NEW YORK—Al Roker, meteorologist on NBC’s “Today,” ESPN’s ubiquitous sports opiner Stephen A. Smith, actress Christine Baranski and Wendy McMahon, president and CEO of CBS News & Stations & CBS Media Ventures, were among the big TV-industry names tapped as “Giants of Broadcasting & Electronic Arts” by the Library of American Broadcasting Foundation at a Nov. 12 event at Gotham Hall here.
The rest of the 2024 class of Giants included Mike McVay, president of McVay Media Consulting; Patricia C. (Patsy) Smullin, president and owner, California Oregon Broadcasting; and Steve Jones, president and CEO, Skyview Networks.
Honorees were recognized for their lifetime achievements at a luncheon and awards ceremony hosted by Bill Whitaker, correspondent for CBS’s “60 Minutes” and himself a 2018 honoree. The ceremony also honored Hearst Television with the 2024 LABF Excellence in Broadcast Preservation Award for its ongoing digitalization initiative.
“We are thrilled to celebrate these outstanding trailblazers in the radio and television industry and recognize Hearst Television for their outstanding commitment to preservation,” LABF co-chairs Heidi Raphael and Jack Goodman said in a statement. “It is a privilege to pay tribute to these incredible individuals and organization for their significant impact in broadcasting and on American culture.”
Some 300 broadcasting industry leaders have been honored as Giants of Broadcasting & Electronic Arts since the event’s 2003 inception. The awards presentation celebrates remarkable creators, innovators, leaders, performers and journalists who have blazed trails in television and radio broadcasting, the foundation said.
The luncheon’s net proceeds support the preservation and expansion of the Library of American Broadcasting at the University of Maryland in College Park, Maryland. The library’s collection is considered among the largest of its kind, the foundation said, adding that it plays a vital role in growing, preserving and providing access to archives that highlight broadcasting's profound influence on culture and history worldwide.
The foundation also supports the Broadcast Education Association by underwriting research and creative grants and producing academic publications focused on broadcast media, it said.
