August 25 2006

William Kearney, the founder of Hampton University's department of mass media arts, died last week in North Carolina. He was 86.

Kearney earned his bachelor of science degree from Hampton Institute, as it was then called, in 1947, and his master's and doctoral degrees from New York University.

As a student at Hampton, he helped launch a campus radio station, WHOV, which is still broadcasting. He worked at HU from 1947 to 1985 and again from 1990 to 1992. He founded and became chairman of the department of mass media arts in 1967.

In 1991, he was the first black person inducted into the Virginia Communications Hall of Fame for his efforts educating young journalists.
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