Washington, D.C. –The National Endowment for the Art has tapped Jacquie Jones to be its media arts director, effective November 3 ,2014. As head of the NEA’s Media Arts Office, she will manage NEA grantmaking in film, video, audio, web-based, and other electronic media and represent the agency to the media arts field.   “Jacquie Jones understands how media organizations work, with more than fifteen years of leadership experience in the field,” said NEA Chairman Jane Chu. “Jacquie has a strong record of fostering more diverse perspectives in the media arts, and her expertise is an asset to the NEA. The media field is changing as much as the world it documents, and Jacquie is ideally suited to leveraging these trends in service to the American public.”   Previously, Jones served as executive director of the National Black Programming Consortium (NBPC), where she led several partnerships and initiatives in the evolving new media landscape such as the Katrina Project, the New Media Institute, the Public Media Corps and blackpublicmedia.org. Jones is a Peabody-award winning producer and director of documentary films such as “180 Days: A Year Inside an American High School,” and “Africans in America,” both for PBS. She served on the boards of the Integrated Media Association (iMA), WHUT Howard University Television, and the Leeway Foundation. She has also served on several NEA Media Arts grant panels. Jones has a BA in English from Howard University and an MA from Stanford University’s documentary filmmaking program.    “This is such a pivotal time in the media arts, and the NEA has a tremendous role to play in cultivating excellence, understanding and innovation in the field. I look forward to being a part of that important work,” said Jones.   Jones replaces Alyce Myatt, who served as media arts director beginning in 2011. Since January 2014, Mary Smith has served as acting media arts director.    The National Endowment for the Arts is committed to encouraging the artists and organizations that participate in advancing and preserving the media arts, and to supporting the production of media art works. NEA grants support the development, production, and distribution of innovative projects that demonstrate media as art and media about the arts across disciplines. Media arts, as defined by the National Endowment for the Arts, includes screen-based projects presented via film, television, radio, audio, video, the Internet, interactive and mobile technologies, video games, transmedia storytelling, and satellite as well as media-related books, catalogues, and journals. In FY 2014, the NEA awarded more than $5.9 million to 136 projects involving the media arts.   About the National Endowment for the Arts   The National Endowment for the Arts was established by Congress in 1965 as an independent agency of the federal government. To date, the NEA has awarded more than $5 billion to support artistic excellence, creativity, and innovation for the benefit of individuals and communities. The NEA extends its work through partnerships with state arts agencies, local leaders, other federal agencies, and the philanthropic sector. To join the discussion on how art works, visit the NEA at arts.gov.  

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