| Peabody Awards | |
|---|---|
.jpg) 2014 statuettes | |
| Awarded for | Distinguished achievement and meritorious public service bytelevision andradio stations, networks, producing organizations, individuals, and theWorld Wide Web |
| Country | United States |
| Presented by | Henry W. Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication at theUniversity of Georgia |
| First award | March 29, 1941; 84 years ago (1941-03-29) |
| Website | peabodyawards |
TheGeorge Foster Peabody Awards (or simplyPeabody Awards or thePeabodys)[1] program, named for the American businessman and philanthropistGeorge Peabody, honor what are described as the most powerful, enlightening, and invigorating stories in all of television, radio, and online media. Because of their academic affiliation and reputation for discernment, the awards are held in high esteem within the media industry.
It is the oldest major electronic media award in the United States. Established in 1940 by theNational Association of Broadcasters, the Peabody Award was created to honor excellence in radio broadcasting as the radio industry's equivalent of thePulitzer Prizes.[2] It was later expanded to include television, and then to new media including podcasts and streaming. Final Peabody Award winners are selected unanimously by the program's Board of Jurors.[3] Because submissions are accepted from a wide variety of sources and styles, reflecting excellence in quality storytelling rather than popularity or commercial success, the deliberations seek "Excellence On Its Own Terms".[4]
Programs are recognized in eight categories: Entertainment, Documentary, Arts, Children's/Youth, News, Podcast/Radio, Interactive & Immersive, and Public Service.[5] Each entry is evaluated on the achievement of standards established within its own context.[1][6] Peabody Award winners include radio andtelevision stations, networks, online media, producing organizations, and individuals from around the world.
In 1938, theNational Association of Broadcasters formed a committee to recognize outstanding achievement inradio broadcasting.[7] Committee member Lambdin Kay, public-service director forWSB radio inAtlanta, Georgia, at the time, is credited with creating the award, named for businessman and philanthropistGeorge Foster Peabody, who donated the funds that made the awards possible.[8][9] Fellow WSB employee Lessie Smithgall introduced Lambdin to John E. Drewry, of theUniversity of Georgia'sHenry W. Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication, who endorsed the idea.[9][10] The Peabody Award was established in 1940 with the Grady College of Journalism as its permanent home.[4]
The Peabody Awards were originally issued only for radio programming, but television awards were introduced in 1948. In the late 1990s additional categories for material distributed via theWorld Wide Web were added.[1] Materials created solely for theatricalmotion picture release are not eligible.
The Peabody Awards judging process changed in 2014. Previously, more than 1,000 entries were evaluated by some 30 committees composed of a number of faculty, staff, and students from the University of Georgia and other higher education institutions across the country.[11] Each committee was charged with screening or listening to a small number of entries and delivering written recommendations to thePeabody Board of Jurors, a ~17-member panel of scholars, critics, and media-industry professionals.[11] Beginning in 2015, the preliminary round of judging is done by faculty members at major research universities across the United States, most of which are not at UGA. The 18-member Board of Jurors selects the nominees and winners each year.[12][13] Board members discuss recommended entries as well as their own selections at three intensive preliminary meetings. The Board convenes at the University of Georgia in early April for final screenings and deliberations. Each entrant is judged on its own merit, and only unanimously selected programs receive a Peabody Award.[4] For many years, there was no set number of awards issued. However, in 2016 the program instituted the Peabody 30, representing the best programs out of a field of 60 nominees.
Each spring, the Peabody Awards Board of Jurors announces award recipients for work released during the previous year. Traditionally, the winners' announcements have been made via a simplepress release and/or apress conference. An April 2014 segment ofCBS This Morning included an announcement of 2013 Peabody winners.[17] In April 2015, the 2014 Peabodys were revealed over an 8-day period, with the entertainment-based recipients revealed onABC'sGood Morning America.[18]
The formal presentation of the Peabody Awards is traditionally held in late May or early June. The awards were given during a luncheon inNew York City for many years. The ceremony moved to a red carpet evening event for the first time on May 31, 2015, withFred Armisen serving as host.[18] Several famous names have served as Peabody Awards ceremony hosts over the years, among themWalter Cronkite,Lesley Stahl,Jackie Gleason,Jon Stewart,Morley Safer,Craig Ferguson,Larry King,[1][19] andIra Glass.[17] From 2014 to 2016, the Peabody Awards aired on a tape-delayed basis on the TV channelPivot.[20] On June 2, 2017, a television special of the 76th Peabody Awards aired onPBS andFusion.[21]
The Peabody Awards Collection is the flagship of The Walter J. Brown Media Archives & Peabody Awards Collection. The archives are housed in the Richard B. Russell Building Special Collections Libraries on the north campus ofThe University of Georgia. The mission of the Peabody Archive is to preserve, protect, and provide access to the moving image and sound materials that reflect the collective memory of broadcasting and the history of the state ofGeorgia and its people. The collection contains nearly every entry for the first major broadcast award given in theUnited States. Entries began in 1940 for radio and 1948 for television, and at least 1,000 new entries are received every year—programs created by local, national, and international producers. The collection provides a cultural cross-section of television from its infancy to the present day, featuring news, documentary, entertainment, educational, and children's programming. Once judging is complete, all entries are moved to the Main Library for in-depth cataloging, access, and long-term preservation.[22]
In 2017 the Walter J. Brown Media Archives & Peabody Awards Collection at the University of Georgia (BMA) andWGBH, on behalf of theAmerican Archive of Public Broadcasting, were awarded a grant from theNational Historical Publications and Records Commission to digitize, preserve, and provide access to approximately 4,000 hours of public broadcasting programming nominated for a George Foster Peabody Award between 1941 and 1999. The full collection will eventually comprise 4,000 digitized hours of audio and video recordings from 230 local, state, and regional public broadcasting stations in 46 states as well as Puerto Rico and the District of Columbia.[23]
