Congratulate our 2022 Award Winners

2022 Recipients

At CTAM Think on Nov. 3, 2022, industry colleagues honored this year’s winners. Join us in congratulating all the 2022 recipients for their impactful industry contributions by posting a comment below.

Annie Howell
Hallmark Media

Beacon Award

Tom Adams
Charter Communications

Educational Foundation

Rob McFarland
Cox Communications

Business Services

Ben Toombs
Warner Bros. Discovery

Piracy and Password Sharing Mitigation

The CTAM Beacon Award spotlights distinguished communications leaders who epitomize success in their discipline, demonstrate innovation and creativity, and inspire excellence in others.

Annie Howell

Hallmark Media

Annie Howell

Chief Communications Officer
Hallmark Media

Driving communication results and collaborative efforts to foster industry-wide success

Industry Contribution

Annie personifies what the Beacon Award stands for through her proven ability to drive results impacting the industry. She leads with confidence, intellectual curiosity, empathy and a keen sense of humor. Annie’s dedication reaches far beyond her organization, she enthusiastically offers her time and communications prowess to collaborative efforts fostering industry-wide success.

A seasoned communications executive with over 30 years of experience, Annie Howell currently oversees Hallmark Media’s communication functions, including corporate communications, media relations, publicity, and government relations, as well as talent relations and events.

Congratulatory Videos

Catherine Frymark
EVP, Corporate Communications
Mattel

The CTAM TAMI Award honors individuals for their exceptional contributions to initiatives critical to driving the continued success of the industry.

Educational Foundation

Guiding the growth and development of the industry leaders of tomorrow

Tom Adams

Charter Communications

Tom Adams

Advisor to the Chief Operating Officer & Former EVP, Field Operations

Charter Communications

Industry Contribution

Tom’s commitment, leadership, and financial stewardship on the CTAM Educational Foundation Audit Committee and Foundation Board of Directors is unparalleled. For the past eight years, he has served on the board with unwavering dedication and guidance in his leadership role that has contributed significantly to the growth and success of CTAM and the Educational Foundation.

Drawing on more than 30 years of experience in the cable industry, Tom Adams oversees the full range of Charter’s field operations serving more than 32 million customers across 41 states and most recently, led Charter’s successful bid for more than $1 billion in Rural Digital Opportunity Fund (RDOF) awards and the beginning of a multiyear buildout that will ultimately connect approximately 1 million unserved homes and small businesses.

“Tom’s expertise in operations and his commitment to excellent customer service has been a key part of Charter’s growth story. His leadership was instrumental to Charter during its repositioning in the marketplace and its successful completion of the largest systems integration the industry has seen. In addition, Tom has made a lasting impact on the industry organizations he supported and in those current and future leaders who learned from his example. This award is a testament to not only to his contributions to CTAM, but to the larger Industry as well.”

Tom Rutledge, Chairman and CEO, Charter Communications

“Congratulations Tom. Beyond the significant role you played in Charter’s success over the years, the impact of your work with organizations like CTAM and your commitment to the broader Cable industry are truly worthy of recognition. Thank you for your many contributions.”

John Bickham, Vice Chairman of Charter Communications
Congratulatory Videos

Julian Brodsky
Co-Founder and Senior Advisor
Comcast

Zell Murphy
SVP, Finance and Administration
CTAM

Business Services

Driving collaboration to accelerate cable’s success in the Business Services market

Rob McFarland

Cox Communications

Rob McFarland

AVP, Segment Marketing

Cox Communications

Industry Contribution

Rob McFarland exemplifies exceptional leadership in many important industry projects, always first to volunteer as a featured speaker on CTAM webinars that educate the industry on successful marketing trends and strategies. Rob is the constant driving force behind the CTAM MSO SMB Working Group, his unyielding push to drive collaboration among MSOs and adding new and creative ideas to help accelerate cable’s success in the Business Services market.

