RTS Unveils Steve Hewlett Memorial Lecturer

The Royal Television Society’s (RTS) annual Steve Hewlett Memorial Lecture is set to be delivered by Mark Thompson, president and CEO of The New York Times Company and former director general of the BBC.

The event will take place on Tuesday, September 24. Thompson’s address will tackle issues of timely relevance for those working in the U.K. broadcast and associated industries. The net proceeds from the event will go to the Steve Hewlett Scholarship Fund, which provides financial assistance to journalism and TV production students from low-income backgrounds.

The annual lecture and the scholarship fund were established by The Media Society and the RTS in memory of journalist Steve Hewlett who died in February 2017. Last year’s lecture was delivered by BBC Director of Content Charlotte Moore and focused on championing human storytelling in a data-led world, calling out parts of the industry more focused on what they can take from audiences, instead of what they can give back.

Thompson said: “I knew Steve Hewlett for more than thirty years and saw him develop first into a brilliant and iconoclastic program-maker and then into the most insightful media commentator of his generation. No one understood our industry better than Steve, which is why it’s such an honor—and a challenge—to be asked to give the third annual Hewlett lecture.”

Theresa Wise, chief executive officer of the RTS, said: “The RTS and The Media Society are so delighted that Mark Thompson is giving this year’s Steve Hewlett Memorial Lecture. As CEO of The New York Times Company, and former director general of the BBC, Mark has a unique perspective on our political condition—here and in the US. He knew Steve well and his talk will be a fitting tribute to the great man.”