On Veterans Day, we, along with the entire internet and television industry, join together to recognize this special day and honor our country’s military veterans. But Veterans Day is just one of many days throughout the year in which our industry rallies and encourages recognition and support of individuals who have selflessly served our country.
Here are just a few of the myriad of efforts taking place today and everyday within our industry:
A&E’s HISTORY channel continues their “Take A Veteran to School Day,” a national program launched in 2007 to encourage schools nationwide to teach students about the meaning behind Veterans Day and the sacrifices made by veterans. Veterans are invited to speak to students during classes and assemblies to share their diverse experiences and backgrounds. HISTORY also provides curriculum guides to help teachers find ways to incorporate the program into classroom curriculum.
Comcast took their commitment to veterans to a whole new level by creating a new position, Vice President of Military and Veteran Affairs, to oversee the hiring of veterans and to ensure their smooth transition into the workforce. The company also made the ambitious goal to hire 10,000 veterans between 2015 and 2017 and they are well on their way to making that happen. In 2015 alone they hired nearly 2,400 veterans, already a 38 percent gain from the previous year.
At Discovery Communications, the network boasts a website dedicated to job resources and career training for veterans, which includes job banks to help streamline the job search and information on available careers. The site’s goal is to give veterans a glimpse of what life looks like in a post-active duty world.
HBO hosted a “Storytellers” program at HBO’s New York City theater as part of a veteran empowerment campaign called Got Your 6. The event featured veterans and showcased powerful stories told through TED-style talks. The aim of Got Your 6 is to shift the narrative about veterans away from seeing them as “broken heroes” and back towards important leaders and contributors. A&E and NBC Universal are also partners of the initiative, providing resources and strategic direction for the campaign.
Of course, we can’t forget the only industry-wide initiative dedicated to veterans, Mission Media. Mission Media is a consortium of organizations dedicated to creating a sustainable platform for hiring veterans, for retaining them and to highlight the internet and television industry as a “best place to work” environment. NCTA is a proud member of Mission Media. This past year, the group put on “Veterans Institute: Heroes Work Here” program for the first time. The one-day workshop gathered together human resources professionals from media and entertainment companies to discuss strategies to recruit, hire, and train veterans for positions in their companies.
These are just a few examples of our industry’s commitment to recognizing and ensuring that our nation’s veterans have a chance to succeed after their service to our country and to contribute their invaluable skills to our ever-evolving digital and media landscape.