Joe Madison, also known as “The Black Eagle,” was a renowned American radio talk-show host and activist. Born on June 16, 1949, in Dayton, Ohio, he played a significant role in the broadcasting industry, starting his career in 1980 at Detroit’s WXYZ-AM radio station. Joe Madison passed away peacefully at his home surrounded by family on January 31, 2024, at the age of 74, due to prostate cancer. He battled with this illness since 2009.
Growing up in Dayton, he later pursued his education at Washington University in St. Louis, where he was an All-Conference running back, a baritone soloist in the university choir, and a disc jockey at the campus radio station. He earned his bachelor’s degree in sociology, becoming the first person in his family to graduate college. Throughout his early life, Madison showcased a commitment to addressing racial issues, becoming a prominent figure with a distinct voice. In 2019, the university honored him with an honorary doctorate.
Madison also worked at WOL-AM and was syndicated on the Radio One Talk Network and XM satellite channel. His notable tenure was with SiriusXM Urban View, where he hosted a record-breaking 52-hour marathon in 2015. Madison became known for his crossover appeal, addressing race-related issues for a multiracial audience. He joined WWRC-AM in the early 1990s, leaving in 1998 to start an online chat show after the station underwent changes.
Madison’s commitment to political activism included efforts to raise awareness about CIA involvement in Drug trafficking and hunger strikes to advocate for voting rights legislation. At age 24, he became the youngest executive director of the NAACP’s Detroit branch before being appointed the organization’s National Political Director and eventually being elected to the National Board of Directors where he served for 14 years.
During his tenure at the NAACP, Madison led hundreds of volunteers on a series of successful voter registration marches, including a cross-country “March for Dignity” from Los Angeles to Baltimore. The marches garnered thousands of signatures for an anti-apartheid bill in Congress.
He traveled to Haiti after the 2010 earthquake, assisted relief workers in the Gulf States after Hurricane Katrina, and led 90 straight days of demonstrations and peaceful arrests in front of the Sudanese Embassy in Washignton, DC to raise awareness of genocide in Sudan. He took six trips to the country in the middle of its’ civil war to deliver survival kits to refugees and participate in the freeing of over 7,000 Sudanese slaves.
His contributions were acknowledged with awards such as the Freedom of Speech Award from Talkers Magazine in April 2008. In 2019, Madison was honored with an induction into the Radio Hall of Fame. He was an influential figure, serving on the boards of organizations like the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and Operation Big Vote. Throughout his storied radio career, Joe has broken ground and broken records. He has interviewed world leaders, including an exclusive interview with President Barack Obama in the Oval Office.
A few months after his hunger strike, the Emmett Till Antilynching Act passed in the Senate with the help of Madison’s continued push on the radio. His efforts were noticed by many, including Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, who publicly thanked him for another fight for justice.
Madison and his wife Sharon have been married for more than 45 years and they currently reside in Washington, D.C. Their blended family includes four children, five grandchildren and one great-grandchild.
Condolences may be sent to the family at https://www.joemadison.com
STATEMENT FROM THE MADISON FAMILY
