National Geographic Society

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The National Geographic Society, headquartered in Washington, D.C. in the United States, calls itself "one of the largest non-profit scientific and educational institution in the world". Its interests include geography, archaeology and natural science, the promotion of environmental and historical conservation, and the study of world culture and history.

Its historical mission is "to increase and diffuse geographic knowledge while promoting the conservation of the world's cultural, historical, and natural resources." Its President and CEO since March 1998, John M. Fahey, Jr., says National Geographic's purpose is to inspire people to care about their planet. The Society is governed by a twenty-three member Board of Trustees composed of a group of distinguished educators, businesspeople, scientists, former governmental officials, and conservationists. The organization sponsors and funds scientific research and exploration. The Society publishes an official journal, National Geographic Magazine, and other magazines, books, school products, maps, other publications, web and film products in numerous languages and countries around the world. It also has an educational foundation that gives grants to education organizations and individuals to enhance geography education. Its Committee for Research and Exploration has given grants for scientific research for most of the Society's history and has recently awarded its 9,000th grant for scientific research, conducted worldwide and often reported on by its media properties. Its various media properties reach about 360 million people around the world monthly. National Geographic maintains a museum free for the public in its Washington, D.C. headquarters, and has helped to sponsor such popular traveling exhibits such as the "King Tut" exhibit featuring magnificent artifacts from the tomb of the young Egyptian Pharaoh, which toured in several American cities, ending its U.S. showing at the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia. The Tut exhibit has now moved to London.

Contents

[edit] Foundation

The National Geographic Society was founded in Washington, D.C. on January 13, 1888, by 33 explorers and scientists who were interested in "organizing a society for the increase and diffusion of geographical knowledge." They had begun discussing forming the Society two weeks earlier on January 13, 1888, before gathering at the Cosmos Club, a private club then located on Lafayette Square near the White House. Gardiner Greene Hubbard became its first president and his son-in-law, Alexander Graham Bell, eventually succeeded him in 1897 following his death. Bell's son-in-law Gilbert Hovey Grosvenor was named the first full-time editor of National Geographic Magazine and served the organization for fifty-five years, and members of the Grosvenor family have played important roles in the organization since. Bell and his son-in-law, Grosvenor, devised the successful marketing notion of Society membership and the first major use of photographs to tell stories in magazines. The current Chairman of the Board of Trustees of National Geographic is Gilbert Melville Grosvenor, who received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2005 for the Society's leadership for Geography education. In 2004, the National Geographic Headquarters in Washington, D.C. was one of the first buildings to receive a "Green" certification from Global Green USA. The National Geographic received the prestigious Prince of Asturias Award for Communications and Humanity in October 2006 in Oviedo, Spain.

[edit] National Geographic Magazine

The National Geographic Magazine, later shortened to National Geographic, is the official journal of the National Geographic Society. It published its first issue in 1888, just nine months after the Society itself was founded. It is immediately identifiable by the characteristic yellow border running around the edge of its cover.

There are 12 monthly issues of National Geographic per year, plus additional map supplements. On rare occasions, special editions are also issued. It contains articles about geography, popular science, history, culture, current events, and photography. The current Editor-in-Chief of National Geographic Magazine is Chris Johns.

Society Executive Vice President and President of the Magazine Group John Q. Griffin has overall responsibility for the English language magazines at National Geographic. He reports to Tim Kelly, President, National Geographic Global Media. Terry B. Adamson, Executive Vice President of the Society who also is the Society's chief legal officer and heads governmental relations, has overall responsibility for the Society's international publications, including National Geographic Magazine. He reports to Society president John M. Fahey, Jr.

With a worldwide circulation in thirty-two language editions of nearly nine million, more than fifty million people read the magazine every month. In May 2007, National Geographic magazine won the American Society of Magazine Editors' General Excellence Award in the over two million circulation category and the best photography award for three issues of the magazine in 2006.


[edit] Articles

During the Cold War, the magazine committed itself to presenting a balanced view of the physical and human geography of nations beyond the Iron Curtain. The magazine printed articles on Berlin, de-occupied Austria, the Soviet Union, and Communist China that deliberately downplayed politics to focus on culture. In its coverage of the Space Race, National Geographic focused on the scientific achievement while largely avoiding reference to the race's connection to nuclear arms buildup.

In later years, the once-neutral articles became outspoken on issues such as environment, deforestation, chemical pollution, global warming, and endangered species - a scope expanded to topics well beyond exploration curiosities. Series of articles were included focusing on the history and varied uses of specific products such as a single metal, gem, food crop, or agricultural product, or an archaeological discovery. Occasionally an entire month's issue would be devoted to a single country, past civilization, a natural resource whose future is endangered, or other theme. In recent decades, the National Geographic Society has unveiled other magazines with different focuses.

