Beryl Dakers
Beryl Dakers built a 30-year career in broadcasting on a pioneering start that had Dakers opening a series of doors previously locked to women and minorities.
Dakers began her career as the first African American on-air news reporter for WIS radio in the early 1970s. She continued to blaze a trail through the years. Dakers was among the first African Americans to work as an on-air personality and producer for the TV arm of WIS. She would later take her talents to ETV, where she still works. There, Dakers has distinguished herself as one of the state’s most influential broadcasters and documentary filmmakers.
Over the past three decades, Dakers, a Columbia native, has been on the frontlines of the biggest news events in South Carolina. At ETV, she’s hosted forums where top newsmakers debated the topic of the day. She’s also dedicated herself to making South Carolinians more familiar with the range of its historically significant personalities through her documentary films. “Makin’ a Way Out of No Way: Modjeska Simpkins” is a look at one of the state’s most penetrating and effective voices of the civil rights movement. Dakers also produced “Strom Thurmond — At the Seat of Power.” Dakers has also produced documentaries on some of the state’s toughest issues, such as its high rate of domestic violence and its uneven track record of protecting the coast.
Dakers has been nominated for two Emmy’s, considered the most prestigious award in television news. “Steel Palmettos” and “The Door Project” were both about arts programs in the Midlands. She also created two of ETV’s all time most popular programs, NatureScene and What In the World Is It’ Not coincidentally, Dakers is known as one of the state’s biggest champions and most influential voices in supporting the arts. She hosts “VERVE!” a monthly arts magazine ETV airs. She serves on the board of the South Carolina Arts Foundation, the Cultural Council of Richland and Lexington counties, the SC Arts Alliance, the SC Arts Foundation, Voices for South Carolina’s Children, and the Historic Columbia Board of Advocates. She is a former member of the Eboni Dance Theatre, the Columbia Museum of Art, and the S.C. Philharmonic. She is also a former two term President of both the Columbia Urban League Board and the Columbia Chapter of The Links, Inc., and a former Board member of the National Urban League and the United Way of the Midlands. In 2000, Dakers was awarded the Elizabeth O’Neill Verner Award, the state’s highest recognition in the arts.
Some of her highest praise comes from her peers, who appreciate her efforts in connecting the arts and artists with mass audiences. “If the arts could talk, they would sound like Beryl Dakers,” said Leo Twiggs, nationally known batik artist and retired director of South Carolina State University’s I.P. Stanback Planetarium and Museum, in a 2000 interview with The State. “Her voice is legendary, and her style is extraordinary.”
Stories
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Remember My Name | Domestic Violence Project (2005) | ETV Classics
May 31, 2026At the time of the filming of Remember my Name in 2005, more than 50 per cent of all women experienced some form of violence from their spouses during marriage. In 92% of all domestic violence incidents, crimes were committed by men against women. Domestic violence was the... -
Breaking the Cycle | Remember My Name - Domestic Violence Project (2005) | ETV Classics
May 27, 2026Why do women stay? In 92% of all domestic violence incidents, crimes are committed by men against women. Domestic violence is the leading cause of injury to women between the ages of 15 – 44. South Carolina ranks sixth per capita in the nation in the number of women killed... -
Lorie's Story | Remember My Name - Domestic Violence Project (2005) | ETV Classic
May 27, 2026On May 24, 1992, Lorie Hino pulled the trigger of a gun killing her husband after years of dealing with his abuse. This is her story, of what she had lost, and learned, told with grace and courage. Side Notes Domestic Hotline Support. We are here to serve all those impacted... -
Rhonda, Davetta, Marva | Remember My Name - Domestic Violence Project (2005) | ETV Classics
May 25, 2026In 2005, when the Remember My Name series was being produced, Host Beryl Dakers noted that nearly one third of all women in America report being raped or physically abused by their husband or boyfriend at some point in their lives. Not everyone lives to tell their stories... -
ETV Forum | Remember My Name - Domestic Violence Project (2005) | ETV Classic
May 25, 2026This ETV Forum - Domestic Violence: The Community Responds was part of the Remember My Name - Domestic Violence Project (2005). Our host, Beryl Dakers delivered sobering statistics for domestic violence in South Carolina for the time and said that the slogan for the... -
Graham100: The Centennial Celebration
May 22, 2026This year marks the 100th Anniversary of the birth of the famed Martha Graham Dance Company, which is often considered the foundation for modern dance in America. The Graham Company holds the distinction of being the oldest dance company in the U.S. It is also the oldest...
