Congratulate our 2023 Award Winner
At CTAM Think on Nov. 2, 2023, industry colleagues honored this year’s winner. Join us in congratulating our 2023 recipient for her impactful industry contributions by posting a comment below.
The CTAM TAMI Award honors individuals for their exceptional contributions to initiatives critical to driving the continued success of the industry.
2023 Honoree
Meghan Dering
Charter CommunicationsMeghan Dering
VP of Consumer & Market Research
Charter Communications
Industry Contribution
Meghan Dering has been instrumental in revitalizing the MSO Research Working Group that is so heavily relied on for industry insights and cross-company innovative research practices. Her insights have helped our work become more connected to the industry’s research needs and has helped get us to the heart of tough questions about our business. She actively involves members of her team for both their contributions and development becoming an amazing partner to CTAM, the research community and to the industry at large.
“Meghan is a consummate Insights professional and collaborator. Her voice in the research community is an important part of our group’s success in learning from each other and in advising CTAM’s industry research. Congratulations on a well-deserved award and acknowledgment!”
Fun Facts:
What is your favorite quote to live by?
We cannot direct the wind, but can adjust the sails.
Who is one person that you admire most in the industry, and why?
Jon Hargis – I admired his leadership style – the ability he had to guide his team and also trust and support them to make the best decisions for the consumer and the business. Jon saw the value in research and how it fit into business decisions.
Past TAMI Award Honorees
Past Beacon Award Winners
Annie Howell 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.
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.”
CTAM 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.
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.”
Congrats Meghan!
Congratulations Meghan!! Kam