In April 2008, 40 years after the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., WYPR aired a special news series "68: The Fire Last Time." The series examined the local civil rights movement and the response to Dr. King's assassination, the Baltimore City riots, and the aftermath. 

The WYPR news team interviewed some of the most notable public figures of that era: Former Governor Marvin Mandel, Mayor Thomas D'Alesandro, III, Reverend Marion Bascom and Morgan State professor Homer Favor. Residents also gave their account of the turbulent time. 

WYPR revisits this series on the 50th anniversary of Dr. King's death.

PART 1: The Spring of 1968 

PART 2: King’s Assassination: The country reacts, will Baltimore?

PART 3: April 7th – The Riot/ Unrest

PART 4: Post Riot/ The Cleanup

This award-winning series was written and produced by Sunni Khalid, Mary Rose Madden, Fraser Smith, and Deborah George. Andy Bienstock, Jonathan Ehrens and Lisa Morgan provided assistance.