David Barrett is President and Chief Executive Officer of Hearst Television Inc.
Hearst Television is regarded as one of the country's preeminent television companies, recognized for excellence in local news, distinguished community service, and competitive leadership in markets across America.
Barrett joined Hearst in 1984 as General Manager of the company's Baltimore radio stations, later assuming General Manager responsibility for the Hearst Radio Group, and then for WBAL-TV in Baltimore. He relocated to New York in 1991 as Vice President of Hearst Corporation and Deputy General Manager of Broadcasting, with operating oversight for the company's television and radio stations. In 1997, at the merger of Hearst Broadcasting and Argyle Television into Hearst-Argyle Television, Inc., Barrett was Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer. He was named President and Chief Executive Officer in 2001. Hearst-Argyle Television was publicly traded on the NYSE from 1998 until 2009, when it was taken by private by Hearst Corporation and re-named Hearst Television.
Barrett, a director of Hearst Corporation, is also a trustee of the trust established under the will of William Randolph Hearst and a director of The Hearst Foundations. He also serves on the boards of directors of the Association for Maximum Service Television, Inc. (MSTV), the Emma L. Bowen Foundation, the Broadcasters Foundation, the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB), and the NAB's Education Foundation (NABEF).
Barrett is a past Chairman of the Board of Governors for the ABC Television Affiliates Association and the Federal Communications Commission's Media Security and Reliability Council (MSRC II), and has previously served on the boards of directors of the International Radio and Television Society (IRTS), the Advertising Council, and Internet Broadcasting Systems, Inc.
Barrett has been the recipient of numerous industry honors. In 2011 he received the DiGamma Kappa Distinguished Achievement Award in Broadcasting from the University of Georgia's Grady College of Journalism, which bestows the annual Peabody Awards, and the First Amendment Leadership Award from The Radio Television Digital News Foundation. In 2008 he was inducted into the Broadcasting & Cable Hall of Fame. In 2005 he was the recipient of The Media Institute's American Horizon Award and was also inducted into the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences Management Hall of Fame. In 2004 he was named Broadcasting & Cable magazine's "Broadcaster of the Year."