As AVP, SMB Marketing for Cox Business, Rob’s responsibilities include acquisition, customer lifecycle marketing and retention for the SMB segment with a proven track record of delivering strong revenue growth, record setting marketing ROI and industry leading retention.

Congratulatory Videos

Mollie Andrews
SVP, Cox Business Marketing & Sales Operations
Cox Communications

Heather Hall
Director, Cox Business Marketing
Cox Communications

Kathryn Carter
Director, Cox Business Marketing
Cox Communications

Piracy and Password Sharing Mitigation

Managing fraud to educate consumers about the risks of accessing illegal content

Ben Toombs

Warner Bros. Discovery

Ben Toombs

Senior Program Manager

Warner Bros. Discovery

Industry Contribution

As an active contributor to the important piracy and password sharing work, Ben Toomb’s experience with managing fraud reveals important areas to educate consumers about the risks of accessing content from illegitimate sources while broadening the industry’s’ knowledge about emerging methods being deployed by bad actors. And, his knowledge and humor make his work at Warner Bros. Discovery much more colorful and interesting, as he enjoys long walks on the beach, photography, protecting his customers and assets from ne’er-do-wells, and chicken keeping.

“I consider Ben to be the most prominent advocate in Warner Brothers Discovery’s fight against fraud and piracy. We began working closely together around the 2020 launch of HBO Max and he was my greatest partner across a number of impactful platform initiatives, from securing content to thwarting bots to countering phishing and other impersonation scams. Ben really understands his subject matter in a way I believe few of his peers have taken the time to do. Ben breaks down walls to work with whoever is capable in solving tough problems, regardless of their job title or department. And he does so creatively, with a big heart, and often a floral shirt.”

Randy Gingeleski , Senior Staff Security Engineer, Warner Bros. Discovery
Congratulatory Videos

Rakhi Seth-Forrest
VP, Fraud and Payment Ops
Warner Bros. Discovery

Mark Nakano
VP Content Security
Warner Bros. Discovery

Photos from the 2022 Awards Ceremony

Click or tap any photo to enlarge and open a slide show

Past TAMI Award Honorees

Business Services

Steve Gorman
Cox Business

Chris Hebbard
Spectrum Business

Customer Retention

Tony Maldonaldo
Cox Communications

Anti-Piracy

Al Perry
AMC Networks, Inc.

Password Sharing

Todd Greenbaum
Adobe

Marketing and Sales

John Hays
Cox Communications

Business Services

Jennifer Ingram
Charter

Piracy

Don Jones
Comcast

Metadata Management

Jeff Kreger
Align Broadcasting

Company Honorees

Data Partners
Equifax
HarrisX
Horowitz Research
HUB Entertainment Strategies
Magid
ShareTracker
Nielsen

Piracy

David Green
Vice President, Public Policy and Creative Content Protection
NBCUniversal

Kevin Leddy
SVP, Technoloy Planning and Application
Charter Communications

Kevin Taylor
Fellow
Comcast

Business Services

Mitch Lopez
Director, Channel Marketing
Spectrum Enterprise

Brett Tolbert
VP, SMB
Comcast Business

Content Discovery

Brad Grant
Sr. Director, Content Operations & Strategy
WarnerMedia​

Supplier Award

TK Interactive

Jason Axsom
Director of Mover Marketing
Cox Communications

Jim Maiella
SVP and Co-Head, Corporate Communications
AMC Networks

Lisa Majdi
Senior Director, Segment and Channel Marketing
Cox Business

Susan Mattia
Senior Director, Affiliate Marketing
ESPN

Lita Vernick
Director, Program Management
Comcast Business

Rebecca Whittington
Director, North American Sourcing
Gracenote

Paul Wolfe
Senior Director, X1 Data Quality
Comcast

Company Honoree:
SYNACOR

Catherine Frymark
SVP, Corporate Communications
Discovery Communications, Inc.

