A renowned leader in the Black community, Tarea Hall Pittman began a regular radio broadcast called “Negroes in the News” in 1935 on Oakland station KLS (later known as KWBR and KDIA). These weekly roundups of often-positive news from the Black community continued into the 1980’s. Pittman became nationally-known for these broadcasts.
Born in Bakersfield and the first Black graduate of Bakersfield Junior College, Pittman was a longtime Berkeley resident and the South Branch of the Berkeley Public Library is named after her.
Tarea Hall Pittman died in 1991 at the age of 88.