HBCU
Another Honor For "Black Magic"
By BASN Wire Services
May 17, 2009

  NEW YORK -- "Black Magic", a sports documentary by ESPN Films in association with Shoot the Moon Productions, has been honored with The George Foster Peabody Award. The Peabodys, the oldest awards in broadcasting, are considered among the most prestigious and selective prizes in electronic media.

Directed and produced by Dan Klores, and co-produced by basketball legend and Winston-Salem State University graduate Earl "The Pearl" Monroe, "Black Magic" tells the story of the injustice which characterized the Civil Rights Movement in America, as told through the lives of basketball players and coaches who attended Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU).

"Black Magic" was aired as a commercial free, two-part, four-hour film in primetime in March of 2008 on ESPN. At the time, the film was ESPN's most highly rated documentary ever.

According to the Peabody judges, "this unusually penetrating sports documentary illuminated the lives of African American basketball players and their coaches at historically black colleges and universities during the civil rights era."

Keith Clinkscales, senior vice president content development and enterprises, ESPN, said, "Winning this award is a remarkable achievement for a sports film and an honor for everyone involved in it. We are so proud of this film and to work with Dan Klores, whose vision and passion brought this important story of social change and sports to life."

The 68th Annual George Foster Peabody Awards ceremony will take place on Monday, May 18, at the Waldorf-Astoria in New York.