Michael Gnojewski
Sr. Director, Marketing
Viacom

Beth Harrison
Director, Advanced Services
HSN

Michael Locke
VP Retail Sales
Charter Communications

Christy Martin
Content Discovery Analyst
NBCUniversal

Ben Pyne
President, Global Distribution
Disney Media Networks

Mary Roben
Director, Product Management Video Platform
Altice USA

Mary Savery
Director of Marketing, Business Services
Cable ONE, Inc.

Dalyn Wertz
Executive Director, Indirect Channel Management
Comcast Business

Company Honoree:
ARRIS

Andrew Borak
Vice President, Marketing
Viacom

Horia Galatanu
Sr. Product Manager
Adobe Primetime Authentication

Jen Garrett
SVP National Sales
Cox Communications

Victor Guss
Director, Advanced Services
Fox Networks

Roger Heuring
Customer Marketing Director
Comcast

Amy Kim
Senior Director of Marketing
Charter/Spectrum Business

Ken Kraft
VP Marketing
Cox Business

Julius Lee
Senior Director, Affiliate Partnership Development & Operations
Disney & ESPN Media Networks

Bella Metcalf
VP, Marketing & New Products
Discovery Communications

Reece Ritter
Director, Consumer Insights
Cox Communications

Company Honoree:
Frank N. Magid Associates

Dan Baker
Sr. Director, Product Management
XFINITY at Comcast

Julya Fridman
VP, Multiplatform & Distribution Analytics
A+E Networks

Peter Grewar
Director of Sales
Armstrong

Steve Necessary
Vice President Video Product Development and Management
Cox Communications, Inc.

Alexandra Sewell
Vice President of Mid-Market & Enterprise Marketing
Comcast Business

Jimmy Dan Smith
Director of Marketing
Suddenlink Communications

Brian Snortheim
Director of Partner Channels and Alliances
Time Warner Cable Business Class

Mary Trepp
Vice President, Analytics and Decision Sciences
Time Warner Cable

Greg Weinstein
Vice President, Audience Development
Univision Communications, Inc.

Hub Entertainment Research
Company Honoree

2014 Honorees

Stephanie Anderson
SVP, Chief Marketing Officer Business Servic es
Time Warner Cable
Chris Defendis
Director, Domestic Network Distribution
Home Box Office, Inc.
Vito Forlenza
Sr. Director, TVE Content & Product Strategy
Comcast
Tammy Franklin
Executive Vice President, Digital
Scripps Networks Interactive
Jonathan Freeland
VP, Product Marketing
Cox Communications
Tom McMillin
EVP & COO
Suddenlink Communications
John Menendez
Vice President, Customer Retention
Suddenlink Communications
J.D. Myers
Market VP, Northern Virginia Operations
Cox Communications
Bonnie O’Donnell
Vice President, Distribution Marketing
Fox Networks
Tracy Powell
VP, Distribution Marketing
A+E Networks
Michael Quigley
VP, Business Development and Multi-Platform Distribution, Turner Broadcasting
Colleen Fahey Rush
EVP, Chief Research Officer
Viacom Media Networks
The team from
Sand Cherry and Assoicates
Ben Silverman
Sr. Director, Customer Marketing
Comcast
Matt Strauss
SVP and GM, Video Services
Comcast

2013 Honorees

Kenetta Bailey
EVP Chief Marketing Officer
TV One

Ed Gordon
Senior Director, Distribution & Audience Research
ESPN

Skip Harris
Harris Communications

2012 Honorees

John Barker
President
Barker DZP

Jamia Bigalow
Senior Vice President, Distribution Marketing
Fox Cable Networks

Kathy Filosa
Vice President, Direct Marketing
Cablevision Systems, Corp

Janet Gallent
Vice President, Strategic Research
NBCUniversal

Rick Lang
Senior Vice President, Marketing and Sales, Central Division
Comcast

2011 Honorees

Artie Bulgrin
Senior Vice President, Research and Analytics
ESPN, INC.

