Honor Roll Grows at Glittery B&C Gala
Ten inductees, plus SportsCenter, hailed at 14th annual bash
-- Broadcasting & Cable, 11/15/2004
Everybody who's anybody was there. Indeed, more than 500 media execs and guests poured into New York's posh Waldorf-Astoria ballroom on Nov. 8 for the 14th Annual Broadcasting & Cable Hall of Fame dinner to pay tribute to 10 media superstars and one super program. It was a record crowd.
The hall added these names to its impressive roster of media greats, bringing the total to 245 individuals:
William Baker, president/CEO of Educational Broadcasting Corp. which operates public TV's powerhouse WNET; George Bodenheimer, president of ESPN/ABC Sports; Stephen Burke, COO of Comcast Corp.; Catherine Hughes, founder and chairperson of Radio One; Mario “Don Francisco” Kreutzberger, the host of Univision's Sàbado Gigante; Jerry Lee, president of WBEB-FM, Philadelphia, an FM pioneer; Judith McHale, president/CEO of Discovery Communications; Leslie Moonves, co-president and co-COO of Viacom; Dick Robertson, president of Warner Bros. Domestic Television Distribution, the giant syndicator; Jeff Smulyan, chairman of Emmis Communications, which operates 27 radio and 16 TV stations; and ESPN's SportsCenter, the ubiquitous sports show that, in 25 years, has changed the quality and tone of sports coverage by adding intelligence, depth and lots of wit.
Two wonderful media-related charities, The Broadcasters' Foundation and Cable Positive, received a share of the evening proceeds.
The date coincided with the debut of a revamped design for B&C, now in its 73rd year. “It's been a privilege to chronicle this industry as it as evolved from cathedral radios to 50-inch HDTVs,” B&C Editor in Chief J. Max Robins told the crowd. The magazine's new logo, Robins noted, “emphasizes how closely broadcasting and cable are tied together.”
For one night last week, they celebrated together, too.
