Ray Cole is a Hall of Fame broadcaster whose executive career spanned five decades

Ray Cole is an Iowa native and lifelong television broadcaster. He served as president and chief operating officer of Citadel Communications LLC during the course of an executive career that spanned five decades. Cole retired from Citadel in October 2023 but remains active on the boards of several companies and nonprofit organizations.

Ray held a variety of leadership positions in the broadcasting industry while serving on the boards of the National Association of Broadcasters, the Television Bureau of Advertising and the ABC Television Affiliates Association. He served as chairman of the ABC board of governors from 2006-08, and continued in a chairman emeritus capacity until 2019. Ray served on the board of the Iowa Broadcasters Association and was recognized by that organization as “Iowa Broadcaster of the Year” in 2008, and was later inducted into the Iowa Broadcasters Hall of Fame in 2015. In 2023, Ray joined Johnny Carson as only the second Iowa-born broadcaster to be inducted into the prestigious national Broadcasting+Cable Hall of Fame. He became the first local broadcaster to be inducted into the Iowa Business Hall of Fame in May 2024. He currently serves on the board of the Broadcasters Foundation of America, and was honored with their Leadership Award for “service to the broadcasting industry and community at large.”

In October 2021, Ray co-wrote and published Hangin’ with Winners: A Lifetime of Connections, Anecdotes and Lessons Learned. The book was featured on Good Morning America, The View, the Tamron Hall Show and ESPN. All of the net proceeds have been contributed to a few of the “winning” organizations mentioned throughout the book including Variety – the Children’s Charity of Iowa, Blank Children’s Hospital, the Robert D. Ray and Billie Ray Center, The V Foundation and the Broadcasters Foundation of America. 

A 1977 graduate of Briar Cliff University, Ray was recognized as the school’s “Distinguished Alumnus of the Year” in 2006 and honored at their 2021 commencement ceremony with the “Presidential Distinguished Leadership Award.” He was recognized as a “Father of the Year” in 2013 by the Iowa Chapter of the American Diabetes Association. In 2019, Ray was presented the “Robert D. Ray Pillar of Character Award” from the Governor Robert D. and Billie Ray Center.  

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“HANGIN’ WITH WINNERS”

Ray will entertain, inform and inspire your audience with an enlightening message and key takeaways from his book, Hangin’ with Winners. His themes of character, integrity, leadership, teamwork and gratitude are punctuated with personal anecdotes involving “winners” from the worlds of television, sports, entertainment and politics. Ray is a prolific storyteller who strives to make his presentations come alive for audiences of all ages and backgrounds. Topics include:

General Audience –

  • Hangin’ with Winners: this popular presentation leans into warm, insightful anecdotes that convey important life lessons. The perfect keynote to open a conference or close a dinner, Ray’s storytelling involves notable figures with whom he enjoyed close, personal relationships from Bob Iger (Disney) to George Bodenheimer (ESPN); from Barbara Walters (ABC News) to Robin Roberts (Good Morning America); from Dick Vitale (College Basketball Analyst) to Michael J. Fox (Actor and Humanitarian); and extraordinary Iowans from Governor Robert D. Ray to Bill Knapp (Legendary Businessman and Philanthropist).

Business Audience –

  • Lessons Learned: this presentation takes a deeper dive into the winning qualities and traits identified by the more than 80 “winners” profiled in and/or interviewed for Ray’s book, Hangin’ with Winners. This presentation can be easily customized to a company’s purpose/mission statement, or a conference theme for maximum impact.

School-Age Audience –

  • Hangin’ with Winners: the General Audience presentation outlined above is tailored for the appropriate grade level — elementary, middle school and/or high school students — with special emphasis on messages about kindness, respect and empathy.

Ray’s previous speaking engagements include appearances at business meetings and retreats, industry and association conferences, high school programs (including commencement addresses), college classes, Chamber of Commerce events, and a wide range of community-focused gatherings.