Mary G.F. Bitterman Receives Lowell Award

For Immediate Release on May 21, 2007

Washington, DC -- The Corporation for Public Broadcasting Board of Directors yesterday named Mary G.F. Bitterman, veteran public television executive and chair of the PBS Board of Directors, recipient of the 2006 Ralph Lowell Award.

The award, which honors an individual who has made an outstanding contribution to public television, was presented by CPB Board member Beth Courtney.

"For over thirty years, public broadcasting has benefited from Mary's vision and leadership," said Courtney. "Her tireless work and commitment on behalf of the unserved and underserved audiences has inspired and challenged countless others in public television to do the same."

Bitterman was executive director of the Hawaii Public Broadcasting Network from 1974-1979. After a distinguished career in government and education, she retuned to public television as CEO and president of KQED in San Francisco. During her nine-year tenure, she strengthened KQED's standing in the community and helped stabilize its financial base, leaving it well-positioned for the challenges of the digital age. She also served on the Board of Directors of America's Public Television Stations from 1994-2002 and was Board chair from 2001-2002.

Bitterman received her B.A. from Santa Clara University and her M.A. and Ph.D. from Bryn Mawr College. She holds honorary doctorates from Dominican University of California and Santa Clara University. The Lowell Award is named after philanthropist and banker Ralph Lowell, who was a founder of the WGBH Educational Foundation, licensee of WGBH Boston and served as its first president from 1951 until he became its chairman in the mid- 1970s. He was instrumental in the formation of the Carnegie Commission on Educational Television, which led to the Public Broadcasting Act of 1967 and the establishment of CPB.

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