Delano Lewis, who served as the president of NPR and as US ambassador to South Africa, passed away at the age of 84 in hospice care in Las Cruces, NM. Lewis served as NPR president from 1993 until 1998, marking the first time a Black individual held the position.
Born in Arkansas City, KS, in 1938, Lewis was raised in a segregated society and developed an interest in civil rights law from an early age. After graduating from Washburn University School of Law in Topeka in 1963, he held roles in the Justice Department and Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, laying the foundation for his long-standing career in Washington.
Lewis’s tenure in Washington saw him serve as associate director and country director for the Peace Corps in Nigeria and Uganda between 1966 and 1969. He also served as a legislative assistant to US Sen. Edward Brooke and Rep. Walter Fauntroy. After working there for more than ten years, he became CEO of the Chesapeake & Potomac Telephone Company in 1990.
His time as president of NPR saw him fight against the elimination of public broadcasting funds and make an unsuccessful attempt to merge the organization with Public Radio International.
After leaving NPR, Lewis was tapped by President Bill Clinton to serve as the ambassador to the Republic of South Africa from 1999 to 2001.
Current NPR CEO John Lansing lauded Lewis’s impressive career in public service, saying, “A loyal NPR listener and supporter of public radio, he joked about the lengthy process to become head of NPR saying: ‘I never worked so hard for a pay cut in my life.’ The NPR and public radio family join his family and friends, who will miss him dearly.”
