Robert Pittman

The son of a Methodist minister, Pittman was born in Jackson, Mississippi, but raised in Hattiesburg and Brookhaven, where he attended Brookhaven High School and became a radio announcer at the age of 15 to earn money for flying lessons. He was an announcer in a number of cities and then successfully programmed radio stations in Pittsburgh, Chicago (WMAQ AM 670 and WKQX FM) and finally at the NBC flagship station, WNBC (AM), in New York when he was 23. He also produced and co-hosted a music video and news show in 1978 that ran on NBC's O&O Television stations. He did learn to fly and has been a pilot for almost 50 years: He now has over 6,000 flight hours; currently holds an Airline Transport Pilot's license for airplanes; and is rated for helicopters and three types of jets.

Pittman married Sandy Hill, a merchandise editor at Mademoiselle, in July 1979; they divorced in 1997. They have one son. Pittman married Veronique Choa in 1997. They have two children.

Pittman's many honors include: Robert F. Kennedy Memorial's 2000 “Ripple of Hope Award” for his commitment to civic and community affairs and his contributions to the advancement of education; receiving the Broadcasters Foundation of America's 2016 'Golden Mike Award'; induction into the Advertising Hall of Fame and the Broadcasting and Cable Hall of Fame; received Adweek’s first Media Visionary award in 2013 and Cablevision Magazine's "20/20 Vision" award for the 20 people who have had the greatest impact on the cable industry; selection as one of Advertising Age’s "10 Marketers Who Changed American Culture” and "50 Pioneers and Visionaries of TV" and recognition as one of Business Week magazine's Top 25 Executives of 1998. He was also named one of Life magazine's "Five Original Thinkers of the '80s"; recognized as the eighth of Life magazine's "50 Most Influential Boomers"; included in Time magazine's 1984 Man-of-the-Year issue "Seven Others who Succeeded"; received the "Star of Hope Award” in January 2014 from the Community Foundation of Northwest Mississippi; was named Success Magazine’s “Pioneer of the New American Start-Up” in 1989; received the 1986 White House Conference on Small Business Award for Entrepreneurial Excellence and the 1984 Council of Fashion Designers of America award; Performance Magazine’s 1982 “Innovator of the Year” award for his work developing MTV and Billboard Magazine’s “Radio Program Manager of the Year” in 1977. In October 2012, he was awarded the Henry A. Grunwald Award for Public Service by Lighthouse International. He also received the American Academy of Achievement’s Golden Plate Award in 1990; International Teleproduction Society’s Lifetime Achievement International Monitor Award and The President's Award and an Honorary Doctorate from Bank Street College of Education, the school's highest honor, for his many contributions to the advancement of education.