Title
Commemorating the life and legacy of William 'Cody' Anderson, a legendary figure in talk radio, a pioneering leader in African-American owned radio and media, and a positive voice in the Black community.
Body
WHEREAS, William 'Cody' Anderson was born in Denison, Texas, in 1942, but spent his formative years in Chicago, Illinois; and
WHEREAS, Cody Anderson demonstrated some of his many talents early on, as a star basketball player for the Central State University Marauders. Anderson was inducted into the Marauders' Hall of Fame in 1991, as a star on what was described at the time as one of the greatest college basketball teams Ohio has known. Anderson earned his degree from Central State University in 1965; and
WHEREAS, After graduating from college, Cody Anderson moved to Philadelphia. Anderson soon found his calling in radio when he launched his career as vice president and general manager of Philadelphia's WDAS radio. Anderson used his position at WDAS to become actively involved in the civil rights movement in the mid 1960's. Anderson assisted Georgie Woods to unite the community after the riots, empowered the station to advocate for voter registration for people of color and helped raise funds for victims of the MOVE bombing; and
WHEREAS, Bilal Qayyum, founder and president of the Father's Day Rally Committee, upon learning of Anderson's passing, noted in the Philadelphia Inquirer story February 21, 2021, "Back then, Black radio was the voice of the community. We didn't have cell phones, we didn't have social media. If you wanted to know what was happening in the Black community, you listened to WDAS under Cody"; and
WHEREAS, Continuing in radio, Anderson subsequently purchased and operated station WHAT-1340 AM, where he instituted a Black talk-radio format; and
WHEREAS, Anderson developed into an iconic leading voice in the Black community, joining WURD radio, by delivering consistent, constructive, and confident journalism for over 20 years; ...
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