The Broadcasting Board of Governors is losing another member. S. Enders Wimbush has stepped down.
Wimbush has been on the board since summer 2010 but has been associated with U.S. international broadcasting much longer; he was director of Radio Liberty in Munich, Germany, from 1987 to 1993.
In a statement, Presiding Governor Michael Lynton noted his leadership at RFE/RL “during the collapse of communism and the demise of the Soviet Union. Enders has brought quality, erudition and distinction to the mission of U.S. international media; what’s more, he put his heart and soul into it.”
The board normally consists of nine members with expertise in mass communications, broadcast media or international affairs. Four from each political party are appointed by the president and confirmed by the Senate, while the secretary of state serves ex officio, represented by the undersecretary for public diplomacy and public affairs.
Walter Isaacson resigned as board chair in January; his position remains vacant. Michael Lynton is interim presiding governor. Also currently on the board are Victor Ashe, Susan McCue, Michael Meehan, Dennis Mulhaupt, Dana Perino and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
Wimbush recently became senior director for foreign policy and civil society at the German Marshall Fund of the United States, according to the board, and he said the work was taking away from his ability to devote the necessary time and attention to BBG.
In his letter to the board he promised to “assist the BBG in its critical mission and in carrying forward its important reform and restructuring agenda.”
Wimbush also has worked for Booz Allen Hamilton; Science Applications International Corp.; the Rand Corp.; and Runzheimer International. He also directed the Society for Central Asian Studies in Oxford, England.
Related:
Isaacson Abruptly Leaves BBG (Jan. 2012)