Todd Cunningham
Senior Vice President, Strategic Insights and Research
MTV Networks

Michael Diamond
Senior Vice President, Marketing Strategy and Intelligence
Time Warner Cable

David Gray
Regional Vice President
Time Warner Cable

Danielle Mintz
Vice President, Distributor Marketing and Strategy
AMC Networks

2010 Honorees

Sharon Desmond
Senior Vice President, Revenue and Business Operations
Comcast

Rachel Dreyfus
V
ice President, Marketing Intelligence
Time Warner Cable

Joan Gillman
President, Time Warner Cable Media Sales and
Executive Vice President, Time Warner Cable

Pat Kehoe
President
PK Network Communications

Carla Lewis-Long
Vice President, Affiliate Distribution
SiTV

Karen Ramspacher
Vice President, Research and Insights
Fuse

2009 Honorees

Marvin Dorson
Senior VP, Creative Services
Hallmark Channels

Colleen Fahey Rush
Executive Vice President, Strategic Insights and Research
MTV Networks

Gregg Graff
SVP, Field Operations
Insight Communications

Katie Lacey
SVP Marketing
ESPN

Brad Samuels
EVP, Content Distribution, Fuse and MSG Media
Fuse

Horst Stipp
SVP Strategic Insights and Innovation
NBC Universal Global Networks

2008 Honorees

Linda Finney
truTV

Paul Hockenbury
Comcast

Doug Hurst
Scripps Networks

Heather McCallion
NBC Universal

Reece Ritter
Cox Communications

2007 Honorees

Daniel Fischer
Solve It Group LLC
Shawn Gannon
Playboy Entertainment Inc.
Jo Holz
NBC Universal
Laura Masse
Hallmark Channel and Hallmark Movie Channel
Domenic Vivolo
Astral Television Networks

2006 Honorees

Artie Bulgrin
ESPN
Steve Goldmintz
AE Feldman
Steve Leblang
FX/Fox Cable Networks

Holly Leff-Pressman
Nielsen Entertainment

Steve Schiffman
National Geographic Channel

2005 Honorees

Kim Cannon
GM
Time Warner Cable.

David S. Charmatz
SVP, Research, Analysis, & Strategy
Starz Entertainment Group LLC

Paul S. Lenburg
President
Media Frontiers, Inc..

Mark Tomizawa
President/CEO
SMASH Advertising

Adriana Waterston
Director of Marketing
Horowitz Associates, Inc.

2004 Honorees

Tom Alexander
Vice President, Trade Marketing
Cartoon Network
Ken Fitzpatrick
Senior Vice President
Time Warner Cable
Kim Lemon
Senior Vice President
Showtime Networks
Patti Marciano
Regional Vice President, Affiliate Sales and Marketing
Fox Cable Networks
Robert Wharton and Duane Dick
Senior Partners
Sand Cherry Associates
Mark Hess
Vice President, Digital TV
Comcast Cable Communications
Sergei Kuharsky
Senior Vice President, Marketing
iNDEMAND

2003 Honorees

Andy Addis
VP Marketing and New Products
Comcast Cable Communications
Sherita Ceasar
VP and GM, SciCare Broadband Services
Scientific-Atlanta
Robert “Bob” Davis
Managing Director
Dove Consulting
Mark S. Greenberg
EVP, Corporate Strategy and Communications
Showtime Networks
Timothy J. Larson
Director Affiliate Sales
Home Shopping Network
Chris R. Moseley
EVP Worldwide Marketing and Brand Strategy
Hallmark Channel
Michael A. Pardee
VP Research
Scripps Networks

2002 Honorees

Joe Boyle
Vice President Corporate Communications
iN DEMAND

Tim Brooks
Senior Vice President, Research
Lifetime Television

Tom Feige
President, Los Angeles Division
Time Warner Cable

Rob Goodsell
Vice President, Business Development
weather.com

Roland Grybauskas
CEO & Executive Creative Director
Blue Dingo/GB

Jim Horner
Division Director of New Products
Comcast Mid-Atlantic

Lynn Rutledge
Vice President Trade Communication & Promotion
Showtime Networks

John Zamoiski
President, GEM Entertainment
The GEM Group

2001 Honorees

Jenifer Cistola
Director Network and Applied Business Development
Scientific Atlanta

