The National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences is a professional service organization founded in 1955 to advance the arts and sciences of television and the promotion of creative leadership for artistic, educational and technical achievements within the television industry. Headquartered in New York City, NATAS membership is national and the organization has local chapters around the country. It was also known as the National Television Academy until 2007.
Organization
The NationalAcademy of Television Arts & Sciences was founded in 1955. It is dedicated to the advancement of the arts and sciences of television and the promotion of creative leadership for artistic, educational and technical achievements within the television industry. It recognizes excellence in television with the coveted Emmy® Award. Regional Emmy® Awards are given in nineteen regions across the United States. National Awards are given for Daytime Entertainment, News & Documentary, Community Service, Sports and Technology & Engineering. Beyond awards, NATAS has extensive educational programs including Regional Student Television Awards for outstanding journalistic work by high school students, as well as scholarships, publications, and major activities for both industry professionals and the viewing public. Information on the NATAS Foundation can be found here: http://emmyonline.com/scholarships One of its past presidents, Don DeFore, was instrumental in arranging for the Emmy Awards to be broadcast on national TV for the first time on March 7, 1955. Other past presidents include John Cannon, Peter Price, Frank Radice and Bob Mauro.
Programs
NATAS distributes several groups of Emmy Awards, including the Daytime Emmy Awards, the Sports Emmy Awards, the News and Documentary Emmy Awards, the Technology and Engineering Emmy Awards, and "Public Service". NATAS also supervised the Primetime Emmy Awards until a split between the East and West memberships in the 1970s led to the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences leaving NATAS. ATAS supervises the Primetime and Los Angeles area Emmys, while NATAS is in charge of the other Emmy honors. In 2007, the organization spawned a peer organization dedicated to new media, called the NationalAcademy of Media Arts & Sciences. NATAS published a magazine, Television Quarterly, which started in 1962. 19 Regional NATAS chapters organize award ceremonies of their own, awarding Emmy statues similar to those given out at the national ceremonies. They also administer their own regional scholarship and student productions award programs.
