Originally posted Wednesday, December 18, 2019 by RODNEY HO/rho@ajc.com on his AJC Radio & TV Talk blog
Janelle King has joined the cast of Fox 5's "The Georgia Gang," effectively replacing Dick Williams, a conservative commentator and newspaper man who retired earlier this year.
King, a 35-year-old Connecticut native raised in North Carolina, is a former deputy state director for the Georgia Republican Party and a co-founder of Speak Georgia, which holds town-hall styled, kitchen-table talk on hot-button topics. She now resides in Sandy Springs.
She is a G.O.P. consultant on community engagement, public affairs and diversity initiatives, according to her Fox 5 bio.
"Janelle is a refreshing and remarkable voice who has great insight into Georgia politics," said 1380/WAOK-AM morning host Rashad Richey, who is more progressive than KIng. "Her active community approach makes her unique in the market."
She works as vice president of external affairs at Osprey Management, a commercial construction company owned by her husband Kelvin King, a U.S. Air Force veteran. She also does contracted government relations work for MARTA.
King started at “The Georgia Gang” in August but was given the permanent seat officially last month.
Three of the five regular "Georgia Gang" panelists have journalism backgrounds - Phil Kent, Alexis Scott and Lori Geary. The fourth, Tharon Johnson, is a Democratic Party advisor who has worked on the campaigns of former Atlanta mayor Kasim Reed, Congressman John Lewis and former Pres. Barack Obama.
King is the youngest person on the panel.
“The Georgia Gang,” which debuted in 1982 with Williams at the helm, discusses the big issues of the week and has been on Fox 5 for much of its run, currently airing at 8:30 a.m. Sundays.
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