June 3, 2019 - Issue: Vol. 165, No. 92 — Daily Edition116th Congress (2019 - 2020) - 1st Session

[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E692]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        RECOGNIZING CATHY HUGHES

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. JAMIE RASKIN

                              of maryland

                    in the house of representatives

                          Monday, June 3, 2019

  Mr. RASKIN. Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize Cathy Hughes, 
who was recently inducted into the National Association of Broadcasters 
Hall of Fame, making her the first African American woman to receive 
that honor. Cathy's world-famous business, Radio One (now Urban One), 
is headquartered in my district, in Silver Spring, Maryland, and I am 
very proud of her and the more than 1,000 people employed there by 
Urban One.
  Cathy began her radio career at KOWH-AM in her hometown of Omaha, 
Nebraska. In 1971, she became a lecturer at the newly established 
School of Communications at Howard University, and served as general 
sales manager at WHUR, Howard University Radio.
  She also became the first female Vice President and General Manager 
of a station in the Nation's Capital and pioneered the format known as 
the ``Quiet Storm,'' which aired on more than 480 stations nationwide. 
In 1980, Cathy purchased her flagship station WOL-AM, in Washington, 
D.C., and pioneered yet another innovative format--``24-Hour Talk from 
a Black Perspective.'' With the theme, ``Information is Power,'' she 
served as the station's morning show host for 11 years.
  In 1999, Cathy became the first African-American woman to chair a 
publicly-held corporation. Along with her son and business partner, she 
grew what was then Radio One into a multi-media company that became an 
urban radio market leader with more than 60 stations across the 
country. It became the first African-American company in radio history 
to dominate several major markets simultaneously, and Cathy became the 
first woman to own a radio station that was ranked number one in a 
major market.
  I commend Cathy Hughes for her pioneering contributions over the 
course of her career and congratulate her on her induction into the 
National Association of Broadcasters' Broadcasting Hall of Fame.

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