Distinguished Professor of Media and Entertainment
IESE Business School
Read William Baker's media blog at www.wnet.org/blogs
Dr. William F. Baker is Distinguished Professor of Media and Entertainment at IESE Business School, University Professor of Fordham University, NY, Executive-in-Residence at the Columbia Business School and president emeritus of Educational Broadcasting Corporation (EBC), licensee of Thirteen/WNET and WLIW21 New York.
Thirteen/WNET is the flagship public broadcasting station, the premier national public television program producer, and the most-watched public television station in the United States. It is also the largest producer of cultural and arts programming in America. WLIW21 is the third-most-watched public television station in America, and a major producer and presenter of public television programming seen nationwide.
Baker became president emeritus in 2008 after 20 years as chief executive officer of EBC. During his tenure the station grew and prospered, creating new program standards such as Charlie Rose, City Arts and Religion & Ethics NewsWeekly. He established the Educational Resources Center, which has become America’s most prolific teacher trainer in multimedia techniques, and developed Thirteen’s first cable channel, MetroArts/Thirteen. He also helped stabilize the finances of the station by building the largest endowment in public television history, and oversaw the station’s transition to digital broadcasting and its historic merger with WLIW21. Baker is recognized as one of America’s most prolific fundraisers, having raised more than $1 billion in his career.
Baker’s career spans four decades. Prior to joining EBC, he was president of Westinghouse Television and chairman of the cable and programming companies. During his 10 years at Westinghouse, five cable networks were launched, including Discovery Channel and the Disney Channel. He established the successful national program PM Magazine and introduced Oprah Winfrey as a talk show host.
In 2007, Baker was inducted into the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (NATAS) Management Hall of Fame. Also in 2007, he received the Mark Schubart Award from the Lincoln Center Institute, which recognizes individuals who most exemplify the Institute’s ideal of integrating the arts with education. In 2005, he was inducted into the New York State Broadcasters Association Hall of Fame and elected a fellow of the American Academy of Arts & Sciences. In 2004, he was inducted into Broadcasting & Cable’s Hall of Fame. He has received the Gabriel Personal Achievement Award, two Alfred I. duPont-Columbia University Awards and numerous other awards for his work as a producer, including six Emmy Awards. Baker was also honored by NATAS with the 1987 Trustees Emmy Award, which is given in recognition of outstanding contribution to the advancement of television.
Baker is the executive producer of The Face: Jesus in Art, a landmark documentary film that traces the image of Jesus Christ in art around the world and across two millennia. The Face premiered nationwide on public television in April 2001 and in a limited theatrical release. The film won an Emmy award for Outstanding Single Camera Photography.
Baker is also the executive producer of Picturing Mary, the follow-up to The Face. Filmed in the latest widescreen HD technology, Picturing Mary surveys images of the Virgin Mary by Michelangelo, Rembrandt, Titian and other masters throughout the ages and across the world. The film premiered nationwide on public television in December 2006.
Baker is the author of Down the Tube: An Insider’s Account of the Failure of American Television (Basic Books, 1998) and Lighthouse Island: Our Family Escape (Ruder Finn Press, 2004).
Baker is chairman of the National Park System Advisory Board. He also serves on the boards of the Public Broadcasting Service, Rodale Press, Freedom Communications, Inc., and Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum.
Baker holds B.A., M.A. and Ph.D. degrees from Case Western Reserve University, and seven honorary doctorates.
His interests include astronomy, horology and polar science; he is believed to be one of only a few people to have stood on both the North and South Poles.
