Sam retired in December with a special tribute from the station where he worked for 36 years, WJLA-TV in Washington, D.C.; accolades from the National Association of Black Journalists, of which he is a co-founder; as well as from the Washington Association of Black Journalists.
Earlier in the year, he was inducted into the Hall of Fame of the D.C. chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists.
“Ford has spent most of his career serving the people of Washington, D.C.,” NABJ said in its news release. “He started his career in radio, working in Kansas and Minnesota. He went on to television at WCCO-TV in Minnesota and also served as a CBS News correspondent for a decade.
“ ‘I have had a good time,’ Ford said when reflecting on his career during one of his last live reports from the March on Washington anniversary, which he has covered six times.
“As a part of the station’s celebration of Ford, 7News Anchor Alison Starling said: ‘When it comes to true beat reporters, no one does it better than Sam Ford. He can not only find the most compelling stories because of his huge network of sources, but he also tells them in a way that makes you care and understand the topic.’ ”
Perhaps lesser known is that Sam is a member of the Cherokee Freedmen, descendants of Africans enslaved by the Cherokee Nation.
They fought for years for full Cherokee citizenship, and finally won that in 2021. You can watch the episode about him in the 2015 documentary series, “Voices of the Cherokee People.”
And he loves to travel. Check out this video of Sam’s trip to Madagascar!
Sam N Africa from sam ford on Vimeo.
