He was a husband, a father, and a “Poppy.” And, he was the founder and President of the Daystar Television Network, a faith-based operation seen on owned-and-operated stations across the U.S. and a channel nationally distributed on Comcast, DirecTV and Dish Network. In Canada, it is available on Bell TV.
Marcus Lamb has passed away at the age of 64.
The cause of death: COVID-19.
“Well done, thy good and faithful servant.”
That’s the quote prominently displayed as of today on the Daystar website, which offers a statement regarding the death of Marcus Lamb.
“It is with a heavy heart that we announce that Marcus D. Lamb … went home to be with his Heavenly Father this morning,” Daystar posted late Tuesday (11/30). “He leaves behind a legacy of fiercely loving the Lord, all the people of the world, and most of all his family.”
“This morning at 4 a.m. the president and founder of Daystar and the love of my life went to be with Jesus,” said his wife, Joni, on a Tuesday morning broadcast. “I wanted you to hear from me that he’s with the Lord.”
While COVID-19 was cited as a cause of Marcus Lamb’s death, Joni noted on Daystar that he had diabetes and that her husband had been hospitalized for COVID-19 after his oxygen levels dropped.
The family asks that their privacy be respected “as they grieve this difficult loss,” but that may be difficult. Lamb’s opposition to COVID-19 vaccinations has amplified the news of his death from the virus. CBS News’s coverage of his passing assailed Daystar for spreading “COVID misinformation.” The Washington Post noted that Daystar “discouraged vaccines.”
The widespread news coverage of Lamb’s passing only deepens the divide many perceive between the “liberal media” and other news sources, as Lamb was assailed as a “anti-vaxxer” by many outlets.
Lamb’s role as the head of a global Christian television operation dates to 1983, some two years after founding the Word of God Fellowship in Macon, Ga., where he was raised. “While on a trip to Israel in 1983, God spoke to Marcus Lamb and told him to found a Christian television station in Montgomery, Alabama,” a biography on Daystar’s website states. This saw the 1985 launch of WMCF-45 in Montgomery, today a Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN) owned station.
In 1990, Lamb then build KMPX-29 in Dallas, today an Estrella Media-owned station airing the Estrella TV Spanish-language entertainment network. At KMPX, Daystar Television Network officially launched — in 1997. It did so with a live broadcast of T.D. Jakes’ New Year’s Eve service at the Potter’s House Church in Dallas.
Marcus Lamb is survived by his wife, Joni, and three children: Jonathan Lamb, Rachel Lamb and Rebecca Lamb. They reside in the Dallas-Fort Worth region.
