Ervin S. Duggan is a retired

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

media businessman who has served in several management positions, most notably as president of

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcasting, public broadcaster and Non-commercial activity, non-commercial, Terrestrial television, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly fu ...

. Originally from South Carolina and a graduate of

Davidson College Davidson College is a private liberal arts college in Davidson, North Carolina. It was established in 1837 by the Concord Presbytery and named after Revolutionary War general William Lee Davidson, who was killed at the nearby Battle of Cowan� ...

, Duggan was appointed as a member of the

Federal Communications Commission The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that regulates communications by radio, television, wire, satellite, and cable across the United States. The FCC maintains jurisdiction ...

by President

George H. W. Bush George Herbert Walker BushSince around 2000, he has been usually called George H. W. Bush, Bush Senior, Bush 41 or Bush the Elder to distinguish him from his eldest son, George W. Bush, who served as the 43rd president from 2001 to 2009; pr ...

in 1990, possibly as a compromise candidate with more

evangelical Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide Interdenominationalism, interdenominational movement within Protestantism, Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being "bor ...

voters. Duggan became president of PBS in December 1993. He served in that position until his resignation in 1999. As president, Duggan sought to revitalize and strengthen

' fundraising capacity. Duggan also oversaw the production of several News and Documentary Emmy Awards winning programs like

the Living Edens ''The Living Edens'' was a Public Broadcasting Service series that aired from 1997 to 2003. Narrators included Peter Coyote and Linda Hunt. It was partially funded by ''Reader's Digest'' in exchange for various marketing rights. Episodes The ser ...

. His time, however, was characterized by some controversy over member stations weak control of members contact information and icy relationship between upper management and local stations. After leaving

, Duggan eventually settled in

Palm Beach, Florida Palm Beach is an incorporated town in Palm Beach County, Florida. Located on a barrier island in east-central Palm Beach County, the town is separated from several nearby cities including West Palm Beach and Lake Worth Beach by the Intracoas ...

becoming the CEO of the Society of the Four Arts, leaving the organization for retirement in 2014.

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* {{DEFAULTSORT:Duggan, Ervin Living people American chief executives Davidson College alumni Members of the Federal Communications Commission PBS people 1939 births George H. W. Bush administration personnel Clinton administration personnel