Pat Mitchell

Infobox Celebrity


image_size = 150px
name = Pat Mitchell
caption = Pat Mitchell
birth_date = Birth date and age|1943|1|20|mf=y
birth_place = Swainsboro, Georgia, U.S.
death_date =
Political View= Democrat
occupation = Global media business woman and philanthropist
spouse = Scott Seydel
children = Mark Mitchell, Clark Seydel, Rutherford Seydel, Rosina Seydel, Lael Seydel, Scotto Seydel
relatives =
website =
footnotes =

Pat Mitchell (b. January 20, 1943) is the current President and Chief Executive Officer of The Paley Center for Media (formerly the Museum of Television and Radio) in New York City and the former President and CEO of Public Broadcasting Service (PBS).

She resigned from PBS in March 2006 and was replaced by the current CEO, Paula Kerger, formerly of New York's PBS station, WNET. At PBS, she was named President and Chief Executive Officer in March 2000, the first woman and first producer and journalist to hold the position. Under Mitchell’s leadership, PBS rejuvenated the National Program Service (examples or citations needed, this is a subjective and promotional statement rather than a factual one) which is distributed to the public through 348 locally owned and operated PBS member stations. Mitchell also oversaw the development of many new projects, including new series for children focusing on teaching literacy skills and celebrating diversity. She is credited with leading public broadcasting into the digital future with such initiatives as the conversion from analog to digital broadcasting, the launch of a high-definition PBS channel and an on-demand and cable preschool children’s service, the growth of PBS’s website into one of the three most visited sites on the Internet, and the establishment of the Digital Future Initiative to help define models for public service media using new digital technologies.

History

A former classroom teacher and college instructor, Mitchell has enjoyed a three-decade career in media. She received her BA from the University of Georgia, and an MA. Previous to PBS, Mitchell worked for three broadcast networks, several cable channels, and achieved success both in front of, and behind, the camera as a reporter, news anchor, talk show host, White House and special correspondent, producer, and executive. In the mid eighties, she established her own independent production company that produced documentaries, series, and specials for broadcast, cable, and national syndication. In 1992, Mitchell became an executive in charge of original productions for Ted Turner’s cable networks. Over the next eight years, as executive producer, her documentaries and specials received thirty-seven Emmy Awards, five Peabody Awards, and two Academy Award nominations.

Awards

Emmy Awards- 37Peabody Awards- 5Academy Award Nominations- 2

Mitchell has received numerous awards including the Women in Cable and Telecommunications Woman of the Year Award; the CINE Golden Eagle for Lifetime Achievement; the PROMAX Century Award for contributions to the television industry; the Sandra Day O'Connor Award for Leadership; and most recently, the NATPE Brandon Tartikoff Legacy Award. In addition, Mitchell was named one of the most influential female executives in the media by The Hollywood Reporter and was honored as one of the first fifty women in The Museum of Television & Radio’s She Made It initiative.

Mitchell's Currently Held Positions

Mitchell is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and the U.S. Afghan Women's Council; the vice chair of the Sundance Institute Board; a founding member and Honorary Board member of Mikhail Gorbachev's global environmental organization, Green Cross International; an adviser to the Center for Public Leadership at the Kennedy School of Harvard University; a member of the Mayo Clinic's Board of Trustees; and on the corporate boards of Knight Ridder, Bank of America, and Sun Microsystems, Inc. A magna cum laude graduate of the University of Georgia where she was a member of Phi Mu women's Fraternity, with a master’s degree in English literature, Mitchell has received many honorary doctorate degrees. In 2001 she was elected to membership in the prestigious Georgia State University J. Mack Robinson College of Business Hall of Fame.

References

* [http://www.shemadeit.org/meet/summary.aspx?m=42 Pat Mitchell profile] from the Museum of Television & Radio