An Award-Winning Producer


June 5, 2011

Heather Date holds Gracie Award statuette and smiles

By Menachem Wecker

For her 16th birthday present, Heather Date, B.A. ’98, toured the local television station WCVB in Needham, Mass., and met her favorite anchor, Natalie Jacobson. “I have always been captivated by journalism and media,” said Ms. Date, associate director of the Global Media Institute.

Ms. Date came to GW to study political communication, and was “hooked” right away. As a student, she volunteered at the Kalb Report, hosted by veteran journalist Marvin Kalb, and interned at ABC News’ Nightline and at CNN’s weekend interview programs.

Three days after graduating, Ms. Date started working at CNN on the programs Evans and Novak (with Rowland Evans and Robert Novak), Late Edition with Wolf Blitzer, Reliable Sources and Capital Gang. She later rejoined the GW community, first to work on the CNN debate program Crossfire, hosted on campus, and then to return to the Kalb Report.

Last week, the Alliance for Women in Media awarded Ms. Date a 2011 Gracie Award for “outstanding producer” in the news and non-fiction category. She received the award at an alliance ceremony in Beverly Hills, Calif., on May 25.

Mr. Kalb, a James Clark Welling presidential fellow at GW, was recently recognized himself for his work as host of the Kalb Report. The World Affairs Council awarded Mr. Kalb a Global Communications Award, and he served as master of ceremonies at the council’s Global Education Gala on March 9 in Washington, D.C.

“Quality and class define true winners,” said Michael Freedman, executive producer of the Kalb Report and executive director of the Global Media Institute, in a press release. “Marvin Kalb and Heather Date show us how it’s done program after program, year after year.”

Mr. Freedman called Ms. Date “a new role model for young women in the media and all who aspire to succeed in today’s challenging environment,” who combines “a deep knowledge of her craft with a great attitude, superb instincts, a creative mind, a wonderful sense of humor and amazing attention to detail.”

Ms. Date, who started volunteering at the Kalb Report in 1996, was thrilled to be honored by the Alliance for Women in Media. “It is especially meaningful to be recognized for work on a series that means so much to me,” she said.

She said the most gratifying part of working on the report has been collaborating with Mr. Kalb, “a true journalism legend,” and with “the extraordinarily talented” Mr. Freedman.

According to Ms. Date, there have been 72 Kalb Report programs since the series was created in 1994, and she has served as coordinating producer for nearly 800 CNN programs, in front of 123,000 viewers, while at GW. “We created classes involving the programs and engaged some 300 students in the project,” she said of the CNN programs. “It was one of the most fulfilling professional experiences I could ever imagine.”

Asked about her favorite Kalb Report programs, Ms. Date said all the guests have been “journalists and public officials who help shape our understanding of the world,” but singled out Walter Cronkite, Katie Couric, Diane Sawyer, Rupert Murdoch, Hillary Clinton, Donald Rumsfeld, Ken Burns, Christiane Amanpour, Bill O’Reilly and Bob Costas as some of the highlights.

Since 2007, Kalb Report programs have aired nearly 8,500 times on more than 280 stations across the country.

“In today’s media environment and sound bite culture, to work with our remarkable team to produce one-hour interviews with influential industry leaders – without commercial interruption – that are seen by our GW community, professional journalists and the general public is a special opportunity,” Ms. Date said, “one that I am deeply grateful for every day.”

Being selected by a jury of her peers at the Alliance for Women in Media is a “special honor” that means a “great deal” to Ms. Date.

“While I am honored and appreciative to have been selected as the recipient of this award, it is important to note that the Kalb Report is a true collaboration,” she said. “I am grateful to all of my colleagues for making this series so special to me – and to our fans.”

She also has great respect for the outstanding women and men who have been affiliated with the Alliance for Women in Media since it was founded 60 years ago. “Their work today to ensure that women are well-represented in this industry is as important as ever,” she said.

The Kalb Report series is produced by the GW Global Media Institute, The National Press Club and Harvard’s Shorenstein Center and is underwritten by a grant from the Ethics and Excellence in Journalism Foundation.