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Frank A. Bennack Jr., Announces Christy Carpenter as the New Executive Director of The Museum of Television & Radio’s Media Center

Tuesday, September 2, 2003

New York and Los Angeles—Frank A. Bennack, Jr., chairman of The Museum of Television & Radio's board of trustees, announced today that Christy Carpenter has joined the Museum as vice president and executive director of the MT&R Media Center. Launched in 2002 under the leadership of the Museum's late president Robert M. Batscha, the MT&R Media Center convenes top-level executives, journalists, and creative talent from the converging industries of media and technology to discuss critical issues. Under Carpenter's direction, the MT&R Media Center will offer an expanded schedule of speeches and in-depth discussions on important and provocative subjects such as the impact of new technologies on television advertising and digital piracy.

"Christy Carpenter brings some twenty-five years of experience in media, politics, technology, and trade association management to the MT&R Media Center, placing her in a unique position to further the Media Center's role as the global nexus for discussions on critical communications issues. Both Gustave Hauser, my cochair of the Media Center, and I are quite excited at Christy's acceptance of this important role," said Mr. Bennack.  

A lawyer by training, Ms. Carpenter was an early pioneer in interactive services during the 1980s. She initially was with Warner Cable's QUBE system, subsequently with Prodigy Interactive Services as it created the first PC-based online service designed for the mass market, and later with an electronic home shopping service developed by JCPenney. Ms. Carpenter also served as vice president and group director for the international public relations firm Hill & Knowlton in New York, senior executive for public and professional services for the State Bar of California, and executive vice president and chief operating officer for the Wine Institute in San Francisco. In 1998, President Clinton appointed her to the board of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, where she served as its vice chair for two years. Earlier this year, she was elected to the board of KCET, the largest public television station in Southern California.  

Early in her career, Ms. Carpenter worked for all three branches of the federal government, including the U.S. Supreme Court, where she clerked for former Justice Tom C. Clark. She received her B.A. from Brown University and her J.D. from the American University Law School.     

"I am very pleased to be part of The Museum of Television & Radio and look forward to making the Media Center an invaluable resource for the media industry," said Carpenter. "The Media Center plays a unique role for industry leaders on both coasts, providing a neutral venue where they gather as peers for off-the-record discussions to exchange ideas and explore solutions to current issues," continued Carpenter. 

The MT&R Media Center was launched in 2002 and is cochaired by Frank A. Bennack, Jr., Hearst Corporation; Gustave M. Hauser, Hauser Communications; and Henry A. Kissinger, Kissinger Associates.  Vice chairs include Thomas M. Fontana, The Levinson/Fontana Company; Ivan Seidenberg, Verizon; and Arthur O. Sulzberger, Jr., The New York Times Company.  Funding for the establishment of the MT&R Media Center has been generously provided by Gustave M. Hauser. Additional funding for the MT&R Media Center programs has been provided by Booz Allen Hamilton, Deloitte & Touche, the McCormick Tribune Foundation, and the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation. 

Past speakers to the members of the Media Center have included Bob Wright, chairman and chief executive officer, NBC and vice chairman and executive officer, General Electric Company; Glenn Britt, chairman and chief executive officer, Time Warner Cable; Craig Mundie, senior vice president and chief technology officer, Advanced Strategies and Policy, Microsoft Corporation; Katsuji Ebisawa, president, NHK, Japan Broadcasting Corporation; Debra Lee, president and chief operating officer, Black Entertainment Television; Sir Martin Sorrell, chief executive, WPP Group plc; among others. In-depth dialogues have four core areas of focus—communications, technology, entertainment/creative content, and journalism—and have focused on topics including journalism in times of crisis, attracting young audiences to the news, creative risk-taking, and digital piracy and copyright protection. 

A photo of Ms. Carpenter is available either by downloading at http://mtr.inet7.com/pressroom or by contacting the publicity department. 

The Museum of Television & Radio, with locations in New York and Los Angeles, is a nonprofit organization founded by William S. Paley to collect and preserve television and radio programs and advertisements and to make them available to the public.  Since opening in 1976, the Museum has organized exhibitions, screening and listening series, seminars, and education classes to showcase its collection of over 100,000 television and radio programs and advertisements.  In 2001 the Museum initiated a process to acquire Internet programming for the collection. Programs in the Museum's permanent collection are selected for their artistic, cultural, and historic significance.


The Museum of Television & Radio in New York, located at 25 West 52 Street in Manhattan, is open Tuesdays through Sundays from noon to 6:00 p.m. and until 8:00 p.m. on Thursdays. The Museum of Television & Radio in California, located at 465 North Beverly Drive in Beverly Hills, is open Wednesdays through Sundays from noon to 5:00 p.m. Both Museums are closed on New Year's Day, Independence Day, Thanksgiving, and Christmas. Suggested contribution: Members free; $10.00 for adults; $8.00 for senior citizens and students; and $5.00 for children under fourteen. Admission is free in Los Angeles. The public areas in both Museums are accessible to wheelchairs, and assisted listening devices are available. Programs are subject to change. You may call the Museum in New York at (212) 621-6800, or in Los Angeles at (310) 786-1000. Visit the Museum's website at www.mtr.org.