Women's Media Center Announces 2015 Women's Media Awards Honorees

The Women's Media Center announces its honorees for The 2015 Women's Media Awards on Thursday November 5th at Capitale in New York City.

The honorees are:

Laura Bates, Award-winning Journalist, Author and Founder of the Everyday Sexism Project.

Mona Eltahawy, International Prize-winning Columnist, Author and Activist.

Gwen Ifill and Judy Woodruff, PBS Newshour Co-Anchors.

Marlo Thomas, Emmy, Golden Globe & Grammy-winning Actor, Producer and Activist.

Padmasree Warrior, former Chief Technology & Strategy Officer (CTO) of Cisco Systems.

The event, celebrating 10 years of the Women's Media Center, will feature a special appearance by breakout Comedian, Writer & Actor Amy Schumer.

The Women's Media Awards recognize and honor game-changers for women in media. By deciding who gets to talk, what creates the debate, who writes, and what is important enough to be visible, the media shapes our understanding of who we are and what we can be. The Women's Media Awards shine a light on this important issue.

Pat Mitchell, Chair of the Sundance Institute and Founding Co-Chair of The Women's Media Center, will present the Pat Mitchell Lifetime Achievement Award to Gwen Ifill and Judy Woodruff. "Judy Woodruff and Gwen Ifill have been trailblazers from the beginning of their careers in media until now when they have broken more new ground as the first women to co-anchor a network news program," says Pat Mitchell. "As the former President of PBS, it's indeed a privilege to honor them at the Women's Media Center's 10th anniversary gala and to acknowledge the commitment of PBS's leadership in promoting and advocating for women and a more inclusive view of the world. Judy and Gwen are women of great accomplishment who lead the way for others by modeling how to achieve success with integrity and how to open opportunities for others."

Gloria Steinem, Co-Founder of The Women's Media Center, will present the Breakthrough Media Award to Marlo Thomas. "Marlo Thomas is a trailblazer who continues to show the power of media to break molds and change perceptions," says Gloria Steinem. "At a time when women were seen in very limited roles on TV, That Girl, the ground-breaking series she starred in and produced, showed a working woman making her own way in the world, paving the way for the strong independent women we see in today's culture. Year after year, Marlo's landmark Free to Be ... You and Me influences a new generation of girls to not be limited by gender stereotypes. Marlo is an advocate for grassroots women's voices around the world, and as a performer, author, producer and activist, she continues to champion the rights of women to stand up and be seen."

Carol Jenkins, award-winning journalist, author and founding & former President of the Women's Media Center, will present the Carol Jenkins Visible and Powerful Media Award to Padmasree Warrior. "We are so thrilled to honor Padmasree Warrior, a powerful woman in technology and a strong STEM advocate for other girls and women who would pursue a similar path," says Carol Jenkins. "As Chief Technology Officer for two of the largest companies in the world, she has opened the path customarily closed: less than a quarter of the workforce in tech is comprised of women; 90 percent of those women are white. To have a woman of color like Padmasree, visible and powerful, means everything."

Robin Morgan, Co-Founder of The Women's Media Center, will present the Speaking Truth to Power Award to Mona Eltahawy. "Mona Eltahawy is a razor-sharp, award-winning Egyptian-American journalist. She's also a feminist thinker, an impassioned writer, and one hell of a brave woman ," says Robin Morgan. "In pursuing a story, she's weathered jail, sexual assaults, an attack by a male mob (including police) that broke both her arms, and repeated death threats. Yet she continues stubbornly to speak truth to power--in a voice at once intelligent and audacious."

Julie Burton, President of the Women's Media Center, will present the Digital Media Award to Laura Bates. "Laura Bates has created a global movement that clearly and compellingly brings women's quietly normalized experiences with violence and sexism to light," says Julie Burton. "The simple platform she provided opened a floodgate and gave girls and women a place to talk about issues - such as rape, street harassment, domestic violence, workplace discrimination, dress codes, sexism in media - that affect daily life. She relentlessly challenges people to pay attention to the culture we are immersed in and to speak up and do something about it. The Women's Media Center is proud to celebrate Laura and the Everyday Sexism Project."

"I am so proud that the Women's Media Center will be honoring such a diverse range of powerful and accomplished women this year," says Jane Fonda, two-time Academy Award-winning actor, humanitarian, activist and Co-Founder of The Women's Media Center, "These woman, in the courage and skill of their achievements, have been truly challenging how we see the world and making their voices heard."

Past WMC honorees include Luvvie Ajayi, Christiane Amanpour, Amma Asante, Ursula Burns, Katie Couric, Sady Doyle, Sarah Hoye, Sheila C. Johnson, Maria Teresa Kumar, Laura Ling and Lisa Ling, Lara Logan, Pat Mitchell, Martha Nelson, Soledad O'Brien, Elianne Ramos, Yanique Richards, Mary Thom (posthumously), Barbara Walters, Lindy West and Maggie Wilderotter.

The Co-Founders of the Women's Media Center are Jane Fonda, Robin Morgan and Gloria Steinem.

The Co-Chairs for The 2015 Women's Media Awards are Loreen Arbus, Jewelle Bickford, Jennifer and Peter Buffett, Lauren Embrey, Victoria Jackson, Sheila Johnson, Pat Mitchell, Dee Dee Myers, Bonnie Schaefer, Regina K. Scully, Pamela Shifman, and Mary and Steven Swig.

The Women's Media Center

The Women's Media Center, co-founded by Jane Fonda, Robin Morgan, and Gloria Steinem, works to make women visible and powerful in media. The Women's Media Center trains women leaders to be in the media; promotes women experts to the media through WMC SheSource; conducts groundbreaking research and reporting on media inclusion and accuracy; features women's voices and stories on our radio program "Women's Media Center Live with Robin Morgan" and through WMC Features, WMC Fbomb, WMC Speech Project and WMC Women Under Siege.

"The Women's Media Center exists to change the status of women in media. Because 51 percent of our population is women, and only 3 percent of all clout positions in media are held by women, the Women's Media Center Awards were created to honor champions for women who use their media platforms to tell the stories, facts, and solutions crucial to all viewers, and to advance opportunities for women in media," says Julie Burton, President of the Women's Media Center. "Because media tells our stories and influences the role of women in every part of society, we are proud to honor these amazing women who set the standard for what media should look like when it gives voice to the female half of the country."

For table and ticket purchase information, call Garwood Events at 212-678-0231 or e-mail Nicole@garwoodevents.com.