Marshall Cohen
Senior Vice President
AOL Time Warner

Fontana Fitzwilson
VP Marketing Research
TV Guide Networks

Mike Hale
SVP Marketing and Business Development
Starz Encore Group

Bruce Leichtman
VP Corporate Strategy
Vividon

Shauna McCaffrey
Manager Marketing and Programming
Canadian Cable TV Association

Patty McCaskill
VP Programming and Pay Per View
Charter Communications

Michael Mohamad
SVP Marketing
A&E Television Network

Larry Oliver
VP and Group Publisher
Cahners Television Group

2000 Honorees

Lou Borelli
Chairman and CEO
ISoft, Inc.

Thomas Cullen
VP Internet Services
MediaOne Internet Services

Lynne Elander
Director Product Development
Cox Communications

Christoper Lammers
EVP and COO
CableLabs

Jamie McCabe
VP Worldwide PPV
Twentieth Century Fox

Thomas Michel
VP Affiliate Marketing
MTV Networks

Anthony White
SVP Marketing and Network Development
Playboy TV Networks

Debora Wilson
President and CEO Weather.com
The Weather Channel

1999 Honorees

Pam Euler-Halling
SVP Marketing and Programming
Insight Communications

Barry Kresch
SVP Research & Marketing Services
Lifetime Television

Joe Lawson
VP Marketing
Bresnan Communications

Angelina Li
VP Marketing Research
Cox Communications

Julie Minor Hoffman
EVP Client Services
Grey Entertainment

Terry Rich
President
Rich Heritage, Inc.

Rick Sperry
President
Sperry & Associates

1998 Honorees

Jim Braun
Director New Product Development
Time Warner Cable

Bruce Friend
VP Worldwide Research & Planning
Nickelodeon

Pete Gatseos
VP Strategic Research
TCI Communications

Karin Henderson
EVP and Creative Director
MK Advertising Partners

Scott Kurnit
Founder and CEO
The Mining Co.

Ted Livingston
Business Development Executive

Dana Ritchie
SVP New Media Development
Disney TeleVentures

Joe Rooney
Executive Director Marketing
Cox Communications

1997 Honorees

Judi Allen
SVP Marketing
Century Communications

Peter Gulla
VP Marketing
Time Warner Cable

Brian Kelly
VP Sales & Marketing
Time Warner Cable

Carter Maguire
EVP
Turner Network Sales

Kate McEnroe
President
American Movie Classics

Mary Tassini
Regional Director, Sales & Marketing
Cablevision Systems

Gemma Toner
SVP
American Movie Classics

Sandy Wax
VP Research & Planning
Discovery Communications

1996 Honorees

Kate Adams
General Manager
Bell Atlantic Video

Jeff Bernstein
SVP Marketing & Programming,
Request

Hilda Chazanovitz
VP Marketing
Viewers Choice

Lou Borrelli
EVP/COO
Marcus Cable

Bill Goodwyn
SVP Affiliate Sales
Discovery Networks

Barry Kresch
SVP Research & Marketing
Lifetime

Katherine Lewis
VP Marketing
Sega Channel

1995 Honorees

Nancy Anderson
VP Pay Per View
Jones Intercable

Pete Gatseos
Director of Strategic Research
TCI

Julie Minor Hoffman
SVP/Group Management Support
Grey Entertainment & Media

Gary Knisely
Managing Director
Johnson, Smith & Knisely

Kim Lemon
VP Marketing Research
Showtime Networks

1994 Honorees

Lucy Bates
Time Warner Cable

Greg DePrez
Tele-Communications, Inc.

