WASHINGTON—Award-winning actress and producer America Ferrera will receive the NAB Television Chairman’s Award during the NAB Show Television Luncheon. The luncheon will be held Monday, April 24 at the Westgate Las Vegas Resort and Casino.

Ferrera is best known for her breakthrough role as Betty Suarez on ABC’s comedy “Ugly Betty.” She was recognized with a Golden Globe, Emmy, Screen Actors Guild Award, ALMA and Imagen Award for her performance.

Ferrera currently produces and stars as Amy in the second season of NBC’s workplace comedy “Superstore.” She is also a contributor in the EPIX TV mini-series “America Divided,” a five-part documentary that explores inequality in education, housing, healthcare, labor, criminal justice and other related topics.

“America Ferrera is an esteemed and versatile actress who not only entertains, but brings attention to a variety of important national and global issues,” said NAB Executive Vice President of Television Marcellus Alexander. “She is the embodiment of what this award represents.”

Ferrera most recently appeared in Showtime’s second season of the groundbreaking documentary “The Years of Living Dangerously.” She is the executive producer of Refinery 29’s “Behind the Headlines,” a multimedia experience comprising video, text and images dedicated to humanizing the conversations around issues that matter to women.

Upcoming, she will executive produce MACRO’s digital series “Gente-Fied,” a dramatic comedy featuring an all-Latino cast, which premiered at the 2017 Sundance Film Festival, and “Only Girl,” which is a docu-series investigating what it means to be a female in a male-dominated field, ranging from baseball players to airplane pilots.

Ferrera is a fierce advocate of both women and immigration rights, speaking about the issues at the historic Women’s March on Washington, D.C., the day after the presidential inauguration, and the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia in July 2016.

Established to recognize individuals for significant achievement in one or more specific art disciplines in television, the NAB Television Chairman's Award first debuted in 2009 with four-time Emmy and two-time Golden Globe-winning actor Kelsey Grammar as the recipient. The last recipient was film, television and stage actress Keke Palmer in 2016.

WASHINGTON—Veteran journalist and host of “CBS Sunday Morning,” Jane Pauley will emcee the 2017 NAB Show Opening on Monday, April 24 in Las Vegas.

Hearst President and CEO Steven Swartz is headlining the event, and National Association of Broadcasters President and CEO Gordon Smith will present the “State of the Broadcast Industry” address.

Pauley began her network career as co-host of “Today” for 13 years. She then anchored “Dateline NBC” for more than a decade and also hosted her own daytime program, “The Jane Pauley Show.”

“Jane Pauley is one of broadcast television’s most familiar faces,” said Gordon Smith. “We look forward to sharing the NAB Show stage with her and are honored to have her assistance in opening the world’s greatest media, entertainment and technology event.”

Pauley is the recipient of multiple Emmy Awards, the Walter Cronkite Award for Excellence in Journalism and the Edward R. Murrow Award for Outstanding Achievement. She is also the author of two New York Times Bestsellers: “Skywriting: A Life Out of the Blue” and “Your Life Calling: Reimagining the Rest of Your Life.”

WASHINGTON—SPROCKIT the NAB Show organizers are now accepting applications from startups to participate in SPROCKIT at the 2017 NAB Show and the year-long SPROCKIT Sync program. Interested companies must have market validation and prove the potential to significantly impact the media and entertainment industry. Applications may be submitted online here by Feb. 15.

Now in its fifth year, SPROCKIT will showcase up to 30 emerging companies, hand-selected by industry leaders, at the 2017 NAB Show – held April 22-27 in Las Vegas – and convene throughout the year at SPROCKIT Sync, a series of private forums where industry executives and entrepreneurs meet to collectively discuss new technologies that will advance the industry. Since its launch in 2013, nearly 100 emerging companies have participated in SPROCKIT, many of which have experienced successful funding rounds, partnerships and acquisitions.

SPROCKIT is created in collaboration with World Series of Startups, LLC and the National Association of Broadcasters. SPROCKIT corporate partners include Cox Media Group, Fox Networks Group, HCL Technologies, Hearst Television, Samsung Global Innovation Center, TEGNA, Univision Communications and Verizon Digital Media Services.

For more information about SPROCKIT, visit sprockitglory.com.