Howard Stringer

Biographical Information

" Sir Howard served as Chief Executive Officer and President of Sony Corporation until April 1, 2012, when his chosen successor, Kazuo Hirai, formerly Executive Deputy President, assumed those positions. He also served as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Sony Corporation of America (SCA) until June 27, 2012.

"Sir Howard joined Sony in May 1997 as President and COO of SCA. He was named Chairman and CEO of SCA in 1998, and became Chairman and CEO of Sony Corporation in June 2005. The title of President was given to him in April 2009. Prior to joining Sony in May 1997, Sir Howard had a distinguished 30-year career as a journalist, producer and executive at CBS Inc. As President of CBS from 1988 to 1995, he was responsible for all broadcast activities of the company, including entertainment, news, sports, and its radio and television stations. Under his leadership, the CBS Television Network became the first network to rise from last to first place in one season. In 1993, in what became one of the most chronicled coups in television history, Sir Howard convinced David Letterman to bring his critically acclaimed late night show to CBS.

"From 1986 to 1988, Sir Howard served as President of CBS News, where he developed several new programs, including the award-winning 48 HOURS, which continues as a primetime hit to this day. Prior to that, during his tenure as executive producer of the CBS EVENING NEWS with Dan Rather from 1981 to 1984, that program became the dominant network evening newscast of its day. From 1976 to 1981, while he was executive producer of the CBS REPORTS documentary unit, it won virtually every major broadcast journalism honor, including 31 Emmys, four Peabody Awards, three Alfred I. duPont-Columbia University Awards, three Christopher Awards, three Overseas Press Club Awards, an ABA Silver Gavel and a Robert F. Kennedy Grand Prize. Among his award-winning programs are THE ROCKEFELLERS, THE PALESTINIANS, A TALE OF TWO IRELANDS, THE DEFENSE OF THE UNITED STATES, THE BOAT PEOPLE, THE BOSTON GOES TO CHINA, THE FIRE NEXT DOOR and THE CIA'S SECRET ARMY. He earned nine individual Emmys as a writer, director and producer from 1973 to 1983.

"After leaving CBS Inc., Sir Howard was Chairman and CEO of TELE-TV, the media and technology company formed by Bell Atlantic, NYNEX and Pacific Telesis, three of the largest telephone companies in the United States, from February 1995 to April 1997.

"Sir Howard is the recipient of numerous media and philanthropic awards. The Paley Center for Media (formerly The Museum of Television and Radio) presented him with its Visionary Award for Innovative Leadership in Media & Entertainment in February 2007. He has also been honored by Lincoln Center, Big Brothers Big Sisters and the New York Hall of Science. In May 1999, he was honored with the UJA-Federation of New York's Steven J. Ross Humanitarian Award and, that November, he was inducted into the Royal Television Society's Welsh Hall of Fame. In 1996, he was awarded the First Amendment Leadership Award by the Radio & Television News Directors Foundation in Washington, D.C., and was inducted into the Broadcasting and Cable Hall of Fame. In January 2011, the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences presented him with the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 62nd Annual Technology & Engineering Emmy Awards and, in January 2012, he received the PhotoImaging Manufacturers and Distributors Association Person of the Year Award for “significant contributions to the imaging industry in a leadership position.”

Sir Howard serves as Chairman of the American Film Institute Board of Trustees and is on the Board of Trustees of the Paley Center for Media. He is also North American Chairman of the British Army Benevolent Fund. He is a board member of The New York/Presbyterian Hospital, The American Theatre Wing, Teach for America, the Corporate Leadership Committee of the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts and Carnegie Hall. He is also a member of the Dean’s Council of New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts.

"A native of Cardiff, Wales, Sir Howard received the title of Knight Bachelor in the New Year Honours list of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II on December 31, 1999. He holds a B.A. and an M.A. in modern history from Oxford University. He has honorary Fellowships from Merton College, Oxford, and the Welsh College of Music and Drama. Sir Howard has also received Honorary Doctorates from Oxford University, the University of Glamorgan in Wales and the University of the Arts London. He is a recipient of the U.S. Army Commendation Medal for meritorious achievement for service in Vietnam (1965-1967). He became a U.S. citizen in 1985. He is married to Dr. Jennifer A.K. Patterson, a dermatologist, and they have two children."

Affiliations

• Oxonian Society
• Japan Society
• Teach for America
• Carnegie Hall
• Chair, Saïd Business School
• TalkTalk Telecom Group ‎

Resources and articles

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