“Build the Dream” Radiothon for the Martin Luther King Jr. National Memorial

Clear Channel Radio has enlisted the help of Steve Harvey, Doug Banks, Tom Joyner and Michael Baisden to participate in the company’s “Build the Dream” Radiothon for the Martin Luther King Jr. National Memorial. Harvey, Banks, Joyner and Baisden host their own radio shows and the Radiothon will help raise money on behalf of the Washington, D.C. Martin Luther King Jr. National Memorial Project Foundation Inc.

The Radiothon is on Thursday, August 28 and the company has already received commitments from singer Aretha Franklin, actors Samuel L. Jackson and Ice Cube, retired Gen. Colin Powell and journalists Al Roker and Soledad O’Brien to participate.

Ms. O'Brien's recent Black in America and Special Investigations on the MLK papers and the anniversary of Dr. King's death for CNN, make her a very visible face for the project.


On November 13, 2006, thousands attended the Ceremonial Groundbreaking on the National Mall co-hosted by Tavis Smiley and Soledad O’Brien. Those in attendance included Presidents Bush and Clinton, Oprah Winfrey, Maya Angelou, Senator Barack Obama, Diane Sawyer, Dr. King’s children - Yolanda, Martin III and Bernice, Members of the President’s Cabinet, and Members of Congress.

The national foundation has set a total fundraising goal of $120 million to complete the project. Congress first authorized the development of a memorial to Dr. King to be located in Washington D.C. in 1996. The foundation held a ceremonial groundbreaking on Nov. 13, 2006. It will be built on the National Mall, next to the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial and in a direct line between the Lincoln and Jefferson memorials.

Celebrity participants will be featured on select Clear Channel Radio stations, where they will be asked to share their thoughts about the importance of Dr. King and the significance of building a national memorial.