WASHINGTON – February 28, 2023 – America’s Public Television Stations (APTS) today presented its 2023 Pillar of Public Service Award to Jonathan Abbott, President Emeritus of GBH in Boston, Massachusetts, for his pioneering work in creating innovative educational programming and content for people in Boston and across America.
The Pillar of Public Service Award recognizes the contribution of an extraordinary leader and innovator in one or more of public television’s three essential public service missions: education, public safety, and civic leadership.
Under Mr. Abbott’s leadership, GBH helped create PBS LearningMedia, a rich digital resource platform which helps two million K-12 teachers enhance 40 million students’ education every day with tens of thousands of engaging, interactive learning objects adapted from the best of public television programming and additional resources from the Library of Congress, the Smithsonian Institution, the National Archives, NASA, National Science Foundation and more. This service has been widely used throughout the pandemic by students and teachers alike, with a record 20 million users visiting the site during the 2020-2021 school year.
As a trusted leader in educational media for more than 50 years, GBH is the largest producer of PBS content for television and the web. Its programming has ranged from iconic children’s programming such as Molly of Denali, Where in the World is Carmen San Diego, Arthur, Martha Speaks, Curious George, Between the Lions, and Pinkalicious and Peterrific, and Zoom to the lifelong learning series including American Experience, Antiques Roadshow, Frontline, Masterpiece and NOVA.
"Over the course of a 24-year career at GBH, first as general manager and then as president and CEO, Jon Abbott has made so many extraordinary contributions to public broadcasting that it’s difficult to catalog them all, much less pay adequate tribute to each of them,” said Patrick Butler, president and CEO of America’s Public Television Stations. “He was a founder of the Contributor Development Partnership, which has helped revolutionize fundraising for public television stations. He was a co-creator of the WORLD and CREATE channels that provide rich public affairs and how-to programming content to stations nationwide. With the Library of Congress, he launched the American Archive of Public Broadcasting, digitizing and preserving decades of public media content. And the list of such accomplishments runs on and on.
“But perhaps the most important legacy of Jon Abbott’s legendary career is his leadership in education, which has truly revolutionized public television’s partnership with educators, students and lifelong learners across America. PBS LearningMedia has transformed classroom learning in elementary and secondary schools. The children’s programming GBH has produced under Jon’s direction has helped tens of millions of our youngest viewers get ready to learn in school and succeed in life. And learners of every age have enriched their lives with some of the finest history, science and public affairs programming on television, all thanks to Jon Abbott and his talented colleagues at GBH.
“He has set a standard of public service to which everyone in public television should aspire, and America’s Public Television Stations are honored to present Jonathan Abbott with the 2023 Pillar of Public Service Award.”
“I’m deeply honored to receive this recognition from APTS and my colleagues,” said Abbott. “The unique role, reach and impact of public media in every community of this country has inspired me from a very young age. No other media has the mission and purpose of serving communities, families and citizens like public media. As the last locally-owned, governed and operated media resource across our country, we have a special responsibility and opportunity to serve. Together we strengthen our nation by advancing knowledge and understanding.”
Jonathan Abbott is the former president and CEO of GBH, America’s preeminent public media organization, the largest producer of PBS content for TV and the Web, and a major supplier of content for public radio and digital audio services. A nationally recognized public media leader, Abbott has transformed the way GBH creates and distributes educationally rich content to millions of Americans throughout New England and across the nation.
Abbott has expanded GBH’s investment, impact and reach in communities across Massachusetts with multiple public TV and radio services, and a significant expansion of local journalism, including launching a new NPR News station in Boston. His commitment to fostering citizenship and learning led to the launch of PBS LearningMedia, a free, national online service offering classroom-ready digital resources for educators in all 50 states. He collaborated on the creation of two national digital TV services, WORLD and CREATE, in partnership with PBS, and has championed innovations to strengthen the entire public media system.
Abbott joined GBH as Vice President and General Manager in 1998 and was named President and CEO in 2007. Prior to GBH, he served as Senior Vice President for Development and Corporate Relations at PBS and in senior management with San Francisco public station KQED. He began his career in broadcasting in 1981 at Columbia University Station WKCR-FM. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Columbia University and an MBA from Stanford University. He is a member of the boards of the Contributor Development Partnership (CDP) and PRX. Jon previously served on the boards of PBS, PBS Distribution (PBSd), American Public Television (APT), New England Public Media (NEPM), National Public Media (NPM) and the Public Television Major Market Group (PTMMG). He is an elected member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and the recipient of the John Jay Award from Columbia University.
The 2023 Pillar of Public Service Award was presented to Jonathan Abbott during the APTS Public Media Summit on Tuesday, February 28, 2023.
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About APTS
America’s Public Television Stations (APTS) is a nonprofit membership organization ensuring a strong and financially sound public television system and helping member stations provide essential public services in education, public safety and civic leadership to the American people. For more information, visit www.apts.org.
Contact:
Stacey Karp
202-654-4222
skarp@apts.org