Barbara Greenberg
TV GUIDE

Nancy Harris
Buena Vista Home Video

Seth Morrison
US WEST Broadband and Multimedia Services

James O’Brien
Jones Intercable

1993 Honorees

John D. Clark, Jr.
Crown Media

Robert A. Maxwell
Home Box Office

Michael D. Smith
The Disney Channel

Brenda R. Stevens
Continental Cablevision

Winifred B. Wechsler
The Disney Channel

Thomas Wszalek
The Disney Channel

1992 Honorees

Jefferey Bernstein
Warner Brothers Pay TV

Thomas M. Kirkwood
NewsChannels Corporation

Eric Kisch
Warner Cable Communications

Dennis Patton
Rainbow Programming

Kathleen D. Rederscheid
Times Mirror Cable

Database Advisory Committee:
Jefferey Morris
Showtime Networks, Inc.

Todd Felker
CENCOM Cable

Cate Mumford
Home Box Office

Margaret Troha
Cox Cable Communications

1991 Honorees

Tim Hanalon
Warner Cable

Eric Kisch
Warner Cable Communications

Paul Lenberg
ASI

Jeff Morris
Showtime Networks, Inc.

Tom Neville
Showtime Entertainment Television

Bill Revell
Media General Cable

1990 Honorees

Isabella Arace
TKR

Kathy Bardsley
Times Mirror

Chris Forgy
Times Mirror Cable Television

Dan Levinson
Home Box Office

Jerry Maglio
United Artists

Frank Modrak
Cox Cable

Mike Ritter
Continental Cablevision

1989 Honorees

Ron Christensen
Jones Intercable, Inc.

Lee Clayton
Bortz & Co.

Bill Doten
Home Shopping Network, Inc.

Dan Levinson
Home Box Office

Don Mathison
Media General Cable

Terry O’Connell
Warner Cable Communication

Andy Orgel
Video Jukebox Network

Margaret Troha
Cox Cable Communications

1988 Honorees

Nancy Anderson
Graff Pay-Per-View

Marshall Cohen
MTV Networks

Ajit Dalvi
Cox Cable

Rick Howe
Showtime/The Movie Channel

Ted Livingston
Continental Cablevision

Terry Rich
Heritage Communications

Sheldon Satin
Sheldon Satin Associates

Robert Townsend
NYT Cable

1987 Honorees

Susan Bishop
Johnson, Smith and Knisely

Shelley Blain
Arts & Entertainment Network

Del Heintz
Arts & Entertainment Network

Patti Kantner
American Cable Systems Corporation

Nimrod Kovacs
United Cable Television Corporation

Paul Lenburg
ASI

Margaret Richebourg
Richebourg Marketing

1986 Honorees

John K. Billock
HBO

Lee Clayton
United Cable Television

Dean Gilbert
Paragon Communications

Jack G. Heim
Showtime/The Movie Channel, Inc.

Sue Ellen Jackson
Heritage (Dallas)

Frederick (Ted) Livingston
Continental Cablevision, Inc.

John D. Reardon
MTV Networks, Inc.

