The North American Broadcasters Association has honored two of its members — Robert Briskman and Mike Starling. In Toronto-based NABA, public and private network broadcasters work together to provide a common voice for broadcasters in Canada, Mexico and the United States.
Briskman, co-founder and technical director of what was Sirius Satellite Radio and is now SiriusXM, has been the company representative to NABA for 10 years and a NABA director for seven years. He’s planning to retire, we’ve reported.
Briskman has also been NABA president since 2012 and recently received NABA’s International Achievement Award which “recognizes individuals who have demonstrated extraordinary leadership in broadcasting and commitment to the organization’s goals and principles,” according to the group.
As the technical innovator of mobile satellite radio services, Briskman is responsible for the original development, implementation, and operation of the Sirius broadcast distribution system. He was part of the early years of both COMSAT and the National Aeronautics & Space Administration and has 32 successful satellite launches under his belt, according to NABA.
NABA now has a new president, CBS SVP East Coast Operations Robert Ross.
The other honoree, Mike Starling, recently retired as executive director of NPR Labs. NABA recently honored him to recognize his “outstanding leadership in the broadcast industry,” according to the association. From multicasting on new HD Radio channels, to receiver certifications and accessible public radio services for the visually and hearing impaired, NPR Labs has been at the forefront of recent broadcast radio developments, notes NABA.
Starling chaired NABA’s Technical Committee for eight years and was a NABA vice-president for the last six. He laid the ground work for NABA’s first Radio Standing Committee, according to the group.
