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TV One has named television veteran Donna Wilson as Executive Producer of its new, live one-hour, weekday morning news program News One Now, which will be hosted by Roland S. Martin.

Prior to joining TV One, Ms. Wilson was based in Chicago working on nonfiction projects, including TV One’s Deceived and Find Our Missing, as well as, Biography Channel’s John Gotti and Crucibles of Courage hosted by then Senator Barack Obama, Paramount’s Dr. Phil and numerous other programs. She has also worked as a field producer at the CNN Chicago Bureau and served as a producer, reporter and host at NETV in Lincoln, Nebraska as well as a fill-in reporter for the NBC affiliate in Omaha, Nebraska.

Ms. Wilson received a CINE Golden Eagle Award for the CNN documentary Private Schools, Public Money, received the American Cancer Society/Jim Raglin Media Award for reporting, and a shared Regional Emmy with the NextTV producing team.

“We are excited to have Donna join the News One Now team as we prepare for a fall launch,” remarked D’Angela Proctor, TV One SVP Programming and Production. “The diversity of her production background makes her an ideal fit for a multiplatform daily news format and we know Donna will ensure all facets will come together in order to deliver on the News One Now vision.”

Since exiting CNN earlier this year (amidst new chief Jeff Zucker’s shake-up), Roland Martin’s been busy at TV One primarily – for example, in March, hosting the primetime special Amazing Grace: Drama In the Black Church – A Washington Watch Special with Roland Martin, which tackled themes of power, corruption and redemption in the Black church.

His new program for the network, News One Now, described as a live one-hour, weekday morning news program, is slated to premiere this fall, although no announced date yet.

Here’s a breakdown of what to expect:

News One Now, culled from the third hour of a three-hour radio program to be syndicated on Radio One network stations, will provide viewers with a morning news program that for the first time in history, will offer news and analysis of politics, entertainment, sports and culture, from an African American perspective. The morning show, based in Washington, D.C., will feature a broad spectrum of experts, newsmakers and celebrities and heavily incorporate social media throughout the show (#NewsOneNow), allowing for a truly interactive experience. Additionally, the program will implement a “Skype Net” component giving various Radio One hosts a platform to provide daily weigh-ins on News One Nowcontent, as well as inform the audience on hot topics in their respective regions. 

As we know, the pundit never did get his own CNN show, even though, as he stated, he came to that network with every intention of eventually being given his own show, after, of course, proving that he deserved the opportunity, which he felt that he did, adding that he hosted a number of “highly-rated specials for CNN,” and thus didn’t understand why the network’s decision makers never “rewarded” him with his very own show.
And you’ll recall Martin’s thoughts on why this never happened, speaking on HuffPostLive in April:
“You have largely white male executives who are not necessarily enamored with the idea of having strong, confident minorities who say, ‘I can do this’… We deliver, but we never get the big piece, the larger salary, to be able to get from here to there… If it’s a ratings game, and we won, how is it I never got a show?”
It’s maybe not quite the *grander* CNN platform that Martin previously wanted to be granted his own show on, but he’ll get to sit on his bully pulpit for at least an hour a day, reaching a significant audience.
TV One has released a preview of the news program, which is embedded below:

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