Marianne Seiler
Viacom Cable

1985 Honorees

Matt Blank
HBO

C. Ron Dorchester
Prime Cable

Marty Lafferty
Turner Broadcasting

Ewan Mirylees
Warner Amex

Rod Thole
Turner Broadcasting

1984 Honorees

Char Beales
National Cable Television Association

Barry Lemieux
American Cablesystems

Alex Papagan
Colony Communications

Scott Reid
Storer Cable

Charles Townsend
United Cable Television Corporation


1983 Honorees

Edward Bennett
Viacom Communications

Marty Lafferty
Group W Cable

Terry McGuirk
Turner Broadcasting System

Bob Sieber
Turner Broadcasting System

Gary Weik
Harte-Hanks Cable Communications

1982 Honorees

David Batalsky
Showtime

Bob Bedell
HBO

Susan Burch
Storer

Art Dwyer
Cox Cable

Craig Ehrlich
Falcon

Charlotte Hincir
Cable Registry

Bob Mariano
CBS Cable

Alan McDonald
ATC

1981 Honorees

Bill Aubrey

Lisa Connor

Winston (Tony) Cox, Sr.
Home Box Office

Jim Faircloth

William (Bill) Fogarty
Daniels & Associates

Wayne Harris

Butch Henlay

Charlotte Hincir

Mike Jackson

Barbara Kirbach

Ken Lahey

David Lewine

Netia Lowell

Chip Morris

Mike O’Connor

Ernest (Ernie) Olson
Metrovision

Rick Perrone

Leonard Reinsch
Warner Amex Board of Directors

Barbara Ruger

Charles Smithgale

Past Beacon Award Winners

Rob Stoddard is an extraordinary communications executive, a mentor and trusted ally to many in our business; his insights and guidance helped cultivate opportunities during challenging times and foster collaboration within our industry to ultimately achieve greater success.

Rob oversees the NCTA’s member relations efforts and industry-wide public affairs programs, and he helps manage NCTA’s relationships with other cable industry associations and societies. Before joining NCTA, he served as chief communications officer for a variety of major cable companies, including AT&T Broadband, MediaOne, and Continental Cablevision.

Leigh Woisard SVP, Public Affairs, Cox Communications received the 2020 CTAM Beacon Award for communications excellence. The award spotlights communications executives for extraordinary accomplishments, innovative thinking and inspiring excellence in others. This year’s Beacon showcases a leader who distinguished themselves by successfully navigating communications efforts during COVID-19.

“At a time when the community was struggling to adapt to life at home, Leigh quickly established new, innovative ways for Cox to effectively communicate through the crisis,” said Vicki Lins, president & CEO, CTAM. “It’s a pleasure and honor to acknowledge her extraordinary communications efforts during a time of uncertainty.”

Quentin SchafferCTAM is pleased to announce that the recipient for the 2019 CTAM Beacon Award for Communications Excellence is Quentin Schaffer, former Executive Vice President, Corporate Communications at HBO with an extraordinary 39-year tenure at the company.  The award, established by the CTAM Communications Steering Council, spotlights communications executives for extraordinary accomplishments, while exemplifying the pillars of communications and public relations excellence. The Council selected Schaffer as a bow to his impressive career, stellar expertise, professionalism and reciprocal relationship with the press that paved the way for HBO’s tremendous success.

“Quentin played a vital role establishing cable’s reputation for excellence in original programming,” said Vicki Lins, CEO, CTAM “It’s an honor to acknowledge his remarkable accomplishments in the field of communications.”

Schaffer joined HBO as a senior publicist in 1980 and rose to executive leadership where he pioneered the first premiere of a TV show in a theater with Sex and the City in 1999. As one of the originators of HBO’s Emmy campaigns, he led publicity for landmark series Game of Thrones, The Sopranos, The Wire and many more. Most recently, he helped facilitate the launch of HBO Now with Apple.

Chris LaPlaca

CTAM is pleased to announce that the recipient of the 2018 CTAM Beacon Award for Communications Excellence is Chris LaPlaca, senior vice president, corporate communications, ESPN. The award, established by the CTAM Communications Steering Council, spotlights communications executives for extraordinary accomplishments, while exemplifying the pillars of communications and public relations excellence. The Council selected LaPlaca as a bow to his impressive career, spanning 38 years.

“Chris LaPlaca is just as good as it gets for our function, our industry and – most importantly – as a person, all of which make him the perfect choice for the first CTAM Beacon Award,” said Jim Maiella, SVP and co-head of corporate communications for AMC Networks. “His leadership of a dynamic team of highly achieving communicators at ESPN, across a broad array of activities and business opportunities over many years, has been remarkable. Yet, he still finds the time to be a trusted friend and ally for so many of us focused on driving results at our own companies through our shared function and expertise. We couldn’t be more pleased to present him with this well-deserved recognition.”

Post a congratulatory comment for an honoree here