NAB Awards

“The Muppet Show” premiered in 1976 and garnered national and international acclaim, later leading to eight feature films. Other television credits include “Fraggle Rock,” “Jim Henson’s The Storyteller,” “The Jim Henson Hour,” and “Jim Henson’s Muppet Babies,” which was awarded four consecutive Emmys for “Outstanding Animated Program.” 

As part of the award presentation, Brian Henson will recreate a sketch from one of his father’s earliest television successes: a twice-daily, five-minute show, “Sam and Friends,” which aired on the NBC-owned WRC-TV Washington, D.C. in his first year at the University of Maryland.

“At his core, my father was a pioneering, innovative artist with an insatiable curiosity. In the earliest days of TV, he simply wanted to be a part of this exciting technology that was the newest form of storytelling. Puppetry was his way in and he never looked back. We are grateful to the NAB for recognizing Jim Henson’s ongoing contributions to television,” said Lisa Henson.

His 50-year broadcast career began as a high school student at WOIA-AM in Saline, Michigan. He stayed on the air throughout college in Michigan, working at WTRK-AM Flint, WERX-AM Grand Rapids and WILS-AM Lansing. Landecker later entertained listeners with stints at WIBG-FM Philadelphia; CFTR-AM Toronto; WPHR-FM Cleveland, Ohio; WJMK-FM Chicago; and WGN-AM Chicago.

“John Records Landecker has had a profound impact on radio and has inspired generations of new talent,” said NAB Executive Vice President of Industry Affairs Steve Newberry. “His induction into the Broadcasting Hall of Fame symbolizes the personal connection between DJs and their audiences and how innovative personalities can influence radio programming.”

Additionally, Landecker has released six albums of his work and written an autobiography titled “Records Truly Is My Middle Name.” He currently hosts a weekly program on his hometown station WEFM-FM Michigan City, Ind.

Landecker was inducted into the National Radio Hall of Fame in 2017 and was named Billboard Magazine’s Radio Personality of the Year in 1977. His on-air talent and contributions to the radio industry are memorialized in the radio exhibit at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland.

Last year’s NAB Broadcasting Hall of Fame inductee for radio was Urban One Founder Cathy Hughes. Explore the complete list of past inductees here.

“America’s Funniest Home Videos” is a timeless fixture in American broadcasting, crowdsourcing short, comedic films in the midst of the camcorder boom and continuing to thrive into the age of viral video sharing,” said NAB CEO and President Gordon Smith. “It is our honor to recognize a show that has entertained families for more than three decades.”

Vin Di Bona is the executive producer and creator of “AFV.” Additionally, Di Bona produced “Entertainment Tonight” in the early 1980s and later served as a producer for one season of the ABC series “MacGyver.”

Current host Alfonso Ribeiro is an actor, director, award-winning dancer and Broadway star. Best known for his role as Carlton Banks on “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air,” Ribeiro took over as host of “AFV” in 2015.
Tom Bergeron served as host of “AFV” for fifteen seasons, beginning in 2001, and continues to host ABC’s “Dancing With the Stars.” He has hosted five national network TV shows throughout his nearly 50 years in broadcasting and is one of America’s most popular television hosts.

“Full House” star Bob Saget was host of “AFV” from its debut in 1989 through the show’s first eight seasons. He is also a Grammy-nominated stand-up comedian.

Prior to joining Entercom, Crowley held several digital and content leadership positions at CBS, including executive vice president of digital for CBS Radio, senior vice president of CBS Brand Studio, and senior vice president and general manager of digital for CBS Television Distribution.

Terry Crews stars as Lt. Terry Jeffords in NBC’s Golden Globe Award-winning comedy “Brooklyn Nine-Nine” and is host of NBC’s “America’s Got Talent” and “America’s Got Talent: The Champions.”

Crews is an actor, comedian, activist and artist. He is well known for his humorous pitchman persona in numerous national commercials, his memorable action-movie hero role in “The Expendables” franchise and for his breakthrough television performances in sitcoms such as “Everybody Hates Chris,” and host of various competition shows, including “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire.”

“Terry Crews’ unique ability to entertain audiences transcends traditional television crossing a variety of genres and mediums,” said NAB Television Board Chair Emily Barr. “He is a steadfast advocate for human rights, and we are humbled to present him with this well-deserved honor.”

Crews’ film credits include “Sorry to Bother You,” “Deadpool 2,” “White Chicks,” “Idiocracy,” and several popular Adam Sandler films, including “Blended” and “The Longest Yard.” His upcoming roles include appearances in the highly anticipated animated features “The Willoughby’s” and “Rumble.”

Beyond the screen, Crews was named one of Time magazine’s 2017 Persons of the Year as one of the “Silence Breakers,” speaking out against sexual harassment as part of the #MeToo movement. He also works with the Polaris Project, a leading non-profit organization in the global fight against human trafficking and modern-day slavery, for which he was awarded the UN Global Generation Award.

Stenberg has also co-written a handbook on digital television implementation and presented technical papers at numerous NAB, SBE, and IEEE conferences. Prior to joining American Tower in 2013, Stenberg ran his own consulting and field service business for eight years and worked for several antenna and RF system manufacturers during his 33 years in broadcast.

Welton is also a frequent lecturer and author on digital radio, radio technology and radio engineering, including numerous articles and three chapters in the 11th edition of the NAB Engineering Handbook. He received the 2019 Association of Public Radio Engineers Engineering Achievement Award and the SBE James C. Wulliman Educator of the Year award in 2018.