Atlanta’s first Black TV reporter, Lo Jelks, has died at the age of 83. Lo worked for WSB-TV as a news reporter. Let’s see more details about Lo Jekls in this article.
Lo Jelks: What happened to him
The Jelk family shares the news of Lo Jelks’s death on Saturday, 25th February. He was the first Black TV reporter from Atlanta. His previous company, Atlanta Press Club, posted about Jelks as :
Source : Twitter
The Atlanta Press Club is deeply saddened by the passing of Lorenzo ‘Lo’ Jelks; His legacy will live on with the 2023 Lorenzo ‘Lo’ Jelks Communications and Marketing Internship sponsored by the Georgia Power Foundation.
The reason behind the death of Lo Jelks :
Jelk’s family confirmed his death by interviewing for Channel 2 Action News. He died at the age of 83, and this sudden death put his loved ones into shock and disbelief.
Still, his family did not comment on the cause of his death. After the end of a famous news reporter, his family members and friend remember him on Social Media and contumely posts in the comment section.
Lorenzo “Lo” Jelks Obituary :
Lo Jelks, a former WSB-TV reporter and Atlanta’s first Black TV reporter, died at 83.
Lorenzo “Lo” Jelks joined WSB-TV in 1967. He stayed with WSB-TV until 1976. In 2022, he was inducted into the Atlanta Press Club Hall of Fame.
Born in St. Petersburg, Fla., Jelks got his start in radio. He ran a weekly music radio show as a high school student in 1955, according to WSB-TV.
He graduated from Clark College, now called Clark Atlanta University, in 1961 and was operations manager at WIGO-AM, an R&B station, in Atlanta when he got the call from WSB-TV.
Career Timeline: Lo Jelks
He started his career at Atlanta in St. Petersburg, Florida. Florida is the place where he grew up. He started his career on the radio, as many other broadcast reporters also chose at that time. He runs a weekly music show in high school on a local radio station.
Source : Twitter
At that time, his hometown newspaper, The Tampa Bay Times, published the news that “Lo Jelks become the first Negro TV Newsman in Atlanta”. He said in a statement, “You were watched a lot by the general public. There were people out there who didn’t wish us well at all and hoped we would make all kinds of mistakes,”
Social Media Tributes
Atlanta Press Club
The Atlanta Press Club is deeply saddened by the passing of Lorenzo “Lo” Jelks. A graduate of Clark College (now Clark Atlanta University), Jelks became the first Black television news reporter in Atlanta in 1967
Craig Allen Brown
Even as a journalist, it’s hard to find words for this loss. Lorenzo “Lo” Jelks embodies everything I love about our craft…and then some. He is an icon. He is a hero.
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Lo Jelks’ transition to television wasn’t easy. WSB-TV initially didn’t show Jelks’ face on the air, fearing a backlash from some whites. Viewers only saw “Lorenzo Jelks reporting” in white letters in the middle of a black screen.
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