Press Release
Company News - "Dr. Baker Receives America-Israel Cultural Foundation's King Solomon Award"
October 18, 2007—New York, NY— Dr. William F. Baker, CEO of Educational Broadcasting Corporation (EBC), licensee of public broadcasters Thirteen/WNET and WLIW New York, will receive the King Solomon Award from the America-Israel Cultural Foundation (AICF) in honor of his leadership and philanthropic activities on behalf of the arts.
In recognition of Baker’s decades-long interest in education, the foundation is also establishing the William F. Baker Scholarship Fund in Film and Television to help nurture the careers of young artists.
“The foundation is proud to present its King Solomon Award to Dr. Baker, a true visionary and genuine friend of the arts who has dedicated his career to using the power of public television to help educate the community at large and to provide a showcase for the performing arts,” said foundation president Bill Schwartz.
Previous recipients of the King Solomon Award include Leonard Bernstein, Itzhak Perlman and Elie Wiesel. Television and radio veteran Midge Woolsey, the host of Weeknights on 96.3FM WQXR and frequent host on Thirteen/WNET, will present the award to Baker at the foundation’s 68th Annual Gala Concert at 2 p.m. Sunday, November 11 at the 92nd St. Y, Kaufmann Concert Hall. The concert will feature violinist Pinchas Zukerman and former AICF scholarship recipients Maya Lahyani, mezzo soprano; Benjamin Hochman, piano; and the Ariel String Quartet.
The America-Israel Cultural Foundation is dedicated to the mission of supporting and developing artistic life in Israel. Since 1939, AICF has played a leading role in the development of many of Israel’s largest cultural institutions, as well as the artistic development of Israel’s finest artists in every discipline. The AICF currently grants more than 1,100 study scholarships annually. It remains the largest private funder of artistic study for talented students of all the performing and visual arts in Israel.
For gala tickets, please contact the America-Israel Cultural Foundation at 212.557.1600 or email info@aicf.org.
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 fourth-most-watched public television station in America, and a major producer and presenter of public television programming seen nationwide.
Baker has been at the head of EBC since 1987. During his tenure the station has grown 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. Full biography available online at www.thirteen.org/pressroom/company.
In recognition of Baker’s decades-long interest in education, the foundation is also establishing the William F. Baker Scholarship Fund in Film and Television to help nurture the careers of young artists.
“The foundation is proud to present its King Solomon Award to Dr. Baker, a true visionary and genuine friend of the arts who has dedicated his career to using the power of public television to help educate the community at large and to provide a showcase for the performing arts,” said foundation president Bill Schwartz.
Previous recipients of the King Solomon Award include Leonard Bernstein, Itzhak Perlman and Elie Wiesel. Television and radio veteran Midge Woolsey, the host of Weeknights on 96.3FM WQXR and frequent host on Thirteen/WNET, will present the award to Baker at the foundation’s 68th Annual Gala Concert at 2 p.m. Sunday, November 11 at the 92nd St. Y, Kaufmann Concert Hall. The concert will feature violinist Pinchas Zukerman and former AICF scholarship recipients Maya Lahyani, mezzo soprano; Benjamin Hochman, piano; and the Ariel String Quartet.
The America-Israel Cultural Foundation is dedicated to the mission of supporting and developing artistic life in Israel. Since 1939, AICF has played a leading role in the development of many of Israel’s largest cultural institutions, as well as the artistic development of Israel’s finest artists in every discipline. The AICF currently grants more than 1,100 study scholarships annually. It remains the largest private funder of artistic study for talented students of all the performing and visual arts in Israel.
For gala tickets, please contact the America-Israel Cultural Foundation at 212.557.1600 or email info@aicf.org.
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 fourth-most-watched public television station in America, and a major producer and presenter of public television programming seen nationwide.
Baker has been at the head of EBC since 1987. During his tenure the station has grown 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. Full biography available online at www.thirteen.org/pressroom/company.