Quick Facts
- NAME: Charlayne Hunter-Gault
- OCCUPATION: Civil Rights Activist, Radio Personality, News Anchor, Journalist
- BIRTH DATE: February 27, 1942 (Age: 71)
- Did You Know?: In 1961, Charlayne Hunter-Gault became the first African-American woman to enroll at the University of Georgia, as well as one of the first two African-American students to integrate the school.
- Did You Know?: In 1988, Hunter-Gault became the first African American to give the University of Georgia's commencement address.
- Did You Know?: Best known for her reporting, Charlayne Hunter-Gault ventured into wine production after relocating to South Africa. The label she and her husband founded is called Passages.
- EDUCATION: University of Georgia, Wayne State University
- PLACE OF BIRTH: Due West, South Carolina
- Full Name: Charlayne Hunter-Gault
- Maiden Name: Charlayne Hunter
- ZODIAC SIGN: Pisces
Best Known For
Award-winning journalist Charlayne Hunter-Gault became the first African-American woman to enroll at the University of Georgia, as well as one of the first two African-American students to integrate the school, in 1961.
Quiz
Think you know about Biography?
Answer questions and see how you rank against other players.
Play NowCharlayne Hunter-Gault. (2013). The Biography Channel website. Retrieved 03:25, Dec 11, 2013, from http://www.biography.com/people/charlayne-hunter-gault-37794.
Charlayne Hunter-Gault. [Internet]. 2013. The Biography Channel website. Available from: http://www.biography.com/people/charlayne-hunter-gault-37794 [Accessed 11 Dec 2013].
"Charlayne Hunter-Gault." 2013. The Biography Channel website. Dec 11 2013, 03:25 http://www.biography.com/people/charlayne-hunter-gault-37794.
"Charlayne Hunter-Gault," The Biography Channel website, 2013, http://www.biography.com/people/charlayne-hunter-gault-37794 [accessed Dec 11, 2013].
"Charlayne Hunter-Gault," The Biography Channel website, http://www.biography.com/people/charlayne-hunter-gault-37794 (accessed Dec 11, 2013).
Charlayne Hunter-Gault [Internet]. The Biography Channel website; 2013 [cited 2013 Dec 11] Available from: http://www.biography.com/people/charlayne-hunter-gault-37794.
Charlayne Hunter-Gault, http://www.biography.com/people/charlayne-hunter-gault-37794 (last visited Dec 11, 2013).
Charlayne Hunter-Gault. The Biography Channel website. 2013. Available at: http://www.biography.com/people/charlayne-hunter-gault-37794. Accessed Dec 11, 2013.
Building a Career
After graduation, Hunter went to work at The New Yorker, where she handled administrative tasks while also writing for the magazine. In 1968, she became reporter for the New York Times, going on to head its Harlem bureau. She also got the paper to stop using the word "Negro" in reference to African Americans.
Hunter and Stovall amicably divorced after a few years of marriage. She wed Ronald Gault, an investment banker, in 1971,
thus becoming Charlayne Hunter-Gault. Hunter-Gault moved to PBS's MacNeil/Lehrer Report in 1978, and stayed with program when it became the MacNeil/Lehrer NewsHour in 1983.
While at PBS, Hunter-Gault covered both national and international stories as a correspondent. However, she became frustrated with the network. In addition to her work on MacNeil/Lehrer, Hunter-Gault hosted her own show, a human rights-focused series called Rights & Wrongs, but the program did not receive national distribution on PBS.
Hunter-Gault became the African bureau chief for NPR in 1997, relocating to Johannesburg, South Africa. After working as the Johannesburg bureau chief for CNN from 1999 to 2005, she returned to NPR. In addition to her reporting career, Hunter-Gault and her second husband produce wine—for a label called Passages—that is exported from South Africa to the U.S. market.
Legacy
In 1988, Hunter-Gault became the first African American to give the University of Georgia's commencement address. She has written books about her experience with integration and civil rights: the memoir In My Place (1992) and To the Mountaintop: My Journey Through the Civil Rights Movement (2012). She also authored New News Out of Africa (2006), about developments in a changing Africa. The accolades Hunter-Gault has received during her career include George Foster Peabody Broadcast Awards and national news and documentary Emmy Awards.
© 2013 A+E Networks. All rights reserved.
profile name: Charlayne Hunter-Gault profile occupation:
Your Connections
Sign in with Facebook to see how you and your friends are connected to famous icons.
Profile Connections
Included In These Groups
-
Famous Harlem Residents
After the Civil War, many of the country's best and brightest black advocates, artists, entrepreneurs and intellectuals moved to the New York City neighborhood of Harlem. Thanks largely to the efforts of these residents, Harlem became both the cradle of a cultural revolution and the heart of the civil rights movement. Meet some of the many people who gave—and continue to give—this neighborhood a voice, simply by calling it home.
Famous Harlem Residents 62 people in this group
-
Famous Pisceans 556 people in this group
-
Famous Black Activists
African-Americans have a long history of activism in America, from fighting for the right to vote to pushing for integrated public spaces. Activists like Stokely Carmichael organized freedom rides, James Meredith fought to integrate blacks and whites at the University of Mississippi, and Rosa Parks instigated the Montgomery Bus Boycott. These protests were often legal and nonviolent, and made a powerful impact on civil rights in the United States. With the help of activists like these—and many others—the country slowly worked to acknowledge the basic rights and contributions of African-Americans. Activists outisde of the U.S. include Desmond Tutu and Nelson Mandela, who have fought against apartheid in South Africa. Learn more about the many black activists who fought against the odds in order to achieve equality.
Famous Black Activists 152 people in this group