
Quick Facts
Listen to news executives Cheryl Smith, Brigitte Jones and Julia Ann Dudley Najieb as they discuss national issues with commentary. Visit the BHN Talk Radio current episodes here.
Episodes
Latest Episode
October 14, 2026 · 1h 29m
Breaking: Even as the overall number of reported hate crimes declined, anti-Black hate accounted for the largest number of race-based hate crimes reported to the FBI in 2025. Anti-Hispanic and anti-Latino hate crimes increased in 2025 amid the administration’s brutal and draconian immigration enforcement campaign, compounding the threats facing immigrant communities, including Black immigrants. In One Historically Black Florida Community, the Drinking Water Is Brown In Whitted, testing has confirmed the water is contaminated with arsenic and PFAS/PFOS. An effort to connect the residents to the local water system has moved slowly. Spotlight: Silicon Beach Brothers Xavier and Xander Ngwala Accepted into Harvard Business School Foundry for AI-Powered Platform Noteese
More Episodes
Oct 7, 2026 · 1h 26m
Join the BHN Talk Radio news team, Julia Ann Dudley Najieb, Cheryl Smith and Brigitte Jones as they discuss the latest breaking and key news headlines affecting Black communities throughout the nation and world: BREAKING NEWS: A Black community in Louisiana faces a future without a champion in Congress after redistricting Scotlandville is a predominantly Black community in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, that's facing challenges in its political representation MORE NEWS: NPS Awards $21.8 million in African American Civil Rights Preservation and History Grants NPS announces today the award of $21.8 million in African American Civil Rights Preservation and History Grants to fund 54 projects in 18 states that will preserve sites and stories related to the struggle of African Americans for equality. These grants fund physical preservation projects and history projects by States, Tribes, local governments, and nonprofit organizations, and comes from FY2025 appropriations from the Historic Preservation Fund. Descendants of people buried in one of Clearwater’s erased African American cemeteries say they hope a newly announced lawsuit settlement could move them closer to honoring their loved ones. The graves are on a property located at 100 South Missouri Ave., now owned by the FrankCrum human resources company. In 2023, the company filed suit against Clearwater’s Community Redevelopment Agency, and they have been locked in a legal battle over what should happen next. The trial was scheduled to begin Monday, but late Wednesday, both parties agreed to settle the case out of court. And while details have yet to be released, this still marks an important step forward for descendants who have spent years pushing for recognition of the people still buried there. It has been five years since Carlton Childs witnessed a discovery that was startling, even if it wasn’t entirely unexpected. SPOTLIGHT: A Different World TV series has a new generation appearing on Netflix as of September 24, 2026. The show depicts the Black college life using fictitious institution, Hillman College. News producer hosts compare the original series, along with the special appearances from original actors, and the ageism threats the original cast continues to face from viewers.
Sep 24, 2026 · 1h 26m
Join the BHN Talk Radio news team, Julia Ann Dudley Najieb, Cheryl Smith and Brigitte Jones as they discuss the latest breaking and key news headlines affecting Black communities throughout the nation and world: BREAKING NEWS: Report: Sister Betsy Jean Farrakhan, daughter of Minister Louis Farrakhan, dies — Black America Web Summary: Reports said Betsy Jean Farrakhan, the eldest daughter of Minister Louis Farrakhan and the late Mother Khadijah Farrakhan, had died. Nation of Islam members remembered her agricultural work and efforts to inspire young people to farm; an official announcement had not yet been issued when the report was published. US Military had close call after using AI for false intelligence report, sources say --CNN The intelligence report, circulated across the US military this spring in the midst of the war with Iran, immediately set off alarm bells: A Chinese ship in the Middle East was transporting components of a nuclear weapons program. The US military swung into action with plans to intercept the vessel, according to four sources familiar with the episode. According to two of the sources, armed members of the US military were preparing to board the ship. Military planes were in the air, one of those sources and another source familiar with the incident said. It was only just before the planned operation that officials dug deeper into the report put together by a special operations command analyst and found it had been generated with the help of artificial intelligence (AI) — and that a chatbot the analyst had used inaccurately identified the material the ship was carrying. CNN was not able to learn what the misidentified cargo was. The report, according to one of the sources, was “entirely false.” But it also “almost started a war,” the source said. Any US operation against a Chinese vessel could have risked spiraling into an armed conflict between the two nations. MORE NEWS: NAACP files lawsuit to block federal agents from polling sites — Black America WebSummary: The NAACP and a coalition of civil-rights and labor organizations sued the Trump administration, seeking to prevent armed federal agents from being deployed at or near polling places during the midterms. The plaintiffs argue that threatened enforcement activity could intimidate voters—especially voters of color—in violation of the Voting Rights Act. UT Austin to eliminate Black, Latino and women’s studies majors — theGrio, Sept. 18 Summary: UT Austin stopped enrolling new students in African and African Diaspora Studies, Mexican American and Latina/o Studies, and Women’s and Gender Studies, while also planning to eliminate the Race, Indigeneity and Migration major. Current students may complete their degrees, but faculty criticized the consolidation as restricting academic choice. SPOTLIGHT: Two Black HBCU students receive up to $15,000 through the 2026 Astronaut Scholarship — BlackNews.com Summary: North Carolina A&T students Victoria Little and Avery C. Love were named 2026 Astronaut Scholars, joining 79 STEM students selected from 54 institutions. Each may receive up to $15,000, along with mentoring, professional development and networking opportunities.
