Over 350 Attend 2014 Women's Media Awards Hosted by Joy Reid

Awards Honored Amma Asante, Ursula Burns, Katie Couric and Barbara Walters
in New York City

New York, New York — The Women’s Media Center 2014 Women’s Media Awards were held Wednesday, October 29th at Capitale. 

The 2014 Women’s Media Awards honored:

Amma Asante, BAFTA Award winning Writer/Director of "A Way of Life" and Director of "Belle."
Ursula M. Burns, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Xerox Corporation.
Katie Couric, Global News Anchor for Yahoo News.
Barbara Walters, Creator & Executive Producer of The View, and ABC News Special Correspondent.
Elianne Ramos, CEO of Speak Hispanic Communications and founder of the Border Kids Relief Project, with the Women’s Media Center Social Media Award, presented by Lauren Embrey, Board Chair of The Women’s Media Center.

Celebrities and VIPs attending the annual event included many of the most accomplished and influential women and men in the world of media today. The event was hosted by Joy Reid, host of MSNBC’s “The Reid Report”. Women’s Media Center Co-Founders Robin Morgan and Gloria Steinem attended the event. Co-Chairs for the 2014 Women’s Media Awards were: Donna Deitch, Lauren Embrey, Jane Fonda, Sheila C. Johnson, Pat Mitchell, Robin Morgan, Bonnie Schaefer, Regina K. Scully, Gloria Steinem, and Mary and Steven Swig.

VIPs attending the Awards this year included: Marlo Thomas, four-time Emmy-winning actress, producer and activist; Phil Donahue, nine-time Emmy-winning talk show host/writer/producer; Julie Burton, president of the Women’s Media Center; Pat Mitchell, president & CEO of The Paley Center for Media, Women’s Media Center Board chair emerita, former Women’s Media Award honoree, co-chair of the Women’s Media Awards; Lauren Embrey, president and CEO of the Embrey Family Foundation and CEO of Embrey Interests, Ltd., board chair of The Women’s Media Center, co-chair of the Women’s Media Awards; Donna Deitch, award-winning film and television director, co-chair of the Women’s Media Awards; Sheila C. Johnson, founding partner of Black Entertainment Television, CEO of Salamander Hotels and Resorts, vice-chairman of Monumental Sports & Entertainment, president and managing partner of the WNBA’s Washington Mystics, co-chair of the Women’s Media Awards, and past Women’s Media Award honoree; Bonnie Schaefer, former co-CEO and co-chairman of the board of Claire’s Stores, Inc., co-chair of the Women’s Media Awards; Regina K. Scully, Artemis Rising Foundation founder, social documentary filmmaker, founding sponsor of “Women's Media Center Live with Robin Morgan,” founding sponsor of WMC Press, founding sponsor of Athena Film Festival in New York City, co-chair of the Women’s Media Awards; Mary and Steven Swig, Mary Swig is the founder and CEO of Mary Green Enterprises, Steven Swig is founding co-chair of Presidio Graduate School, both are co-chairs of the Women’s Media Awards; Carol Jenkins, author, former WNBC anchor, founding and former President of The Women’s Media Center, contributing writer for The Huffington Post, former board member of The Women’s Media Center; Geneva Overholser, senior fellow at the Center for Communication Leadership and Policy at the USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism, and Women's Media Center board member; Maggie Wilderotter, Chairman & CEO of Frontier Communications, past Women’s Media Award honoree; Chris Hayes, MSNBC Host of “All In with Chris Hayes;” Francine LeFrak, founder of Same Sky jewelry, board chair at The Women and Public Policy Program of Harvard Kennedy School, and award-winning film producer; Rick Friedberg, President of Liberty Connections; Clive Davis, five-time Grammy-winning chief creative officer of Sony Music Entertainment, co-producer of Diva Classic and founder of Arista Records and J Records; Lesley Gore, award-winning and Oscar-nominated singer-songwriter; Carolyn Jane Maloney, U.S. Representative for New York's 12th congressional district; Melissa Mark-Viverito, Speaker of the New York City Council; Martha Nelson, past editor-in-chief and editorial director, Time Inc. and former Women’s Media Award honoree; Maya Harris, Women’s Media Center board member, senior fellow at the Center for American Progress, and visiting scholar at Harvard Law School; Tony West, former Associate Attorney General of the United States and the Executive Vice President of Government Affairs, general counsel and corporate secretary of PepsiCo; Katrina vanden Heuvel, editor and publisher, The Nation magazine; Kate O'Brian, president, Al Jazeera America; Vanessa De Luca, editor-in-chief, ESSENCE; Anne Fulenwider, editor-in-chief, Marie Claire; Richard L. Wolffe, vice president and executive editor of MSNBC.com and MSNBC commentator; David Corn, Washington bureau chief for Mother Jones and analyst for MSNBC/NBC News; Blake Morgan, musician, singer-songwriter, music producer and CEO of ECR Music Group; Roger Hickey, co-director of the Institute for America's Future; Lois Sasson, jewelry designer, Lois Sasson for Sasson Thomas; Janita, recording artist, singer-songwriter; Jessica Valenti, author, daily columnist for the Guardian US, and founder of Feministing.com; Julie Zeilinger, founding editor of the WMC Fbomb; Sady Doyle, Women's Media Center 2011 Social Media Award Winner; Luvvie Ajayi,  Women's Media Center 2012 Social Media Award Winner; Lindy West, Women's Media Center 2013 Social Media Award Winner.

The Women’s Media Center

The Women's Media Center's goal is to make women visible and powerful in the media. Founded in 2005 by Jane Fonda, Robin Morgan and Gloria Steinem, the WMC works with media to ensure that women’s realities are covered and women’s voices are heard. We do this by:  researching and monitoring media; creating and modeling original online, print, and radio content; training women and girls to participate in media; and promoting media-experienced women experts in all fields. We are directly engaged with the media at every level to work toward a diverse group of women being present in newsrooms, on air, in print and online, in film, entertainment, and theater--as sources and subjects, in bylines and credits, in the field and in the front office.

“The Women’s Media Center exists to change the status of women in media. Because 51 percent of our population is women, and only 3 percent of all clout positions in media are held by women, The Women’s Media Center Awards were created to honor champions for women who use their media platforms to tell the stories, facts and solutions crucial to all viewers, and to advance opportunities for women in media,” says Julie Burton, president of The Women’s Media Center. “Because media tells our stories and influences the role of women in every part of society, we are proud to honor these amazing women who set the standard for what media should look like when it gives voice to the female half of the country.”

For more information about the Women’s Media Center go to: http://www.womensmediacenter.com/. For more information about WMC Live with Robin Morgan go to http://www.wmclive.com/

For press information about The Women’s Media Center, contact Cristal Williams Chancellor at: cristal@womensmediacenter.com, 202-587-1636.