Hearst Television, owner of WJCL ABC 22 has been honored with the National Association of Broadcasters’ 2019 Service to America Award for Television, in the Ownership Group category.

The NAB Leadership Foundation (NABLF), the philanthropic arm of the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB), annually presents the Celebration of Service to America Awards honoring the outstanding public service commitment of local television and radio broadcasters.

Hearst Television was honored for its in-depth political and public affairs programming. This included its stations’ 2018 election coverage effort, under the “Commitment 2018” banner, resulting in more than 200 hours of aggregate coverage of political discourse – including news stories, interviews, features and debates – throughout the season, as well as the innovative and insightful discourse advanced by Hearst Television's syndicated weekly talk program "Matter of Fact with Soledad O'Brien."

“Our market saw several high-profile elections in November, not the least of which was the Georgia gubernatorial race,” said WJCL President and General Manager Timothy J. Morrissey. “We’re very proud of our coverage and honored to be part of a group that places such a premium on quality information and strengthening our democracy.”

Hearst Television also recently was honored with its 10th consecutive groupwide Walter Cronkite Award for Excellence in Television Political Journalism, given by the USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism.