but I gotta tell you this story." Oh, man he raised up, he said, "You got to be kidding me." He said, "Oh, no, no, no, you got to show that ignorance out. He said, "Oh, no; there's no place for that," he said, "you've got to run, you gotta show him that you can run and you'll win." And then he said he'll finance the campaign, 'cause you know in college, you really gotta have somebody financing you. And so my father did not want me really distracted from studying out trying to raise money to run, so he financed the campaign. But this guy was a blessing for me, but this guy was ignorant. I mean--but I, but this guy served a purpose for me in terms of what was going on in my life at the time, 'cause I would not have been able to run. But anyhow, but let me tell you something, running, that's the toughest race I've ever had in my life, running for student--yes.$$Yeah.$My family were only two hours and 45 minutes away from High Point [North Carolina] and they would visit me often. And then I never forget in 1990 in March I was at Terry's home, Terry Giles's home, and it was in Orange County, California. And I woke up one morning, Mr. [Bob] Brown, Stedman [Graham], we were all there, and I woke up one morning, I said you know what, it's time for me to leave B and C. It's time for me to move back to Washington [D.C.], put up my own shingle, I'm gonna start my own company. It was perfect, 'cause my father always taught us, you only leave a business, a place of employment when things are great, you don't leave it when you're angry and bitter 'cause you take that with you. And there's a part of you that has not healed, but when you leave when everything is just wonderful that is the spirit that you will take to your next job or to your next business. And so we--I started Graham Williams Group, I used--I never borrowed a dime from the bank. By the time I started Graham Williams Group in 1990, the $100,000 had become about $250,000 from investments. So my father always said to me there's nothing like spending your own money. So I used my money to invest in the company. And for the first seven years I did not take a salary. But in the early '90s' (1990s), Bush One [President George H.W. Bush] nominated [Clarence] Thomas to the Supreme Court and I became his champion handling all the press, because I worked with Anita Hill. We all worked there together that's why I thought her allegations were just outrageous 'cause when she and I would go to lunch, she would say to me, she saw Thomas as a father figure. So we saw him as a father figure so it just did not make sense. So we defended him, so when you know in war, and it was a war, the victor gets to write history and enjoys the spoils. So as a result of Thomas winning, USA Today offered me a regular column, Sid Herbert was the editor at the time. So I was writing a by-weekly column for USA Today. Cathy Hughes [HM] who owns Radio One offered me a weekly radio show, it went from a weekly to twice weekly to a thrice weekly, three times a week, to a daily show. And I began to build a name and a reputation all over the country. And then a few years later, Talk America Radio Network offered to syndicate our radio show all over the country and then Sam Radio Network offered to syndicate it all over the country and then a few years later the LA Times decided to syndicate my column all over the world. And they were since bought by the Chicago Tribune Media who syndicates my column all over the country and parts of other countries. And then in 1996 or '97 (1997), [Robet] Bob Johnson [HM] had been wooing me to be a regular contributor of BET's [Black Entertainment Television] Lead Story. And he said it would be very beneficial for me that black people would not have to understand me in sound bites and not understand me and be so hateful towards me. He said the only reason they are angry at you is because they don't understand you. What you're saying is going to make a lot of sense five years from now, 'cause this country's changing. And the politics that blacks are accustomed to is not gonna be the same. And black people need to hear another voice, and he said I think you're that voice. And he said this will signal a change in our programming, 'cause this will mark the first time that we've ever given a conservative, and he said you are a real conservative, an opportunity to air their views. He said but Black America, it will be a disservice for them if they did not hear your voice or a voice like yours. So I signed on with him and I was on BET Lead Story for five years up until the beginning of 2003.