John Wesley Claver Jones (November 12, 1949 – March 5, 1991), was an American journalist who became the first African-American news anchor in the

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

television market. He was also the first anchor to be born, raised, and educated in Philadelphia. Described by

KYW-TV KYW-TV (channel 3), branded as CBS Philadelphia, is a television station in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. It is owned and operated by the CBS television network through its CBS News and Stations division alongside WPSG (channel 57 ...

weatherman Tom Lamaine in 1991 as "a profile in courage and encouragement to those who" were "afflicted with cancer," Jack Jones was also praised by longtime Philadelphia mayor

Frank Rizzo Francis Lazarro Rizzo (October 23, 1920 – July 16, 1991) was an American police officer and politician. He served as commissioner of the Philadelphia Police Department (PPD) from 1967 to 1971 and mayor of Philadelphia from 1972 to 1980. He wa ...

, who said, "I was absolutely amazed at his courage—at what he did and how he did it." Rizzo also said that Jones "asked tough questions, but he did it with class." According to veteran Philadelphia news anchor

Larry Kane Larry Kane (born October 21, 1942) is an American journalist, news anchor and author known for his over 6 decade career. Kane spent 36 years as a news anchor in Philadelphia, and is the only person to have anchored at all three Philadelphia own ...

, Jones "loved to cover politics" and "was able to get a lot of stories that other people couldn't get."

Career

Born in

, Pennsylvania on November 12, 1949, Jones joined

WCAU-TV WCAU (channel 10) is a television station in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. It is owned and operated by the NBC television network through its NBC Owned Television Stations division alongside Mount Laurel, New Jersey–licensed Tel ...

as a copy editor almost immediately after graduating with honors from the

West Philadelphia Catholic High School for Boys West Philadelphia Catholic High School for Boys (West Boys, West Catholic, Burrs) was founded in 1916. A school building was later constructed at 49th Street between Chestnut and Market Streets in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The school closed its ...

in 1967. He was mentored by veteran journalist

John Facenda John Thomas Ralph Augustine James Facenda ( ; August 8, 1913September 26, 1984) was an American broadcaster and sports announcer. He was a fixture on Philadelphia radio and television for decades, and achieved national fame as a narrator for N ...

, and went on to attend, and graduate from,

La Salle University La Salle University () is a private university, private, Catholic university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. The university was founded in 1863 by the Institute of the Brothers of the Christian Schools and named for St. Jean-Bapt ...

. Promoted to the position of weekend booth announcer, he became a reporter in 1971. He eventually rose to the position of news anchor during the 11 p.m. time slot, but was replaced by

Ralph Penza Ralph Penza (November 22, 1932 – February 16, 2007) was an American broadcast journalist who appeared for many years on WNBC and WCBS in New York City, serving as anchor of news broadcasts. He was known for his aggressive reporting style and w ...

in 1976. He moved to

and then moved on to

WLS-TV WLS-TV (channel 7) is a television station in Chicago, Illinois, United States, serving as the market's ABC network outlet. It has been owned and operated by the network's ABC Owned Television Stations division since the station's inception. ...

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

, but returned to KYW-TV in 1983. Jones covered the

1985 MOVE bombing The 1985 MOVE bombing, locally known by its date, May 13, 1985, was the aerial bombing and destruction of residential homes in the Cobbs Creek neighborhood of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States, by the Philadelphia Police Department duri ...

from Osage Avenue, where he was noted for his coolness and clarity under pressure, often facing gunfire during live shots.

Illness and death

Ailing by 1989 but not diagnosed with

pancreatic cancer Pancreatic cancer arises when cell (biology), cells in the pancreas, a glandular organ behind the stomach, begin to multiply out of control and form a Neoplasm, mass. These cancerous cells have the malignant, ability to invade other parts of ...

until the fall of 1990, Jones continued to work on air at KYW-TV as he underwent chemotherapy treatment for the disease. He completed his final broadcast on February 2, 1991, during which time he "received intravenous medication as he co-anchored the 6 p.m. news" on KYW-TV, according to the ''Philadelphia Daily News''. Just over a month later, he succumbed to cancer-related complications, and died at his home in

Merion Station, Pennsylvania Merion Station, also known as Merion, is an Unincorporated area, unincorporated community in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. It borders Philadelphia to its west and is one of the communities that make up the Philadelphia Main Line. Merion Stat ...

on March 5, 1991. He was forty-one years old.

Awards and legacy

In 1987, Jones was nominated for individual achievement (writer/news) by the Philadelphia chapter of the

National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences The National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS), also known as the National Television Academy until 2007, is an American professional service organization founded in 1955 for "the advancement of the arts and sciences of televisio ...

. The Broadcast Pioneers of Philadelphia posthumously inducted Jones into their Hall of Fame in 2004.

References

External links

Broadcast Pioneers of Philadelphia: Jack Jones
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jones, Jack American television reporters and correspondents Television anchors from Philadelphia Television anchors from Chicago African-American television personalities 1949 births 1991 deaths American male journalists Deaths from pancreatic cancer 20th-century African-American people