Bill Roedy
Distinguished soldier, global media pioneer, freedom champion, and global health leader Bill Roedy “might be the most interesting man in the world,” says Mike Fries, CEO and Vice Chair of Liberty Global. “He’s somebody who commanded nuclear silos in the Cold War, was friends with Mandela, and partied with Bono.” Upon graduation, Mr. Roedy volunteered for duty in Vietnam, earning the Bronze Star, Air Medal, and Vietnamese Cross of Gallantry. He then commanded nuclear missiles as part of NATO and received the Meritorious Service Medal. Graduating from Harvard with an MBA in 1979, Mr. Roedy joined HBO in the nascent days of cable television. Ten years later, he led a relentless expansion of MTVN Europe with a unique model of respecting and reflecting local audience diversity, including behind the Iron Curtain, bringing a ground-breaking window to the West. Mr. Roedy was soon promoted to Chair and CEO of MTVNI, where he built a global operation (200-plus channels, 200-plus countries, 30-plus languages, for 2 billion-plus people) and pioneered the concept of global corporate responsibility. Under Mr. Roedy’s leadership, MTVNI became the world leader in fighting HIV/AIDS with its “Staying Alive” campaign, and he chaired the Global Business Coalition addressing the UN General Assembly. His far-reaching global health roles have included the first Ambassador for UNAIDS, Chair of the American Foundation for AIDS Research (amfAR) and Vice Chair for the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunizations (GAVI), which has saved millions of children’s lives. Mr. Roedy’s numerous awards include UN Global Citizen, the Emmy Founder Award, the West Point Distinguished Graduate Award, and induction into the Cable Hall of Fame. Regarding Mr. Roedy’s work in the global health arena, Jeb Bush, 43rd Governor of Florida, says, “Bill is without a doubt a distinguished citizen of our world.”
In 2011, Mr. Roedy received an honorary degree and delivered the 54th John Findley Green Foundation Lecture at Westminster College in Fulton, Missouri, joining Winston Churchill, Margaret Thatcher, and Mikhail Gorbachev as speakers in the College’s most distinguished lectureships. Mr. Roedy is a Churchill Fellow of Westminster College.
Mr. Roedy had the audacious idea of bringing MTV to East Germany, helping topple the Wall that divided the country for more than three decades. Like Westminster College, he possesses a generous section of the Berlin Wall. Mr. Roedy’s piece is inscribed with a personal message from former Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev, which reads, “Music is more powerful than missiles.”
America’s National Churchill Museum and Westminster College salute Mr. Roedy’s tenacious spirit and Churchillian bravery, which served to tear down a wall while pioneering history in a new direction.