Broadcasters Foundation To Honor Smulyan

Jeffrey Smulyan, founder and chairman of the board of Emmis Communications Corp., is the recipient of the 2017 Lowry Mays Excellence in Broadcasting Award. The award will be presented at the Broadcasters Foundation of America annual breakfast at 7 a.m. Wednesday, April 26,  in the Brahms Room of the Encore Hotel during the NAB Show in Las Vegas. 

Widely recognized as a visionary leader in the radio industry, Smulyan is the leading advocate of getting FM-enabled wireless devices into smartphones. Smulyan formed Emmis in 1980, which went public in 1994 and was named one of Fortune magazine’s “100 Best Companies to Work For.”

Emmis owns and operates 16 FM and 3 AM radio stations. 

Smulyan’s leadership has been recognized with the American Women in Radio and Television’s Silver Satellite and Star Awards, the NAB’s National Radio Award, Radio Ink’s Radio Executive of the Year, and Ernst & Young’s Entrepreneur of the Year.

He has been inducted in the Broadcasting & Cable Hall of Fame and the Indiana Business Hall of Fame. The Broadcasters’ Foundation honored him with its Golden Mike Award, and he was named a “Giant of Broadcasting” by the Library of American Broadcasting. 

The Lowry Mays Excellence in Broadcasting Award is bestowed annually on an individual in broadcasting whose work exemplifies innovation, community service, advocacy, and entrepreneurship. It salutes its namesake Lowry Mays and is underwritten by The Mays Family Foundation.

The breakfast is complimentary to all, although pre-registration is required. To register, contact the foundation at 212-373-8250 or www.broadcastersfoundation.org

A former director of the NAB and former chairman of the Radio Advertising Bureau, Smulyan served as past chair of the Central Indiana Corporate Partnership, and sits on the board of trustees of his alma mater, the University of Southern California.