- Saveby James Jackson. Philadelphia Tribune Staff Writer
Jerrel Jones, trailblazing publisher and founder of the Milwaukee Courier newspaper and Milwaukee-based radio station WNOV — known for amplifying Black voices — has died, his family announced. He was 85.
Up until his death, Jones led Courier Communications Corp., overseeing the Courier newspaper, which was founded in 1964 during Milwaukee’s school desegregation fight and the height of the Civil Rights Movement.
“He was the heart and soul of Courier Communications,” the statement reads. “Over the course of 61 years, he built the company from the ground up with love, vision, and an unwavering commitment to our community.”
A Milwaukee native, Jones’ business accomplishments include founding The Milwaukee Courier in 1964 and purchasing the radio station WNOV in 1972. He was the first Black owner of a newspaper and radio station in the United States.
“We are devastated by this loss,” said Mary Ellen Jones, his daughter and current general manager of WNOV. “Dr. Jones was a mentor, a pioneer and a beacon of strength.”
Jones was among the first to give airplay to Marvin Gaye’s album What’s Going On, along with thousands of other Black artists, according to the radio station’s website. Based in Milwaukee, the station offers listeners a mix of urban contemporary, gospel, oldies, and talk radio programming.
His interest in print media was sparked by his mother, Mary Ellen Strong, who owned the Milwaukee Defender weekly newspaper, and by his mentor S.B. Fuller, a renowned African American entrepreneur with a national newspaper chain.
Throughout his career, he engaged with leaders from business, civic sectors and social organizations. When Jimmy Carter was a candidate and later president, he visited the Milwaukee Courier Newspaper and Jones at their location on 2431 W. Hopkins St. in Milwaukee.
Jones noticed that Black individuals were often the subjects of scrutiny in news coverage but rarely appeared as commentators.
“We are the news. We are everywhere, in everything,” he told the Milwaukee Courier in an interview. “We need to be the ones to tell our stories.”
No services were announced.
A tribute edition of The Milwaukee Courier in Jones’ honor is scheduled to be published at the end of July.