Paula Madison

Paula Madison is the President and General Manager of NBC4 (KNBC), NBC's owned and operated station in Los Angeles. Named to the position in November 2000, she is the first African American woman to become general manager at a network-owned station in a top five market. She was also named Regional General Manager for the two NBC/Telemundo television stations in Los Angeles, KVEA and KWHY, when the NBC network purchased the Telemundo network in April 2002.

In addition to her duties as President and General Manager, Madison served as Vice President and Senior Vice President of Diversity for NBC from February 2000 to May 2002. In this capacity, she reported directly to network Chairman Robert Wright and chaired the NBC Diversity Council, on which she continues as an active member.

Madison joined NBC4 from WNBC, NBC's station in New York, where she was the station's Vice President and News Director since March 1996. Under her direction, WNBC became the number one television station in New York in May 1999, and, later that year closed out the November sweeps finishing first in all local newscasts for the first time in 16 years. Madison came to NBC in 1989 as WNBC's assistant news director and was promoted to news director in March 1996.

Prior to her work with WNBC, Madison was the executive news director at KHOU-TV in Houston, Texas (1987 to 1989) and the news director at KOTV-TV in Tulsa, Oklahoma (1986 - 1987). She began her career in television news as a community affairs director at WFAA-TV, Dallas, Texas in 1982 and then moved into a news manager position at the station in 1984.

A graduate of Vassar College, Madison's first news position was as a print reporter for the Syracuse Herald Journal in Syracuse, New York (1974-'80). She also worked as an investigative bureau reporter, Fort Worth Star-Telegram in Fort Worth, Texas (1980-'82) and as an assistant city editor, Dallas Times Herald, Dallas, Texas ('82).

Known for her community involvement and corporate leadership, Madison has earned a number of awards including the California National Organization of Women’s 2003 Excellence in Media Award, the 2002 National Association of Minority Media Executives' Diversity Award; Los Angeles County Commission for Women 2002 Woman of the Year Award; Los Angeles NAACP President's Award (2001); the United Negro College Fund's Frederick C. Patterson Award (2001); the Asian-Pacific American Corporate Impact Award and the Organization of Chinese Americans Greater Los Angeles Chapter Image Award for Corporate Achievement.

A native of Harlem, New York, Madison is active in many organizations including the National Association of Black Journalists, the International Women’s Media Foundation, the National Medical Fellowship and the Maynard Institute for Journalism Education. She also serves on the Vassar College Board of Trustees and is president of the 35,000 Alumni Association of Vassar College. She and her husband reside in Los Angeles and have one daughter, who is a third year medical student.


Back to Top