Languages

In 1995, National Geographic began publishing in Japanese, its first local language edition. The magazine is now published in thirty-two (32) different language editions around the world, including: English on a worldwide basis,Albanian language Bulgarian, traditional and simplified character Chinese, Croatian, Czech, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Hebrew and an Orthodox Hebrew edition, Hungarian, Indonesian, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Norwegian, Polish, two Portuguese language editions, Romanian, Russian, Serbian, Slovenian, two Spanish language editions, Swedish, Thai, and Turkish.

In April 2005, an Indonesian edition launched, published by Gramedia Majalah - Jakarta. A Bulgarian edition of the magazine published by a Sanoma Publishing joint venture launched in November, 2005 and a Slovenian edition published by Rokus launched in May, 2006. In association with Trends Publications in Beijing and IDG Asia, National Geographic has been authorized for "copyright cooperation" in China to publish the yellow border magazine, which recently launched with the July 2007 issue of the magazine with an event in Beijing on July 10, 2007 and another event on December 6, 2007 in Beijing also celebrating the 29th anniversary of normalization of U.S. - China relations featuring former President Jimmy Carter. A Serbian edition of National Geographic was launched with the November 2006 issue in partnership with a joint venture of Sanoma and Gruner + Jahr. An Orthodox Hebrew edition has recently launched in Israel.

In contrast to the United States, where membership in the National Geographic Society was until recently the only way to receive the magazine, the worldwide editions are sold on newsstands in addition to regular subscriptions. In several countries, such as Hungary, Slovenia, Croatia, and Turkey, National Geographic paved the way for a subscription model in addition to traditional news stand sales.

[edit] Television

National Geographic Channel

The National Geographic Channel is a subscription television network that features documentaries produced by the National Geographic Society. It features some programming similar to that on the Discovery Channel such as nature, science, and history documentaries.

In September 1997, the world's first National Geographic Channel launched in Europe and Australia. In July 1998, National Geographic Channel Asia was launched in partnership and distribution with STAR TV (Before replacing NBC Asia Channel. The same happened in NBC Europe's demise in 1998). Today, the channel is available in over 143 countries, are seen in more than 160 million homes and in 25 languages.

In the United States, The National Geographic Channel, launched in January 2001, is a joint venture of National Geographic Television & Film and Fox Cable Networks. The National Geographic provides programming expertise and the Fox Networks Group provides its expertise on distribution, marketing, and ad sales. It is primarily a digital cable and satellite channel there.

In Canada, the channel is owned by Alliance Atlantis and National Geographic Channel USA, while the European versions are operated in partnership with Fox's sister company, British Sky Broadcasting (BSkyB). This includes an English language version for the UK and Ireland, which is carried on BSkyB's own Sky Digital pay TV service.

In Australia, National Geographic Channel is carried by Foxtel, Optus, Austar, Neighbourhood Cable, TransTV, and SelecTV. The Australian version includes Australian guest presenters of promotional material and to introduce certain programs, series and specials.

In New Zealand, National Geographic Channel is broadcast on SKY Network Television and TelstraClear InHomeTV.

In South Africa, the channel is carried by Digital Satellite Television (also known as DStv) is MultiChoice's multi-channel digital satellite TV service in Africa.

The channel's musical signature is the Elmer Bernstein composed theme that has also appeared on the National Geographic broadcast-TV specials.

[edit] Research & Projects

  • Codex Tchacos - (conservation and translation of the only known surviving copy of the Gospel of Judas)
  • Ian Baker (Discovers hidden waterfall of the Tsangpo Gorge, Tibet)
  • Robert Bartlett - (Arctic Exploration)
  • George Bass - (Undersea archaeology - Bronze Age trade)
  • Lee Berger - (Oldest footprints of modern humans ever found)
  • Richard E. Byrd - (First flight over South Pole)
  • Mike Fay - (MegaTransect and MegaFlyover in Africa)
  • Dian Fossey - (Mountain gorillas)
  • Birute Galdikas - (Orangutans)
  • Robert F. Griggs - (Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes)
  • Heather Halstead - World Circumnavigations of Reach the World
  • Louis and Mary Leakey - (Discovery of manlike Zinjanthropus, more than 1.75 million years old)
  • Gustavus McLeod - (First flight to the North Pole in an open-air cockpit aircraft)
  • Robert Peary and Matthew Henson - (North Pole Expedition)
  • Paul Sereno - (Dinosaurs)
  • Will Steger - (Polar Exploration & First Explorer-in-Residence 1996)
  • Spencer Wells - (The Genographic Project)
  • Xu Xing - (Discovery of fossil dinosaurs in China that have distinct feathers)
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