DOLLY PARTON PRESENTS DAN RATHER WITH PEABODY CAREER ACHIEVEMENT AWARD
TV RAIN HONORED WITH PEABODY JOURNALISTIC INTEGRITY AWARD
82nd Annual Peabody Award Winners to be Announced During Multi-Day Virtual Celebration–June 6th to June 9th
ATHENS, GA (May 17, 2022) – Peabody today announced that Dan Rather, the award-winning journalist whose career has spanned six decades, has won the Peabody Career Achievement Award. Dolly Parton presented Rather with the honor this morning via video (linked HERE). Rather, who has interviewed every president since Eisenhower, was the CBS national evening news anchor from 1981-2006. Rather is being recognized for his commitment to helping Americans understand the events of the nation and the world for over six decades. Selected by the Peabody Board of Jurors, this honor is reserved for individuals whose work and commitment to broadcasting and digital media have left an indelible mark on the field and in American culture. Rather joins Carol Burnett, Rita Moreno, Cicely Tyson, and Sam Pollard as winners of the Peabody Career Achievement Award.
“Dan Rather’s remarkable career—from local news reporter and international correspondent to network anchor—is a textbook example not just of what quality reporting looks like, but how journalists serve democracy well,” said Jeffrey Jones, executive director of the Peabody Awards. “Spanning over six decades, Rather helped viewers understand and interpret some of the most traumatic historical events in our nation’s history, from the Kennedy assassination and the Vietnam War to 9/11 and more. We are happy to call attention to and celebrate his life’s work.”
It was also announced today that TV Rain (known in Russian as Dozhd) was recognized with the Peabody Journalistic Integrity Award, which honors the sustained achievement of the highest professional standards of journalism, as well as personal integrity in reporting the news in challenging times. TV Rain was Russia’s last independent television channel before it was shut down in March 2022 for its criticism of President Vladimir Putin and the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Its final broadcast was a blatant protest, with the entire staff walking off the set as the anchors said “no war.”
The Peabody Board of Jurors also made a special commendation to the journalists and filmmakers from around the world, including Peabody-winning documentarian Brent Renaud, who have risked their lives and died covering the violence and humanitarian crises in Ukraine. “We honor these courageous storytellers killed in their line of duty to bring the truth to the world, not just in Ukraine, but in India, Mexico, the Philippines, and globally,” noted Jones.
Dan Rather began his career in print and radio in Houston before landing a job at KHOU-TV, Houston’s local CBS’s affiliate, in 1960. He went on to become a national network correspondent and later CBS’s White House correspondent. Rather became the CBS evening news anchor in 1981, holding the position until 2006. During his time on air at CBS, Rather reported on and guided the nation through Kennedy’s assassination, the war in Vietnam, the Civil Rights Movement, Watergate, the Cold War, and 9/11. After leaving CBS, he hosted Dan Rather Reports for HDNet and The Big Interview on AXS TV. Rather currently serves as President and CEO of News and Guts, an independent production company that he founded to make high-quality, non-fiction content across traditional and digital platforms. Over the course of his career, Rather has won multiple Peabody Awards and numerous Emmy Awards.
Natalya Sindeyeva founded TV Rain in 2010 as an independent television channel. After the channel was banned from cable in 2014, it moved to an online broadcast. TV Rain has reported on the Russia-Ukraine conflict since its beginning, prompting the Russian justice ministry to declare it a “foreign agent” in 2021. TV Rain continued to report on the activities of the Kremlin, until the Russian telecommunications regulator Roskomnadzor blocked access to the channel because of its critical reporting on the Russian invasion of Ukraine. For its final broadcast, the entire TV Rain staff gathered on air at the news desk before walking off set, with the anchors saying “no war” as they exited. The broadcast then cut to a performance of Swan Lake, in reference to when Russian news channels played the ballet during the August 1991 Russian coup after they were banned from live coverage of the event.
The 30 winners of the 82nd Annual Peabody Awards will be named during a multi-day virtual celebration from June 6th through June 9th. The winners will be announced on the following platforms:
Twitter: @PeabodyAwards
Instagram: @PeabodyAwards
Facebook: Peabody Awards
YouTube: PeabodyAwardChannel
Website: http://peabodyawards.com/
Hashtags: #PeabodyAwards #StoriesThatMatter
About Peabody Awards
Respected for its integrity and revered for its standards of excellence, the Peabody is an honor like no other for television, podcast/radio, and immersive and interactive media. Chosen each year by a diverse Board of Jurors through unanimous vote, Peabody Awards are given in the categories of entertainment, documentary, news, podcast/radio, arts, children’s and youth, and public service programming. The annual Peabody winners are a collection of 30 stories that powerfully reflect the pressing social issues and the vibrant emerging voices of our day. From major productions to local journalism, the Peabody Awards shine a light on the Stories That Matter and are a testament to the power of art and reportage in the push for truth, social justice, and equity. The Peabody Awards were founded in 1940 at the Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication at the University of Georgia and are still based in Athens today. For more information, visit peabodyawards.com to sign up for our newsletter or follow us on social:
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