Lee, Debra L.

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Debra L. Lee

1954—

Media executive

Already one of the most powerful women in media, in 2006 Debra L. Lee became the chairman and chief executive officer (CEO) of Black Entertainment Television (BET), a multi-billion-dollar conglomerate. During her first two decades at BET, Lee's responsibilities steadily increased as she prepared to succeed Robert L. Johnson, founder of the most prosperous black business in American history. As CEO Lee set out to significantly expand the network's programming while remaining faithful to its core demographic of 18-34-year-olds and deflecting ongoing criticism of its violent and misogynist music videos.

Studied Law

Little in Lee's background suggested her future as a media mogul. The youngest of three children of Richard M. and Delma L. Lee, Debra Louise Lee was born on August 8, 1954, in Fort Jackson, South Carolina. Her mother worked as a hospital clerk and her father was an Army tank driver. The family moved often. Lee told Patricia Sellers of Fortune magazine: "My dad never set boundaries for me as a girl. When I moved to Greensboro, N.C., in the sixth grade, they elected me class president because no one else wanted it. It was a terrifying experience and set the tone for the rest of my life." In a 2006 interview on the BET Web site, Lee related her parents' advice: "You should always be the best you can be at whatever you decide to do. Get the best education you can; go to the best school you can; and reach for the stars." Lee did.

Intending to become a journalist, Lee studied political science at Brown University. Influenced by the Black Power movement, she focused on Asian politics and communist ideology. As she told the New York Times in 2006: "It was the 70's, we were more militant then." Lee graduated from Harvard with dual degrees in law and public policy. She told the Seattle Times: "One thing Harvard Law does is teach you that you can change the world, and I knew I wanted to do that, it was just a question of how." Although Lee had prepared herself for a career with the federal government, she decided to wait rather than work in the Republican administration of President Ronald Reagan.

After a year as a U.S. District Court law clerk, Lee spent five years at the elite corporate law firm of Steptoe & Johnson. BET, America's first black-owned cable network, was one of her clients. She jumped at Johnson's offer to create the company's legal department. In 1986 BET was an unknown company with only 80 employees and cable television had not yet arrived in Washington. Lee's colleagues warned her that she was leaving the fast track. But Lee told Sellers: "I believed in the mission. I had grown up with brands like Ebony and Motown. And I grew up in the segregated South…so a black-owned business was really important to me."

Grew with the Network

Almost from her start as vice president and general counsel, Lee was being groomed as Johnson's successor. As BET grew into a media conglomerate, Lee's responsibilities grew too. While awaiting the birth of her first child, Lee simultaneously directed the construction of BET's corporate headquarters, acted as its general counsel, and ran BET's publishing division. In 1991 Lee was responsible for taking BET public, making it the first black-owned company to be listed on the New York Stock Exchange. She called it her proudest moment.

In 1996 Lee became president and chief operating officer, in charge of BET's day-to-day operations during a period of major expansion. The company added event productions, theme restaurants, a men's clothing line, a financial services division, and new cable networks—BET Jazz, BET Gospel, and BET Hip Hop. BET International broadcast jazz to Europe and Africa. Its Web site became the number one Internet portal for black Americans. Under Lee's leadership BET programming moved beyond hip-hop videos and reruns, with original movies, concerts, documentaries, late-night talk shows, and news and public affairs. At a time when most broadcast and cable networks were stagnant, BET experienced year after year of audience growth and record ratings. Viacom bought the company for $3 billion in 2000, making Johnson America's first black billionaire.

BET gained a reputation for public service under Lee. She was responsible for the annual BET Walk of Fame that raised money for the United Negro College Fund. She led BET's "Black America Saves" initiative, a financial-planning assistance and education program. BET's Rap-It-Up campaign became the nation's largest HIV/AIDS initiative aimed at blacks.

