From pioneers and leaders to just plain “where-the-rubber-meets-the-road” type professionals, the LGK Hotlist of Influential Communicators pays homage to individuals who have had a profound impact upon the industry, our careers and the art and history of effective messaging.
For reasons intensely professional and deeply personal, many of us owe a huge debt of gratitude to the late Malvyn “Mal” Johnson (1924 – 2007), a distinguished educator, community organizer, civil rights leader, humanitarian, journalist, broadcaster and marketing communications entrepreneur.
Six years ago, Mal’s quiet passing stunned legions of communications professionals and human rights activists across the country and around the world. Few knew she was ill, battling the curve balls thrown by living with diabetes. And, if you knew Mal, you’d know that she preferred it that way. In fact, she left strict instructions regarding her death: no funeral, memorial or celebration of life. And it’s been widely reported her final words were: “If anyone cries or starts to feel sorry for me, I’ll come back and kick their ass.”
Mal was a no-nonsense, yet gentle giant whose achievements and contributions defied conventional stereotypes, shattered glass ceilings and widened the hallowed halls of corporate America. Throughout a career that began in the mid-1950’s in her hometown of Philadelphia (PA), this former community program director, teacher, newspaper editor assistant, print columnist, local television manager, on-air personality and news anchor rose through the ranks and moved to Washington, DC in 1969 to join Cox Enterprises Broadcast Division for what would become an impressive 27-year affiliation. As Cox News Bureau’s first female reporter and first female White House correspondent, Mal covered five different United States Presidents, Capitol Hill and the State Department. In 1980, she was appointed Senior Washington Correspondent and National Director of Community Affairs. During this stellar career, Mal served on , and many times chaired various boards commensurate with her professional and personal interests such as the NAACP, United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (U.S. Committee for UNIFEM), the National Council of Women’s Organizations, the International Association of Women in Radio and Television and more. Mal worked on the front lines and in the back rooms, lending her considerable expertise and talents to campaigns, causes and in many cases, the formation of entirely new organizations, namely, the National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) and the National Broadcast Association of Community Affairs (NBACA). When Mal left Cox in 2000, she did not retire, instead, she started Medialinx International, a media consulting firm.
Mal Johnson was a master of firsts and the ultimate mother of invention who had neither time nor patience for laziness, incompetence or, as she would say, “bull###!!!.” And while “herstory” is well documented in The HistoryMakers online archive (click here to visit the site), it is important to note that there was another, softer, side to Mal Johnson, for which I am personally grateful. This was a side – if you earned one of her coveted friendship chips – that would go to bat for you (all nine innings), instruct you how to skillfully become a leader, guide you strategically through professional peaks and valleys. This was a side that led you through the deep heart of Texas to go square-dancing, the streets of San Francisco’s Japantown for the best sushi and the backdrop of Toronto’s Yonge Street to hang out at a jazz joint until last call. I earned one of those coveted chips, thanks in large part to shared Philadelphia ties, American Women in Radio and Television (Mal and my mother were members and officers of the organization) and hard work.
Mal Johnson’s journey and the gifts she bestowed along the way certainly qualify her as one of our most influential communicators, worthy of far more than a footnote or passing reference in the history of civil rights, women’s rights and the communications industry.
GB