The Radio and Television Engineering Achievement Awards are given to individuals who are nominated by their peers for significant contributions to advancing broadcast engineering.
The National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) has announced that David Kolesar of Hubbard Radio and consulting engineer Winston Caldwell are the recipients of the prestigious 2024 NAB Engineering Achievement Awards. The accolades will be bestowed upon them at the We Are Broadcasters Awards, scheduled to take place on the Main Stage of the 2024 NAB Show, on April 16 at 9:30 AM.
Established in 1959, the Radio and Television Engineering Achievement Awards honour individuals nominated by their peers for their remarkable contributions to the advancement of broadcast engineering.
David Kolesar, distinguished with the 2024 Radio Engineering Achievement Award, boasts over three decades of experience in the broadcast engineering domain. Currently serving as a senior broadcast engineer at Hubbard Radio since 2006, Kolesar’s illustrious career began as an Electronics Engineer in the Information Technology Division of the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory.
Kolesar spearheaded the commissioning of the first full-time all-digital AM radio station in the US. His transformative work involved converting, adapting, and rehabilitating Hubbard station WWFD in Frederick, Md., where he served as chief engineer and programme director.
Beyond his contributions to all-digital AM radio, Kolesar has been a vocal advocate within the industry, sharing his expertise through technical papers, conference presentations, and ongoing research aimed at enhancing all-digital AM performance. His outstanding achievements have been recognised by esteemed industry organisations, including the Radio World Excellence in Engineering award in 2019 and the Society of Broadcast Engineers Chapter 37 Engineer of the Year award in 2020.
Winston Caldwell, honoured with the 2024 Television Engineering Achievement Award, brings over 25 years of electrical engineering expertise to the table. Specialising in network communications, security, spectrum management, and standards development, Caldwell commenced his career at Fox Corporation in 2000, where he held various engineering roles over 23 years, culminating in his position as vice president of spectrum engineering. In 2023, he transitioned to an independent consulting role, with Pearl TV, the ATSC 3.0 Security Authority (A3SA), and NAB among his clients.
Caldwell played a pivotal role in the development and implementation of the A3SA security system, safeguarding Next Gen TV services and broadcast content. He also led engineering efforts for the transition of Fox stations to the ATSC 3.0 system and served as chairman of the NAB Next Generation Broadcast Platform Task Force.
Caldwell’s technical prowess and contributions to spectrum policy development have had a significant impact on regulatory matters, both domestically at the FCC and internationally at the International Telecommunication Union. A frequent presenter and panellist at technical conferences, Caldwell actively participates in several ATSC 3.0 specialist groups and has been a longstanding member of the NAB Television Technology Committee.