Sep 15, 2026 · 2h 27m
After news publisher hosts Julia Dudley Najieb, Cheryl Smith, and Brigitte Jones reflect on 9/11, here are the news items for discussion during this show: BREAKING: Homicide in tree hanging of Fortune Gary Indiana elected officials request a federal investigation AI threat news and news commentary
Sep 1, 2026 · 1h 56m
Join the BHN Talk Radio team, Julia Ann Dudley Najieb, Cheryl Smith and Brigitte Jones as they explore the Democratic Party's strategies to reach Black voters, while the Democratic Socialist movement is taking root in key elections. Hear from special guests about their assessments on the matter: The Honorable Judge Bobbie Edmonds (Texas) and former gubernatorial candidate and current school board trustee, Derek Grasty (California.) Some within the Democratic Party are weary about the Democratic Socialist for America movement, although they have an organized, working formula, say elected officials.
Aug 30, 2026 · 2h 26m
Geologists and expert scientists say the back-to-back earthquakes are happening frequently against the norm Listen to a recap of the Sunday, August 23 episode of the BHN Talk Radio Show with Julia Ann Dudley Najieb, Cheryl Smith and Brigitte Jones as they cover feature news story: "Understanding Earthquakes." The show reflects on the recent earthquake calamities worldwide California's predictions from top geologists and scientist, and the truth of the matter versus "fear." As earthquakes are a natural phenomenon that geologists and scientists continue to examine, what's recently noticeable is the large double earthquakes that are happening within seconds and/or minutes--devastating earthquake victims across the world. The shallow earthquakes are also a concern for scientists as human causalities increase from such disasters. A shallow earthquake is an earthquake that originates between the Earth's surface and a depth of 70 kilometers (about 43 miles).
Jul 30, 2026 · 3h 26m
BLACK-IN WEEK 4: The Black press reflects on past Black journalists in history and present journalists, how they adapted to unique, political climates, featuring guest, professional journalist, Dr. Dareia Tolbert Jacobs of Texas.
Jul 30, 2026 · 3h 0m
On Thursday, July 2, 2026, Black Headline News launched the "BLACK-IN" campaign in conjunction with the July Fourth holiday weekend, using the first forum in a series to educate viewers about the plight and history of the Black press, urging viewers to support Black media with valid, copious explanations. Week three featured special guests, Pastor Al Green of One Rugged Cross Church and Pastor B.T. Lewis of Rising Star Baptist Church, discussing ways to work with the Black press with award-winning news publishers Cheryl Smith of Texas Metro News, Julia Ann Dudley Najieb of ONME News, and Brigitte Jones of The Bay Area Review.
Jul 15, 2026 · 3h 12m
With news publishers, Cheryl Smith, Julia Ann Dudley Najieb and Brigitte Jones, join the BLACK-IN Movement, an initiative started by Black Headline News to inform viewers about the importance of the Black media; meanwhile, learn more about news publishers Smith, Dudley Najieb and Jones as to why they became journalist and publishers. Also, learn more about how to reach the Black media, what the Black media can do and can't do, and how the Black media brings in its income. Meanwhile, special guest Sam Ennon, founder of BOBSA, explains the current status of the Black hair-care industry, nail salons and more after the recent boycott rumors have been floating thru social media.
Jul 6, 2026 · 2h 25m
On Thursday, July 2, 2026, Black Headline News launched the the "BLACK-IN" campaign in conjunction with the July Fourth holiday weekend, using the first forum in a series to educate viewers about the plight and history of the Black press, urging viewers to support Black media with valid, copious explanations. Award-winning news publishers Cheryl Smith of Texas Metro News, Julia Ann Dudley Najieb of ONME News, and Brigitte Jones of The Bay Area Review, hosted the five-hour forum, showcasing excerpts of the 1999 film, The Black Press: Soldiers Without Swords, followed by reflective discussion. The documentary details the history of the Black Press, showcasing some of the first-hand sources who were present during key, historical moments in American history and beyond.