However BET continued to suffer from bad press. In 2000 a fired executive sued the network for $21 million, charging that Johnson and Lee had used corporate funds for personal purposes, evaded taxes, and used illegal accounting methods. A 2004 biography of Johnson made public his personal relationship with Lee. With the 2001 firing of talk-show host Tavis Smiley, BET was again accused of not serving the best interests of the black community. In a July 2005 Billboard interview Lee addressed the issue of BET's music videos: "We also need to teach young people how to use the media and understand that these videos aren't necessarily portraying a lifestyle that anyone is supporting. People expect high standards from us…. If there are real issues, they come to me and we discuss the free speech aspect or whether something is so egregious that we're not going to put it on."

At a Glance …

Born Debra Louise Lee on August 8, 1954, in Columbia, SC; married Randal Spencer Coleman, 1985 (divorced); children: Quinn Spencer, Ava. Education: Brown University, AB, political science, 1976; Harvard University, JD, 1980, John F. Kennedy School of Government, MPP, 1980.

Career: U.S. District Court, Washington, DC, law clerk, 1980-81; Steptoe & Johnson, Washington, DC, attorney, 1981-86; Black Entertainment Television (BET), Washington, DC, vice president/general counsel, 1986-92, executive vice president of legal affairs, publishing division president, general counsel, corporate secretary, 1992-96, vice president for strategic business development, 1995; BET Holdings, Inc., Washington, DC, president/COO, 1996-2005, president/CEO, 2005-2006, CEO/chairman, 2006-.

Selected memberships: Alvin Ailey Dance Theater, board of directors; Eastman Kodak Co., board of directors; Girls Inc., national board of directors, cofounder and chair of Washington, DC chapter; Marriott International, board of directors; Revlon, Inc., board of directors.

Selected awards: Turner Broadcasting System, Tower of Power Trumpet Award, 2000; National Association of Minorities in Communications, Quasar Award, 2003; National Cable and Telecommunications Association, Idell Kaitz Vanguard Award for Leadership, 2003; Ebony Magazine, Madame C. J. Walker Award for best exemplifying the entrepreneurial spirit of the pioneering Black businesswoman, 2005; New York Women in Film and Television, Muse Award, 2005.

Addresses: Office—BET Holdings, Inc., One BET Plaza, 1235 W St NE, Washington, DC, 20018-1211.

Succeeded Johnson as CEO/Chairman

In June of 2005 Lee was named BET president and CEO, set to become chairman in January of 2006 when Johnson retired. Johnson told the Seattle Times: "Debra has been the architect with me…of BET's success. She has held every senior strategic position in the company. She has helped define the company and she's helped direct the company." That year BET sold its book business, launched home-entertainment and mobile divisions, and arranged to sell BET brands through Wal-Mart. Lee planned to move BET into filmmaking and to take the company global.

Lee began to overhaul BET programming, pushing for more original productions, reality shows, stand-up comedy, news, and information. One of her first moves as CEO was to hire filmmaker Reginald Hudlin as president of entertainment. She told Ken Parish Perkins of the Chicago Defender that she would "challenge him to breed a creative first culture. There are great stories out there that need to be told, and we must challenge the old ways of thinking." Lee eliminated infomercials, added an animation division, and launched Meet the Faith, a weekly discussion program on political and social issues from a moral and spiritual perspective. In 2007 Viacom announced that it would increase BET's budget for original programming by 30-50% annually.

However BET's ratings declined dramatically whenever it tried to introduce more highbrow programming. In July of 2005 Lee announced that BET was canceling its nightly newscast. She told Perkins: "We always hear, ‘All you guys are interested in is making money.’ We're a business. That's what we do." In 2006 Lil' Kim: Countdown to Lockdown, a reality show that followed the rapper as she prepared to go to prison, became the highest-rated series in BET's history.

In a Billboard interview in July of 2005 Lee addressed the paucity of black women in the corporate world: "It's not that I run into discrimination every day. It's always there, but it's not like it was 25 years ago. However, there's still a lot to be done…. There just needs to be more women executives in general. I just hope the numbers increase. The more women who can prove we can do it, the more opportunities there will be."