Henry Louis Gates, Jr. Receives Lowell Award

For Immediate Release on May 14, 2009

Washington, D.C. -- The Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) last night presented its 2008 Ralph Lowell Award to Dr. Henry Louis Gates, Jr.

The Lowell Award, named for philanthropist, banker and founder of the WGBH Educational Foundation, is public television's most prestigious award. It honors an individual who has made an outstanding contribution to public television.

"Dr. Gates' films represent the very best of public service media," said Pat Harrison, president and CEO of CPB. "Through this content, he has given many viewers, especially young people, a connection to their heritage and the understanding that they are standing on the shoulders of unsung heroes and heroines."

He has produced many PBS documentaries including Wonders of the African World, America Beyond the Color Line, and Looking for Lincoln. He hosted and co-produced African American Lives in 2006 and African American Lives 2 in 2008, in which he uses DNA testing to track the lineage of notable African Americans, including Maya Angelou, Mae Jemison and Oprah Winfrey. He has made African American Lives one of public television's signature franchises. The program has also become a powerful educational tool, giving African American children an exciting, innovative way to learn about their ancestry.

"Dr. Gates' contributions on the air and off have made him one of America's greatest teachers. His knowledge, creativity and enthusiasm bring history alive for people of all ages and backgrounds," said CPB Board Chair Chris Boskin who presented the award.

Dr. Gates is the Alphonse Fletcher University Professor at Harvard University and the director of the W.E.B. Du Bois Institute for African and African American Research. He has been the recipient of nearly 50 honorary degrees and numerous awards, including the MacArthur Foundation Genius Award, the George Polk Award for Social Commentary and a National Humanities Medal.

He is the editor-in-chief of the Oxford African American Studies Center, the first comprehensive online resource in the field of African American Studies and Africana Studies and is editor-in chief of The Root, an online news magazine dedicated to the coverage of African American news, culture and genealogy. He has also authored many books including In Search of Our Roots, published earlier this year.

Dr. Gates earned his M.A. and Ph.D. in English literature from Clare College at the University of Cambridge and his B.A. summa cum laude in history from Yale University.

About CPB

The Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB), a private, nonprofit corporation created by Congress in 1967, is the steward of the federal government's investment in public broadcasting. It helps support the operations of more than 1,300 locally-owned and -operated public television and radio stations nationwide, and is the largest single source of funding for research, technology, and program development for public radio, television and related online services.

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