Jovita Moore, a former primetime news anchor for WSB-TV in Atlanta, is being honored by a local nonprofit through its scholarship for HBCU students. Moore was a staple on the local news station, and her death from incurable brain cancer in October 2021 shocked the Atlanta community that remembers her fondly to this day.
With the Jovita Moore HBCU Undergraduate Scholarship, facilitated by the Jaguar Foundation of Atlanta, Moore’s legacy in the community will live on.
The first recipient of the newly established scholarship was announced at the nonprofit’s 14th annual Atlanta Achievement Awards, as reported by WSB-TV. The ceremony holds special recognition for Moore as well, who emceed the event for approximately a decade.
Moore’s family was present to bestow the scholarship to Aliyah Beal, who plans to major in business economics at Southern University. “I’m just really honored to be the first recipient of this scholarship, just seeing her involvement in metro right there it really just impacted me,” said the incoming freshman.
Moore began at WSB-TV in 1998 and soon grew to become a constant face in Atlanta homes. She held the primetime slot on the news outlet’s evening news programs, a role she held from 2012 until her passing. Her death prompted tributes and remembrances from countless admirers, including director, writer, and performer Tyler Perry and then Atlanta mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms.
Although she was not from the Southern city, her work on behalf of delivering the news for years to its residents made her an unofficial native. She continued to foster the journalism industry in Atlanta, holding positions on the board of directors for the Atlanta Association of Black Journalists as well as the National Association.
Moore’s work toward empowering Black people to pursue and advance their career development is now forever remembered with this scholarship for HBCU students.