The National Association of Broadcasters Leadership Foundation (NABLF) has appointed seven new members to its board of directors.
The seven members are executives within the commercial radio and television broadcasting industry, and will help advance the various goals of the NABLF.
The seven executives appointed to the NABLF Board of Directors this week are:
- Catherine Badalamente, President and CEO, Graham Media Group
- Lynn Beall, Executive Vice President and COO, TEGNA
- Joe DiScipio, Senior Vice President of Legal and FCC Compliance, Fox Corporation
- Chad Matthews, President of ABC Owned Television Stations, the Walt Disney Company
- Marian Pittman, Executive Vice President of Content, Product and Innovation, Cox Media Group
- David Santrella, CEO, Salem Media Group
- Karen Wishart, Executive Vice President and Chief Administrative Officer, Urban One
“These broadcasters bring a wealth of experience, leadership and a unique perspective to our board of directors,” Michelle Duke, the president of NABLF, said in a statement on Wednesday.
The NABLF provided the following biographies for the seven new board members appointed this week:
As president and chief executive officer, Badalamente oversees the Graham Media Group’s broadcast TV stations in seven local media hubs reaching just under seven percent of the U.S. In addition, she oversees Graham Digital, a digital media and technology development group, and Social News Desk, a leading provider of social media management tools designed to connect newsrooms with their users. She also serves on the NAB Television Board of Directors.
Beall is the executive vice president and chief operating officer of Media Operations at TEGNA Inc., leading operations across the company’s 64 broadcast stations, which reach approximately 39 percent of all television households nationwide. In addition, Beall serves as chair of the CBS Television Affiliates Association Board, second vice chair of the NAB Television Board of Directors and is a member of the T. Howard Foundation Board of Directors.
DiScipio is senior vice president, Legal and FCC Compliance, for Fox Television Stations, LLC, where he has worked since 2009. In this role, he is responsible for all FCC regulatory matters relating to the Fox owned-and-operated television stations, negotiating retransmission consent and other distribution agreements, spectrum matters, merger and acquisition (M&A) activity and other special projects.
Matthews, an Emmy Award-winning news executive, serves as president of ABC Owned Television Stations. In this role, Matthews has chief management responsibility for the eight ABC-owned television stations. He is a member of NLGJA: The Association of LGBTQ Journalists and serves as a senior adviser and executive champion on PRIDE at ABC News and ABC Owned Television Stations Business Employee Resource Group.
Pittman is executive vice president, Content, Product & Innovation of Cox Media Group (CMG), where she began her career more than 30 years ago at CMG’s WSOC-TV in Charlotte. In her current position, Pittman oversees the development of the company’s multi-platform and award-winning content and is responsible for distribution, optimization, and audience engagement – including CMG’s OTT platform, which streams local, original content 24/7, in addition to leading the company’s ongoing efforts to innovate how content is created, presented and delivered.
Santrella is the chief executive officer of Salem Media Group and has been with the company since 2001 when he started to manage the Chicago market. Santrella is the immediate past joint board chair for the NAB Board of Directors and previously served as radio board chair. In addition, he is a member of the President’s Council for National Religious Broadcasters.
A seasoned executive and proven leader with experience in strategic planning, sales, marketing, business development, team leadership, brand management and profit and loss (P&L) responsibility, Wishart serves as executive vice president and chief administrative officer at Urban One. Wishart previously served as the president and CEO of Curzon Staffing and Executive Search, and successfully expanded business growth/operations.
NABLF offers a number of programs aimed at helping industry officials advance into and through various leadership roles. Those programs include the Emerson Coleman Fellowship, which provides those who are pursuing careers in television broadcasting with hands-on experience in that field, and the Media Sales Academy.
NABLF also works with industry stakeholders to host a robust career fair, which will be held next month in New York.
