Women in the news
"Elizabeth Campbell" 2002 Hall of Fame Awardee
Elizabeth Campbell, public broadcasting pioneer, will be inducted in The Association for Women in Communications Hall of Fame at the National Press Club on June 18, 2002 at 6:30 p.m., at the annual D.C. Chapter Matrix Awards event
The Hall of Fame Award has been established by the association to honor outstanding communicators, at the international, national, regional and local levels. Elizabeth Campbell, founder and first president of WETA, has served public broadcasting in the Washington area continuously since 1953 — the year she and other dedicated partners joined forces to incorporate the Greater Washington Educational Television Association (GWETA) in the District of Columbia for the purpose of activating Channel 26. Recognized nationwide for her committed leadership, Mrs. Campbell has helped steer the station from its days as a fledgling producer of classroom educational programs for the local schools to national prominence as the third-largest producing station for the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) and one of the most-listened-to public radio stations in the United States.
In her current role as vice president of community affairs, Mrs. Campbell serves as liaison between WETA and the people of Greater Washington. Her many outreach activities have included speaking to civic organizations, sponsoring a monthly lecture series and hosting the Washington area's annual Children's Art Festival. A graduate of Salem College in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, and Columbia University, Mrs. Campbell served as dean at two women's colleges and was on the Arlington County School Board for 12 years, including three terms as chair, before she committed her talents to the untested field of public broadcasting. "Time for Science," which aired for three years on a local commercial station until Channel 26 began operations, was the first of many programs Mrs. Campbell produced at GWETA to take advantage of television's potential to teach. Over forty years later, she is still excited about public broadcasting and refers to it as "the lifeline for lifelong learning."
Mrs. Campbell has been the recipient of Honorary Doctorates from Washington and Lee University, Mary Baldwin College, Salem College, The George Washington University and George Mason University. She has also received numerous awards, including the Board of Governors Award (Emmy), The National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences, 1981; the First Annenberg Washington Program Award for the Advancement of Communications, 1988; the Leadership in Community Service Excellence in Communication Award, American Women in Radio and Television, 1990; the first Outstanding Public Television Volunteer Award, PBS, 1991; Laureate, Washington Business Hall of Fame, 1996; and the 1996 Ralph Lowell Award from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
WETA produced a documentary on the extraordinary life of Elizabeth Campbell which premiered December 16, 1999.
Related links
- June 2002 Annual Matrix photos
- Elizabeth Campbell Web site, http://www.weta.org/campbell/
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WETA
- June 2002 Annual Matrix Awards program
