2008 Hall of Fame

The 18th Annual Broadcasting & Cable Hall of Fame - recognized as the leading industry event honoring the pioneers, the innovators and the stars of the electronic arts - will be celebrated on October 21st at a formal dinner at New York's Waldorf - Astoria. This year's host of the awards ceremony is industry veteran, and a 2001 Hall of Fame honoree, Katie Couric.

Click on the photos or the links below to read profiles of the 2008 inductees. And check back to peruse photo galleries and watch video from the event.

2008 Inductees

• Roger Ailes
  

  Chairman and CEO, FOX News and FOX Television Stations

  In April 1970 Roger Ailes was sent on a secret military transport to Hawaii. As President Richard Nixon's television coordinator, Ailes was dispatched to construct for the cameras what was expected to be a tragic homecoming for the astronauts of the ill-fated Apollo 13.  

  “I was advised that they...

• David Barrett
  

  President and Chief Executive Officer, Hearst-Argyle Television, Inc.

  With the nation choosing a new leader in the coming weeks, Hearst-Argyle President/CEO David J. Barrett is pleased to be running a broadcast company with strong stations in as many as eight swing states. While the advertising revenue from the presidential hopefuls is certainly a welcome...

• Matt Blank
  

  Chairman and CEO, Showtime Networks Inc.

  Matthew C. Blank's business philosophy is defined by risk-the calculated risk of knowing when to leave a sure thing for something that is a long way from being as good, but is a place where there's nowhere to go but up.

  When Blank left HBO in 1988 after 12 years, capped by reaching the senior VP ranks (he was in charge of...

• Glenn Britt
  

  President and CEO, Time Warner Cable

  Glenn A. Britt was named President and CEO of Time Warner Cable in February 2006 having served as chief executive since 2001 in addition to serving on the Company's Board of Directors. Mr. Britt previously served as President and CEO of Time Warner Cable Ventures where he oversaw the launch of Road Runner, the country's first...

• Don Browne
  

  President, Telemundo Communications Group

  It may throw some people off that the president of Telemundo is a man named Donald Browne who speaks only a bit of Spanish. But those who know him say few understand the Hispanic marketplace better than Browne.

  "Don is more passionate about and committed to the Hispanic community and public service than most Hispanic...

• Bob Cook
  

  President and Chief Operating Officer, Twentieth Television

  Syndication is a tough business that's only getting tougher, but don't tell that to Bob Cook, Twentieth Television's president and COO.

  "He just sticks to it and grinds it out," says Tony Vinciquerra, president and CEO of Fox Networks Group. "He will spend as much time and effort as...

• Herb Granath
  

  Chairman Emeritus of ESPN, Co-Chairman of Crown Media Holdings, and Vice Chairman, Central European Media

  When you can say that you were there for the development of the largest and most successful sports network on two continents, you know you must have done something right. Herb A. Granath, chairman emeritus of ESPN, can lay claim to that fame, as well as a lifetime...

• Peggy Green
  

  Vice Chairman, Zenith Media

  Last April, the Advertising Women of New York honored Peggy Green's late father, Harry Meyers, for his commitment to mentoring as a longtime sales executive at Ladies' Home Journal.

  Like father, like daughter. Green, named voice chairman of Zenith media in January, has made guiding others a hallmark of her 40-year...

• Matt Lauer
  

  Co-anchor, NBC News Today

  On weekday mornings, when Matt Lauer signs on to NBC News' Today show, his confidence radiates from the screen. But even after 11 years as co-anchor, the star of America's most-watched morning show says he never takes his seat on the Today couch for granted.

  "I'm never wanting for interviews or stories,"...

• Pat Mitchell
  

  President and CEO, The Paley Center for Media

  Once upon a time, in a small town in the South, there lived a little girl who wanted to escape and see the world. Maybe she could be a college professor. Or maybe a magazine writer. Or if that didn't work, she could try working in television-she'd do anything, producer, reporter, you name it. Maybe she'd even grow up to...

• Josh Sapan
  

  Rainbow Media Holdings President/CEO Joshua Sapan has mined his love of independent programming-and found cutting-edge ways to distribute it-for much of his career. He went from running a makeshift movie theater out of the back of his station wagon to becoming one of the most innovative programmers and distributors of independent content in the media world.

  A 21-year veteran of...

• 60 Minutes
  

  Given the unprecedented success and startling Nielsen track record of 60 Minutes, it's easy to forget that the show-now celebrating its 40th anniversary as a television institution-has always been something of an anomaly.

  It was Don Hewitt-the newsmagazine's executive producer from its 1968 premiere until he retired at 81 in 2004-who had the brilliant idea to mix up the...