Linda Yaccarino is one of Adweek’s “Ten Most Powerful Women in TV,” a mother of two and newlyinstalled as head of advertising for NBCUniversal. Despite her demanding schedule and fast-paced career, Yaccarino still finds time to give back to the College and Penn State. For these reasons and more, Yaccarino (’85 Telcom) was named a 2011 Alumni Fellow by the Penn State Alumni Association. Yaccarino was honored in October with 23 other winners of the most prestigious award given by the Alumni Association; since its inception in 1973, only 689 alumni have been so honored. Yaccarino is the 45th College of Communications graduate to be given the permanent and lifelong title of Alumni Fellow. Just weeks after being honored, Yaccarino was named president for cable entertainment and digital advertising sales at NBCUniversal. In her new post, Yaccarino is responsible for all advertising sales for USA, Syfy, Bravo Media, E! Entertainment, Oxygen Media, Style, G4, Sprout, Chiller, Cloo and their respective digital platforms. Additionally, Yaccarino will oversee the sales efforts for NBC.com, AccessHollywood.com, NBCSports.com, NBCOlympics.com and GolfChannel. Previously, she was an advertising
Linda Yaccarino, recently installed as head of advertising for NBCUniversal, was named an Alumni Fellow earlier this year.
executive at Turner Entertainment, holding the dual roles of executive vice president and chief operating officer of ad sales/marketing and acquisitions. Yaccarino has been an active volunteer on behalf of the College. At Turner’s Manhattan’s Time Warner Center, she annually hosted more than 400 students who attend the College’s “Success in the City” job fair. In addition to acting as a mentor to current students and her frequent guest lecture appearances on campus, she also serves on the College’s “For the Future: The Campaign for Penn State Students” committee. Yaccarino lives in Seacliff, N.Y.,
with her husband, Claude, and their two children, Matthew and Christian. Matthew is a member of the College of Communications class of 2014 and is a goalie for the Penn State ice hockey team. The Alumni Fellow program is administered by the Penn State Alumni Association in cooperation with the University’s academic colleges, campuses and the Office of the President. Alumni are nominated by a college or campus as leaders in their respective professional fields. Upon receipt of the award, Fellows are invited to return to campus to share their experiences with students, faculty and administrators. At the awards ceremony, each Fellow receives a commemorative award, designed and hand cast by alumna Jeanne Stevens-Sollman, an acclaimed sculptor and an Alumni Fellow herself. The Alumni Association is the largest dues-paying alumni association in the world with more than 164,000 members. Established in 1870, the Alumni Association strives to connect alumni to the University and to each other, provide valuable benefits to members and support the University’s mission of teaching research and service. For more information about the Alumni Association, go to http://www.alumni.psu.edu online. G
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TV Executive Yaccarino Named Alumni Fellow