Malvin (Mal) Russell Goode (February 13, 1908 – September 12, 1995) was an African-American television journalist and news correspondent.

Education and early work

Goode was born in

White Plains, Virginia White Plains is an unincorporated community located in Brunswick County, in the U.S. state of Virginia. Brick House was listed on the National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States ...

, educated in the public school system of Homestead, Pennsylvania, and graduated from the University of Pittsburgh in 1931. Starting in high school, he was employed for twelve years as a laborer in

steel mills A steel mill or steelworks is an industrial plant for the manufacture of steel. It may be an integrated steel works carrying out all steps of steelmaking from smelting iron ore to rolled product, but may also be a plant where steel semi-finished ...

, until five years after his graduation. Appointed to a position in the

Juvenile Court A juvenile court, also known as young offender's court or children's court, is a tribunal having special authority to pass judgements for crimes that are committed by children who have not attained the age of majority. In most modern legal s ...

as a boys work director at the Centre Avenue YMCA, he spearheaded the fight against discrimination in the Pittsburgh branches of the YMCA. Goode worked with the Pittsburgh Housing Authority for six years and joined the Pittsburgh Courier in 1948, where he remained for 14 years.

Radio and television career

A year later he began a career in radio broadcasting with

KQV KQV (1410 AM) is a non-commercial radio station in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and covering the Greater Pittsburgh Region. Owned by Broadcast Educational Communications, the station simulcasts FM 88.1 WKGO in Murrysville and airs an easy liste ...

radio, doing a 15-minute news show two nights a week. Soon, he had a five-minute daily news show on WHOD, where he was named that stations news director in 1952. In 1962 he became the first Black network news correspondent for

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

television network as a United Nations (UN) reporter. He allegedly received this position after baseball player

Jackie Robinson Jack Roosevelt Robinson (January 31, 1919 – October 24, 1972) was an American professional baseball player who became the first African American to play in Major League Baseball (MLB) in the modern era. Robinson broke the baseball color line ...

, who was the first Black player in the major leagues, complained to ABC executives about the lack of Black reporters. Goode's first assignment was covering the

Cuban Missile Crisis The Cuban Missile Crisis, also known as the October Crisis (of 1962) ( es, Crisis de Octubre) in Cuba, the Caribbean Crisis () in Russia, or the Missile Scare, was a 35-day (16 October – 20 November 1962) confrontation between the United S ...

; he distinguished himself with incisive TV and radio reports during the long hours of debate at the UN. For two months in 1963 he joined three of his peers to conduct courses in journalism for over 100

African African or Africans may refer to: * Anything from or pertaining to the continent of Africa: ** People who are native to Africa, descendants of natives of Africa, or individuals who trace their ancestry to indigenous inhabitants of Africa *** Ethn ...

students in seminars in Lagos Nigeria; Addis Ababa, Ethiopia; and

Dar es Salaam, Tanzania Dar es Salaam (; from ar, دَار السَّلَام, Dâr es-Selâm, lit=Abode of Peace) or commonly known as Dar, is the largest city and financial hub of Tanzania. It is also the capital of Dar es Salaam Region. With a population of over s ...

. Goode was a member of

Alpha Phi Alpha Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. () is the oldest intercollegiate historically African American fraternity. It was initially a literary and social studies club organized in the 1905–1906 school year at Cornell University but later evolved int ...

fraternity, and in April 1968 covered the

assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. Martin Luther King Jr., an African-American clergyman and civil rights leader, was fatally shot at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee, on April 4, 1968, at 6:01 p.m. CST. He was rushed to St. Joseph's Hospital, where he died at 7 ...

, a fellow fraternity brother in 1971, Goode became the first Black member of the Radio and Television News Directors Association. In 1990, the

National Association of Black Journalists The National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) is an organization of African-American journalists, students, and media professionals. Founded in 1975 in Washington, D.C., by 44 journalists, the NABJ's stated purpose is to provide quality p ...

inducted Mr. Goode into its

hall of fame A hall, wall, or walk of fame is a list of individuals, achievements, or other entities, usually chosen by a group of electors, to mark their excellence or Wiktionary:fame, fame in their field. In some cases, these halls of fame consist of actu ...

. Malvin Goode died of a stroke on September 12th, 1995 at the age of 87 in Pittsburgh.

References

African American Registry Biography

Editor and Publisher Obituary
{{DEFAULTSORT:Goode, Malvin Russell 1908 births 1995 deaths American television reporters and correspondents People from Homestead, Pennsylvania American broadcast news analysts People from Brunswick County, Virginia University of Pittsburgh alumni