Black History Month might be over but here in the Washington, DC metropolitan area, also known as the DMV (District of Columbia, Maryland and Virginia), there is a sports legend walking among us and his name is Harold Bell.

Harold Bell is someone who came on the scene way before his time.  He’s an unfiltered truth teller in the age of new digital media who is not hampered by the restrictions of network TV and it’s sponsors.  Harold Bell was the only local reporter with the official stamp of respect who upholds the values of Muhammad Ali. I believe his more famous colleagues and people he has mentored would rather ignore him until he’s gone, and then speak highly of him, rather than give him his “props” now.

There needs to be a voice of the people, someone on the ground to discuss real issues. His show, “The Original Inside Sports,” was the original (ESPN) “Outside the Lines.”   With all the sub-par commentators on network TV today its a travesty that Harold Bell has been getting the (Colin) “Kaepernick treatment” for years.

Harold Bell is the Godfather of Sports Talk radio and television in Washington, DC.  Throughout the mid-sixties, seventies and eighties, Harold embarked upon a relatively new medium–-sports talk radio with classic interviews with sports celebrities, politicians and news makers of the day.  The show and format became wildly popular. Harold has been an active force fighting for the rights of children for almost 50 years with the help of his wife Hattie through their charity Kids In Trouble, Inc.   To learn more about Harold Bell visit his official web site.  You can check out Harold’s work on this site by clicking here.

Christopher Johnson also known as “C. J.” is the youngest columnist on this website.  He started interviewing celebrities when he was 10-years old.  Chris comments on sports, politics, current events and he writes movie reviews.  In his spare time he is the Lead Guitarist for a band called The Courtland Experiment.  Click here to visit his Archives Page to see more videos with Harold Bell and to read his commentaries and movie reviews. You can also follow him on Twitter and Instagram.

Here I am with my mentor Harold Bell in the Press Box at the Wizards basketball game.