The Cable Center announced Wednesday morning that former National Cable & Telecommunications CEO Decker Anstrom was named its 2015 Bresnan Ethics in Business Award recipient.
The award was named in honor of Bresnan Communications founder and chairman William J. Bresnan, who was also the long-time chairman of the Cable Center board. Bresnan passed away in 2009.
Anstrom will be presented with the award at the at the 18th annual Cable Hall of Fame Celebration, May 5 at the Chicago Navy Pier, in conjunction with the National Cable & Telecommunications Association’s (NCTA) Internet and Television Expo (INTX).
“The Bresnan Ethics in Business Award is not only a wonderful honor, but also a very humbling one,” said Anstrom. “I loved and respected Bill so much, and the previous recipients have all been true giants of our industry.”
Former Bright House Networks chairman and CEO Bob Miron won the first Bresnan Ethics in Business Award four years ago.
“Decker’s leadership has helped to shape our industry into the thriving, innovating business it is today,” said Miron, who is chairman of the Bresnan Award selection committee. “His commitment to public service and philanthropy is unrivaled, and we are delighted to honor him with the Bresnan Ethics in Business Award.”
Anstrom has had an illustrious career both in and out of the cable industry. In 1987, he joined NCTA as executive vice president and became president and CEO in 1994. During that time, he led the cable industry’s efforts that helped shape the Telecommunications Act of 1996.
In 1999, Anstrom joined The Weather Channel Companies (TWCC) in Atlanta, GA. as president and CEO. In 2002, he became president of Landmark Communications and, in that position, he also served as chairman of TWCC. He retired as president of Landmark Communications and chairman of The Weather Channel Companies in 2008, following Landmark’s sale of The Weather Channel to NBC.
Prior to his positions at Landmark, he served as U.S. Ambassador and Head of the U.S. Delegation to the 2012 World Radiocommunication Conference (WRC-12), held under the auspices of the International Telecommunication Union. WRC-12 was a treaty conference involving 150 nations that considered international and regional spectrum allocations that support satellite, mobile and other wireless services.
Anstrom also had distinguished careers in public service and in the communications industry. During the Carter administration, he was a senior staff member in the White House Office of Management and Budget, working on the creation of the U.S. Department of Education. He also served in the White House Office of Presidential Personnel and was president of Public Strategies, a Washington-based public policy consulting firm.
Anstrom currently serves on the board of directors of Discovery Communications, as well as on the boards of several non-profit environmental groups including the Island Press, Climate Central, and Planet Forward. He also serves as chairman of the board for the National Environmental Education Foundation, and the Institute for Educational Leadership.
During his career, Anstrom has served on numerous cable industry boards, including NCTA, which he chaired for two years, and Comcast Corporation, where he chaired the Governance Committee. He is a member of the Cable Hall of Fame and has also received numerous industry awards including the Vanguard for Leadership Award.
“On behalf of The Cable Center, I am honored to recognize Decker with this year’s Bresnan Ethics in Business Award,” said Larry Satkowiak, president and CEO, The Cable Center. “His leadership on so many important issues in the cable industry and his involvement in the community are testaments to his dedication and commitment to ethics in business.”
The Bresnan Ethics in Business award was created to honor outstanding men and women in the cable industry who best exemplify Bresnan’s longstanding commitment to ethics in business. The award winners represent the ideals upheld by Bresnan, including continually demonstrating ethical leadership qualities, doing what’s right in the face of adversity even when it is unpopular, incorporating doing what’s right in everyday life, maintaining high standards and ethics in the workplace, and demonstrating societal, community and philanthropic engagement.
Past winners of the Bresnan award include C-SPAN founder and executive chairman Brian Lamb, A+E Networks chief executive officer emeritus Nick Davatzes and former CableVision Industries founder, CEO and chairman Alan Gerry.