Even as a teenager, Mike Gurspan felt the need to make a difference. While others his age were doing what teenagers do, young Mike was in his bedroom writing congressmen and senators about issues that concerned him. He majored in broadcasting not because he wanted the spotlight, but because he knew it was a platform he could use to highlight community problems. For his dedication to his community and his genuine concern for all people, the Alabama Broadcasters Association is proud to induct Mike Gurspan to its Hall of Fame.

“Even at that age he was an activist, “ says his sister Catherine Gurspan. “He was concerned about the Vietnam War and equal rights for African Americans. He got responses from the likes of Ted Kenedy and other prominent politicians.”

“Concerning college, my brother vacillated between majoring in broadcasting and getting a law degree,” she continues. “Politics and justice were in his DNA.”

Gurspan wisely choose a broadcasting career and worked awhile in Florida before moving to Alabama and WTVY.

“All of a sudden, he showed this natural talent to perform about things he cared about – which was really politics.”

“Mike was a workhorse,” says Reginald Jones, former anchor for WTVY and now retired. “You could always count on Mike to bring four or five stories to the table every day.”

“He would drive endlessly to get to a story, and he sacrificed maybe his personal life because he was married to the job,” says his sister.

“Mike was a reporter, and he covered several counties west of Houston County where the station is located,” says Jones.  “One of the things I remember was that he didn’t just work in the counties that he covered, he actually decided to move and buy a house and live in one of those counties”.

“He immersed himself as much as he could into the local community, giving back wherever he could,”  Jones continued, “ I think that may have been one of the reasons that he was aways so successful in getting stories because he was part of the people and he felt he was part of the community.”

“When I went to visit him, we’d go anywhere and people would act like they were best friends,” laughs Gurspan’s sister. “He was their neighbor – which sounds so cliché, but he literally was. He knew the people around him, and it didn’t matter who you were; you were an important person to Mike.”

“He was one to be respected,” continues Jones. “He wasn’t one who actually demanded it or commanded it, but his presence … by his example, he was what journalism is all about.”

His sister believes Gurspan would have been very humbled about being inducted into the ABA’s Hall of Fame. “He would have been honored and incredibly modest about it, and he would perhaps not have felt worthy of the recognition. He never wanted to be the main event.”

“He probably would not want us to make a whole lot of fuss about it because he was doing something that he genuinely enjoyed … doing something that he loved,” says Jones. “He enjoyed being of service to his community. He wasn’t looking for accolades.”

Even though Catherine Gurspan knows her brother would have been embarrassed over the attention he’d receive for being inducted into the Hall of Fame,  she also knows he would have been more than proud.

“This would have been the pinnacle for him.”