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(March 8, 2010) The Tennis Channel's Chief Executive is now part of the Chief Executive's team.
Tennis Channel CEO Ken Solomon supported Barack Obama's run for President. Solomon was sworn in as a member of President Obama’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities Wednesday in the U. S. Supreme Court. Justice Stephen Breyer administered the oath to committee members, including Mr. Solomon, who is currently Chairman of Ovation, the only television network dedicated to art and contemporary culture, and Chairman and CEO of Tennis Channel.
After being sworn in Wednesday, Solomon participated in a dinner honoring the 2009 National Medal of Arts and National Humanities Medal awardees, and attended a White House ceremony Thursday in which President Obama acknowledged the Committee during the Medal presentations. As a member of the President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities (“PCAH”), Solomon and his fellow committee members will work with federal cultural agencies, and civic, corporate, foundation, and private funders to further the United States ' national investment in its cultural life. The PCAH helps to underscore the civic, social, educational, and historical value of arts and humanities in the life of our nation.
"It is extremely humbling to be named to this esteemed committee, but the highest honor will come in what we’re able to accomplish," said Solomon. "Not only can we drive our nation’s economic growth via the arts and humanities, but through cultural diplomacy we seek to strengthen our relationship within the global family of nations as well. I welcome this service, the work ahead and the chance to advance the democratization of the arts through education."
With more than 25 years of television and multimedia experience, Mr. Solomon has held top posts with the Walt Disney Corp., Universal Television, DreamWorks, News Corp. and Scripps. He is currently vice chairman of the Young Presidents Organization Bel-Air (YPO) and has been named "Humanitarian of the Year" by H.E.L.P. Group, one of the largest and most influential children's charities in the United States , for which he serves on the Circle of Friends advisory board.
"I’m thrilled that my friend has been appointed to this crucial national committee," said Charles Segars, CEO of Ovation. "He works tirelessly for education and will be instrumental in PCAH’s efforts to promote the arts and arts education throughout the country."
Solomon joins such well-known and accomplished individuals as actors Edward Norton, Forest Whitaker, Kerry Washington, and Sarah Jessica Parker; American playwright and director George C. Wolfe, Vogue magazine editor Anna Wintour, Pulitzer prize winning author Jhumpa Lahiri; Grammy Award-winning classical cellist Yo-Yo Ma, and National Medal of Arts winning visual artist Chuck Close, to name a few.
The President's Committee on the Arts and the Humanities (PCAH) has served each Administration since 1982, advancing the White House's arts and humanities objectives by working directly with the three primary cultural agencies – National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH), Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) – to initiate and support key programs; to recognize excellence in the fields of arts and humanities; and to encourage private-public partnerships around those disciplines.
Through the leadership of its Honorary Chairman, the First Lady, Michelle Obama, and its federal and private members, the PCAH has compiled an impressive legacy over its tenure including initiating the Medal of Arts and the National Medal for the Humanities, catalyzing signature cultural programs such as Save America's Treasures, Coming Up Taller, and AFI Project: 20/20, and taking the lead on groundbreaking cultural delegations to countries such as China and Mexico.