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Home » Carol Randolph, host of morning and public-affairs TV programs aimed at African Americans in D.C., dies at 82

Carol Randolph, host of morning and public-affairs TV programs aimed at African Americans in D.C., dies at 82

by | Aug 21, 2023

Carol Randolph, who spent 17 years as the host of morning and public-affairs TV programs aimed at African American viewers in the D.C. market, has died. She was 82.

The cause was carcinoid cancer, a form of neuroendocrine cancer, said her daughter, Jennifer Randolph.

Equipped with an easygoing manner and the adroit communication skills of a veteran teacher, states The Washington Post, “she successfully auditioned to co-host a Black-oriented community affairs show, “Harambee,” airing on the city’s CBS affiliate, then known as WTOP.

“The show, whose name reportedly derived from the Swahili word variously translated as brotherhood unity or building together, was one of the only hour-long daily programs in a major market designed specifically for a Black audience. With a small budget, a largely inexperienced staff and a management team that was not always supportive, “Harambee” struggled to stay afloat.

Her ratings, adds The Post, remained of concern to station executives, who fiddled with formats, time slots and running lengths until they canceled the final iteration of her talk program, “The Carol Randolph Show,” in 1986, replacing it with the syndicated “Oprah Winfrey Show.”

Following her broadcasting career, reports The HistoryMakers, she joined the literary firm of Goldfarb, Signer & Ross (now Goldfarb, Kaufman & O’Toole), where she specialized in representing authors and clients in television from 1988 to 1991, and, during that time, she also wrote a bi-weekly column, “Metropolitan Life,” for the Washington Times. She then served as general counsel for New African Visions, Inc., the non-profit organization responsible for editing the book, Songs of My People (1992). She is the co-founder of Akin & Randolph Agency, LLC, a firm that represents authors, artists and athletes. Randolph-Jasmine was later appointed as the vice president of strategic communications for Miller & Long Concrete Construction, and was then named senior vice president of legal affairs for Walls Communications, Inc., a minority-owned public relations firm in Washington, D.C.

She was a member of the Pennsylvania Bar Association, the District of Columbia Bar Association, and The Links, Inc., where she served as chair of the Hurricane Katrina Relief Committee.

More here.

PHOTO: The HistoryMakers

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1 Comment

  1. David Middleton

    Excellent show. How can I see 5he last show that aired in 1986

    Reply

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