Wednesday marks the 159th anniversary of Juneteenth, commemorating the date—June 19, 1865—that America’s remaining slaves were informed of their freedom following the U.S. Civil War. Long celebrated within Black communities, Juneteenth was finally recognized as a federal holiday in 2021, signed into law by President Joe Biden.
The various news networks have scheduled special mid-week programming in observation of Juneteenth. Here’s a round-up of some of the coverage you can expect to see.
ABC News
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- Opal Lee, the “grandmother of Juneteenth,” takes center stage on Good Morning America in an interview with ABC News’ DeMarco Morgan, which will also air during GMA3: What You Need to Know. Lee will also appear on World News Tonight with David Muir, which plans to cover Juneteenth celebrations across the country.
- Taraji P. Henson, Patti LaBelle and Kool & The Gang will take part in a Juneteenth-themed installment of The View. In the evening, Nightline co-anchor Byron Pitts will report on how Black male voters are planning to cast their ballots in battleground states like North Carolina, Georgia and Michigan. That report will be previewed on This Week with George Stephanopoulos and the ABC News podcast, Start Here.
- ABC News Live’s Prime with Linsey Davis will explore GMA co-host Michael Strahan‘s ancestry through a special produced in partnership with The 10 Million Names Project. Davis also uncovers some new details about her own family history, discovering that her ancestor may have been among the first Black Americans to vote.
- Additionally, ABC News Digital interviews high school-aged contestants in the Miss Juneteenth Scholarship Gala.
CBS News
- With New York and New Jersey’s Black Restaurant Week happening to coincide with Juneteenth, CBS Mornings will take a closer look at the Black restaurant scene, with a profile of Hollis Baclay, chef and owner of Bleu Fin Bar & Grill in Brooklyn. Additionally, the morning show will speak with the event’s founder, Warren Luckett.
- Chief Washington correspondent Major Garrett explores both the past and the future of African Americans in Major League Baseball on CBS Evening News with Norah O’Donnell.
- CBS Saturday Morning will devote an episode of The Dish to Camari Mick, the Michelin star-rated executive pastry chef at The Musket Room and Raf’s.
CNN
- The third edition of Juneteenth: Celebrating Freedom and Legacy is set to air at 10 p.m. ET on all CNN platforms and Oprah Winfrey‘s OWN network, and will be available on VOD until June 26. The annual event is hosted by Victor Blackwell, and features musical performances and conversations with the likes of John Legend, Patti LaBelle, and Smokey Robinson.
NBC News Group
- Today will kick off Wednesday morning with a special celebration of Harriet Tubman’s legacy, while Today with Hoda & Jenna shines a spotlight on Juneteenth celebration meals created by leading Black chefs.
- On NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt, Washington correspondent Yamiche Alcindor will cover the Juneteenth Honor Flight, which celebrates 26 Black veterans from the Atlanta area.
- MSNBC Reports will commemorate Juneteenth celebrations throughout the day, with the participation of PoliticsNation host, Al Sharpton. Additionally, dedicated Juneteenth op-ed pieces will run on MSNBC.com.
- Meanwhile, the NBC News digital vertical NBC BLK profiles Silvia Hector Webber, who ran a southern Underground Railroad route to Mexico through Texas. NBCUniversal Local stations, including NBC and Telemundo-owned stations, will also follow local Juneteenth celebrations and observances across various markets.
PBS
- PBS News Hour will interview Alexia Fernández Campbell, senior investigative reporter with the Center for Public Integrity, about her two-year investigation into the hundreds of land titles that were stripped from formerly enslaved people during the Reconstruction period that followed the Civil War.
Scrips News
- Scripps News national correspondent John Mone reports on Jack Yates, founder of the Antioch Baptist Church who also led a community of freed slaves in Texas.
- Additionally, Amber Strong, Scripps News’ senior editor of news standards, will profile Morgan State University’s acrobatics and tumbling teams, while anchor Lauren Magarino hosts a special edition of Scripps NewsLine with an in-depth report on athletics at other HBCUs.
Noticias Univision
- Anchor Carolina Peguero appears on the morning show Despierta América to report on Corina Harrington Torralba, an Afro-Mexican activist whose ancestors founded a small Northern Mexico village populated by former slaves. The village has commemorated Juneteenth for years, calling their celebration “El Día de los Negros” (The Day of the Blacks).
- The Noticias Univision website will also feature a series of Juneteenth-related stories addressing the day’s significance.