People
Talk Radio Star Joe Madison Joins XM Satellite Radio
By XM Satellite Radio
May 7, 2008, 18:22

XM Satellite Radio (Nasdaq: XMSR), the nation's leading provider of satellite radio with more than nine million subscribers, today announced that talk radio star and renowned social activist Joe Madison has joined XM Satellite Radio. Beginning Monday, June 2, Joe Madison, also known as "The Black Eagle," will broadcast live each weekday from 6 a.m. to 10 a.m. ET from XM's Washington, D.C. studios on The Power (XM Channel 169), the only national radio channel exclusively dedicated to African-American talk programming.

Madison joins the XM in-house programming team after a 10-year run with D.C.'s WOL-AM, where his popular morning show has been simulcast on The Power since XM's launch in the fall of 2001. Named one of Talker Magazine's 100 Most Important Radio Talk Show Hosts nine times and widely regarded as the nation's leading African-American activist talk radio host, Madison uses his microphone to bring attention to social injustices here and abroad while challenging listeners to take action. Madison's unyielding commitment to social activism has resulted in his incarceration for civil disobedience, hunger strikes in opposition to apartheid in South Africa and the genocide and slavery occurring in modern-day Sudan.

"The addition of Joe Madison to our in-house team underpins XM's commitment to outstanding African-American talk programming," said Nate Davis, CEO and President of XM. "The Black Eagle delivers for his listeners everyday. His engaging style is driven by his unmatched curiosity and awareness of the key civil rights issues around the world."

"I have always been a huge fan of XM. This new opportunity will provide me with an unprecedented platform to engage more listeners," said Joe Madison. "With the support of XM Satellite Radio, 'The Joe Madison Show' will continue to grow and give millions of XM subscribers a socially-conscious and entertaining radio experience each weekday."

In 1974, at the age of 24, Madison was named the executive director of the 10,000 member Detroit NAACP, the youngest person named to that position. Madison's leadership skills, commitment, and ability to inspire those around him while leading the Detroit Chapter, led to his promotion as director of the NAACP Political Action Department in 1978, by former president and CEO of the NAACP, Dr. Benjamin L. Hooks. In the midst of directing a major civil rights organization, registering voters, marching in the streets, and giving lectures on civil rights activism, Madison started another career as a socially conscious radio talk show personality in 1980 on Detroit's WXYZ-AM.

In 1986, Madison's talents were called upon once again, when NAACP convention delegates elected him to the national board of directors and re-elected him for the next 14 years. In 1996, Madison accepted the challenge of restoring prominence to the NAACP Image Awards when he was appointed its chairman. At the time of his appointment, the Image Awards was $2.5 million in debt and near termination. But under Madison's leadership the Image Awards regained its national prominence, and reversed its debt position to $1 million in profits within two years.

Most recently, he championed the liberation of thousands of Sudanese captives and the delivery of survival kits to hundreds of refugee families. He organized a "Sudan Campaign" to end slavery and raised thousands of dollars to free slaves, at a cost of $35 per slave. He participated in the victorious movement opposing the deportation of 15,000 Liberians from the United States.