Past First Amendment Award Winners

First Amendment Leadership Award

RTDNF presents this award annually to a business or government leader who has made a significant contribution to the protection of the First Amendment and freedom of the press.

  • 1992 Allen Neuharth
  • 1993 Frank Stanton
  • 1994 James Quello
  • 1995 Tom Johnson
  • 1996 Howard Stringer
  • 1997 Robert L. Johnson
  • 1998 Roone Arledge
  • 1999 Bob Wright
  • 2000 R. E. "Ted" Turner
  • 2001 Don Hewitt
  • 2002 Katharine Graham
  • 2003 Floyd Abrams
  • 2004 Charles Grassley and Patrick Leahy
  • 2005 Jim Keelor
  • 2006 Hurricane Katrina Station Groups:
    Belo Corp. (WWL-TV)
    Clear Channel Broadcasting (WBUV-FM, WKNN-FM, WMJY-FM,WQYZ-FM, KHEV-FM, WNOE-FM, WODT-AM, WQUE-FM and WYLD-AM/FM)
    Emmis Communications (WVUE-TV)
    Entercom Communications (WWL-AM)
    Hearst-Argyle Television, Inc. (WDSU-TV)
    Liberty Corporation (WLOX-TV) and Tribune Broadcasting (WGNO-TV)
  • 2007 Roger Ailes
  • 2008 Tom Curley
  • 2009 Google, Inc.
  • 2010 David Westin
  • 2011 David Barrett
  • 2012 Steve Capus


Leonard Zeidenberg First Amendment Award


RTDNF presents this award annually to a radio or television journalist or news executive who has made a major contribution to the protection of First Amendment freedoms. It is named for the late Broadcasting & Cable senior correspondent, Leonard Zeidenberg.

  • 1992 James Snyder
  • 1993 John Chancellor
  • 1994 David Brinkley
  • 1995 Walter Cronkite
  • 1996 Carole Simpson
  • 1997 Jane Pauley
  • 1998 Mike Wallace
  • 1999 Christiane Amanpour
  • 2000 Diane Sawyer
  • 2001 Jim Lehrer
  • 2002 Sam Donaldson
  • 2003 Judy Woodruff
  • 2004 Andrea Mitchell
  • 2005 Ed Bradley
  • 2006 Gwen Ifill
  • 2007 Bob Woodruff and Kimberly Dozier
  • 2008 Bob Schieffer
  • 2009 Cokie Roberts
  • 2010 Brian Williams
  • 2011 Wolf Blitzer
  • 2012 Martha Raddatz


First Amendment Service Award

This award honors professionals in local or network news who work in an off-air, management, largely behind-the-scenes capacity.

  • 1998 Betty Cole Dukert
  • 1999 Marty Haag
  • 2000 Lee Giles
  • 2001 Gary Wordlaw
  • 2002 Fred Young
  • 2003 Susan Zirinsky
  • 2004 Walter Ulloa
  • 2005 Wendy Walker Whitworth
  • 2006 William Wheatley
  • 2007 Philip Balboni
  • 2008 Paula Madison
  • 2009 Susan Grant
  • 2010 Harvey Nagler
  • 2011 Susana Schuler
  • 2012 Marci Burdick

First Amendment Award

  • 2008 Richard Wiley
  • 2009 John S. and James L. Knight Foundation
  • 2010 Barbara Cochran & Marcellus Alexander
  • 2012 Jim Bohannon

RTDNF Lifetime Achievement Award

  • 2012 Andy Rooney