The NABJ Family Celebrates the Life and Legacy of Richard Parsons

The NABJ family celebrates the life and legacy of Richard D. Parsons, who died December 26, 2024, at age 76 after battling cancer. Parsons was a trailblazer who helped open doors for a new generation of Black news and media executives.

Named the “top CEO in the entertainment industry” in 2005 by Institutional Investor magazine, Parsons broke barriers in Black media leadership when, in 2002, he became CEO of Time Warner Inc., known today as Warner Bros. Discovery. He was the first Black executive in that role and one of the highest-ranking Black leaders in the media industry for many years until he moved on to his next chapter in 2008. 

He also served as Time Warner’s president and a company board member in the 1990s. While CEO, he became chairman of the board in 2003. According to CNN, Parsons was “part of the first class of Black CEOs at Fortune 500 companies.”

He is credited with playing a pivotal role in transforming Time Warner into a leading media company and guiding it through one of the largest and most controversial mergers in media business history.

Parsons was widely regarded for his exemplary humility and impact as a visionary, problem-solver, and mentor. His business success and leadership helped bring diversity, inclusion, and media representation to the forefront of corporate discussions.

“You can’t motivate or inspire employees—and we have 90,000 employees (at Time Warner)—if you don’t understand where they’re coming from and how they think,” Parsons told the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa, his alma mater.

Before joining Time Warner, Parsons was chairman and CEO of Dime Bancorp Inc., managing partner of Patterson Belknap Webb & Tyler, counsel to Nelson Rockefeller, and a senior White House aide under President Gerald Ford. 

Parsons served on President Barack Obama’s Economic Transition Team. He also served as chairman of Citigroup, senior advisor of Providence Equity, and former interim CEO of the NBA’s Los Angeles Clippers.

His dedication to advancing diversity in media, arts, and entertainment was also reflected in his roles as chairman of the Apollo Theater Foundation and the Jazz Foundation of America. He also served on the boards of the Museum of Modern Art and co-chaired the advisory board of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture. Additionally, he was on the boards of The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. and Madison Square Garden Inc.

In September 2018, Parsons was named interim chairman of the CBS board, though he had to step down shortly after due to health concerns. Despite his health challenges, Parsons continued to use his influence and business acumen to promote greater diversity in corporate leadership until his death.

In 2021, he teamed up with other business leaders and investors to launch the Equity Alliance, an initiative supporting business ventures led by women and people of color.