Cathy Hughes
Cathy Hughes, Founder/Chairperson of Urban One, Inc., has been announced as the recipient of the 2018 Lowry Mays Excellence in Broadcasting Award. The award will be presented at the Broadcasters Foundation of America’s annual breakfast at 7:00AM, Wednesday, April 11 in the Brahms Room of the Encore Hotel in Las Vegas, during the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) Show.
Hughes’ career has created a multi-media conglomerate across radio, television and digital media. She began her career in her hometown of Omaha at KOWH-AM. In 1980, she founded Radio One (now Urban One), which became the largest African-American-owned and -operated broadcast company in the nation. When Radio One went public in 1999, she became the first African-American woman to head a publicly traded company.
In May 2017, Radio One’s name was changed to Urban One to reflect the market it serves. Urban One, Inc. is now the parent corporation of several subsidiaries, including TV One, the only African-American owned cable television network in the country, and Reach Media, which presents syndicated radio programs like the Rickey Smiley Morning Show and the Tom Joyner Morning Show; iOne Digital; and One Solution,
Hughes has earned hundreds of prestigious awards and recognitions, including the naming of the Cathy Hughes School of Communications at Howard University; the NAACP Chairman’s Award; the Giants of Broadcasting Award; the Essence Women Shaping the World Award; and more.
The Lowry Mays Excellence in Broadcasting Award is bestowed annually on an individual in broadcasting whose work exemplifies innovation, community service, advocacy, and entrepreneurship. It salutes its namesake Lowry Mays and is underwritten by The Mays Family Foundation.
The breakfast is complimentary to all, although pre-registration is required. To register, or to obtain information on reserving a page in the Program Guide, please contact the Broadcasters Foundation at 212-373-8250 or info@thebfoa.org.
