Cable TV Pioneers Induct Class of '03

By Simon Applebaum
published

Keeping a National Show-eve tradition alive, Cable TV Pioneers welcomed its newest inductees at its annual Pioneers Dinner last night (June 8) in Chicago.

The occasion marked the 37th annual dinner for Cable TV Pioneers, which operates as a fellowship organization for industry veterans.

The class of 2003 honorees, listed alphabetically by last name, as follows:

  • Mother Angelica, Eternal Word Television Network's founder, chairman emeritus and still nightly call-in host;
  • Gary Arlen, president of Arlen Communications Inc. and Multichannel News
    technology columnist;
  • Gregory Armstrong, executive vice president, general manager for Liberty Media's Jupiter Telecom LTD subsidiary;
  • Lela Cocoros, co-founder, partner of public relations and outreach agency October Strategies Inc.;
  • W. Jay Dugan, former Communications Equity Associates senior executive, now heading investment banker Dugan Financial Inc.;
  • Dwight Duke, marking 25 years with Scientific-Atlanta, currently as senior vice president of transmission network systems;
  • Dean Gilbert, managing partner of Sandalwood Investments, following his tenure with Excite@Home;
  • Missy Goerner, senior consultant with Rogers Cable in Canada, more than two decades after serving as their U.S. programming vice president;
  • Keith Hayes, a former cable operator technical operations director, now COO for Gibson Technical Services;
  • Mark Hess, Comcast's vice president of digital television, with past tenures at Tele-Communications Inc. and Sega Channel;
  • Irvine Hill, vice president of public affairs for Cox Communications Inc.'s cable systems in Virginia;
  • Michael Jeffrey, co-founder, principal with strategic affairs consultant Robinson/Jeffrey Associates Inc.;
  • Steven Lowe Sr., vice president of the reconstituted Classic Cable, under Cequel III's management;
  • Donald Mitzner, former president of Group W Satellite Communications and CBS Cable, now retired from the cable industry;
  • Elizabeth Monigold, another executive serving at a reconstituted MSO as COO of Buford Media Group;
  • Charles Morris, one of cable's leading executive recruiters as owner, president of Warren & Morris Ltd.;
  • Patrick Murphy, nine years with Charter Communications Inc. as regional engineering vice president;
  • Thomas Puckett, chairman of HPC Puckett and Company, who has spent his cable career on small system brokerage assignments;
  • Dutch Robertson, president of Southern Sales Group Inc., previously with Augat Communications;
  • Robert Russo, The Cable Center's new president, CEO, after more than two decades with Daniels & Associates;
  • Douglas Semon, now in his sixth year as Time Warner Cable's vice president of technology standards;
  • Austin Shanfelter, president, CEO of cable construction organization Mastec, his workplace since 1997;
  • Joseph Taylor IV, Armstrong Utilities' go-to person on Internet operations, involved with the MSO since 1996;
  • Joseph Van Loan, for eight years, the senior vice president of technology at Mediacom Communications Corp.;
  • Lawrence White, senior vice president for Allied Bolt Inc., whose other industry roles included stints with TVC and Telewire Supply;
  • Michael Willner, Insight Communications Co. vice chairman, CEO, also in his second term as National Cable & Telecommunications Association chairman.

Cable TV Pioneers also conferred posthumous honors upon former Showtime Networks CEO Tony Cox and CommScope regional sales manager Edward Foust.

Simon Applebaum