Washington, D.C. – Erica Farber, former President and CEO of the Radio Advertising Bureau, has been named the 2025 Broadcast Education Association (BEA) Distinguished Education Service Award (DESA) winner.
Farber joined the Radio Advertising Bureau organization in January 2012, as Executive Vice President, and within months was promoted to President & CEO. Prior to joining the RAB, she was CEO of the radio consulting and Internet service provider, The Farber Connection LLC, a firm she founded in 2010. During her fifteen-year tenure at Radio & Records, Farber held various positions including COO, President, CEO & Publisher. Her focus was to consistently make a difference by educating their readers, customers, and clients each day. Farber stepped down from her post as President and CEO of RAB in April 2024. However, we remain inspired by her efforts and accomplishments every day.
Farber has held nearly every position in Radio Sales & Management including rising through the ranks at the INTEREP Companies and serving as Executive Vice President/Radio Development Director. During the early years of her career, she held local sales positions at KRTH-FM, KABC-TV, and KIIS-AM in Los Angeles. Her radio management career grew quickly when she was appointed General Sales Manager and General Manager of WROR-FM in Boston in the same year. Her success then led to an appointment as Vice President/General Manager of WXLO-FM, In New York.
In 2000, Ms. Farber received an American Broadcast Pioneer Award from the Broadcasters’ Foundation and has consistently been voted one of “The Most Influential Women in Radio” by the readers of Radio Ink Magazine. In 2009, she was awarded the inaugural Trailblazer award by the Mentoring & Inspiring Women in Radio Group (MIW), a group she was a founding member of in its inception in 1999. In 2012 she was named one of the Giants of Broadcasting by the Library of American Broadcasting. In October of 2020, she received the National Service Award from NABOB, the National Association of Black Owned Broadcasters for her leadership and dedication to promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion in the radio industry. And in October 2021, she was inducted into the National Radio Hall of Fame.
The Broadcasters Foundation of America awarded her the 2024 Lowry Mays Excellence in Broadcasting Award. She also received the Lifetime Leadership Award from Radio Ink in the same year. The MIW’s presented her with the inaugural Impact Award in 2024 honoring a woman who has effected positive change on multiple fronts and the award has now been named the Erica Farber Impact Award. Earlier this year the MIW’s launched the Erica Farber Mentorship in Management program designed to elevate women in senior leadership across all facets of the radio industry.
She serves as a Director on the Boards of the Broadcasters Foundation of America and the Library of American Broadcasting. She is also on advisory boards of the Mentoring & Influencing Women in Radio (MIW), College Broadcasters Inc and the Alliance for Women in Media. She is a graduate of the Nashville Leadership Music Class of 2020.
The DESA is awarded to an individual who has made a significant and lasting contribution to the American system of electronic media education. The award will be presented to Erica Farber during BEA’s 2025 annual convention awards ceremony on Saturday, April 5, 2025. For a list of previous recipients and information on the DESA visit BEA’s website.
About the BEA Convention – BEA’s annual convention is held in conjunction with NAB Show in Las Vegas every spring. Located at the Las Vegas Convention Center, BEA’s annual convention attracts 1,200 educators and students with 250 sessions, events, research panels, technology workshops and an exhibit hall, making BEA the largest conference partner of NAB Show.
About the Broadcast Education Association (BEA) – BEA is the premiere international academic media organization, driving insights, excellence in media production, and career advancement for educators, students, and professionals. There are currently more than 2,300 individual and institutional members worldwide. Visit www.beaweb.org for more information.