National Association of Television Program Executives

The National Association of Television Program Executives (NATPE) is a professional association of television and media executives, established in 1963.^[1] It operates as an non-profit organization.^[2]

Logo

NATPE provides its members with education, networking, professional enhancement, and technological guidance through year-round activities. It hosts an annual media conference that includes media executives and consumers.^{[citation needed]}

History

As television grew in popularity, program directors at U.S. stations sought a dedicated forum to discuss and address the challenges created by the Prime Time Access Rule, which assigned local stations responsibility for programming between 7 p.m. and 8 p.m. Encouraged by syndicated programming salesmen, 64 program directors, who would become NATPE’s charter members, appointed Stan Cohen of WDSU New Orleans as temporary president and began planning a meeting.

The first formal meeting of the National Association of Television Program Executives took place in May 1964 at the New York Hilton Hotel, attracting 71 registrants.The majority of participants were program directors. During the first two-day meeting in New York, the topics of discussion included “The Network’s Relationship to Local Programming,” “Where Do You Find Talent?”, “Government’s Influence on Programming,” and “Successful Formats for Handling Politicians & Political Issues.”

Over the past 40 years, NATPE has undergone significant changes. Membership grew from 64 to 210 by 1970, then to 1,206 in 1980, 1,818 in 1990, and peaked at 3,812 in January 2000. However, both membership and conference attendance declined sharply following the dot-com bust in 2001. In 2010, NATPE rebranded itself as NATPE Content First and began actively seeking new media and technology speakers, exhibitors, and attendees alongside its traditional television members. This shift helped the organization rebuild and expand its membership base.^{[according to whom?]}

The NATPE Educational Foundation was established in 1978 to build connections between the television industry, academia, and students. It aims to prepare students for careers in television by offering hands-on learning opportunities for both them and their teachers. NATPE’s Educational Foundation, underwritten by membership fees and the support of sponsors and special endowments, provides a number of annual fellowships, grants, and prizes to the academic community. Lew Klein, one of the founders of NATPE and an early president of the organization, continues his dedication to the association as president of the Educational Foundation.

In 2019, NATPE signed a partnership deal with China International Television Corporation (CITVC), a wholly owned subsidiary of Chinese state broadcaster China Central Television (CCTV).^[3]

NATPE announced in October 2022 that it planned to file for bankruptcy, stating that it was "optimistic that [NATPE] will emerge from the reorganization process in the same position."^[4] NATPE added that it still intended to hold its annual conference in January 2023 in the Bahamas,^[4] though the event was later cancelled.^[5]

Budapest

In 2011, NATPE acquired DISCOP EAST, which hosts an event covering the central and Eastern European media industry. The event is named NATPE Budapest.^[6]