JOY THOMAS MOORE

Founder’s Award

Joy Thomas Moore is a Peabody Award winner and President and CEO of JWS Media Consulting. Prior to starting her consulting business full time, Moore worked for 15 years with the Annie E. Casey Foundation, a private philanthropy dedicated to helping build better futures for disadvantaged children and families in the United States.

Prior to joining the Foundation, Joy was a freelance writer and field producer in the New York City area, where she contributed to numerous local and nationally syndicated television programs, including ESSENCE: The Television Program, where for five years she was the senior writer for the weekly program.

Before television, Moore served in a variety of editorial positions at WMAL-AM radio, the ABC-owned and operated station in Washington, D.C. Among other accolades for her work in radio, the George Foster Peabody Award for Public Service for the 1972 documentary was awarded for “Suffer the Little Children,” a multi-part series on sexually abused children. For three years she also served as an adjunct professor in the Journalism Department at Howard University.

Joy Moore is the author of The Power of Presence: Be a Voice in Your Child’s Ear Even When You’re Not with Them. A book edited especially for single parents, working parents and caregivers who are concerned about the time they spend away from their parents.

Moore serves on numerous nonprofit boards, including Maryland Public Television and as board chair of the Green and Healthy Homes Initiative. A national organization based in Baltimore, GHHI addresses the social determinants of health and racial equity through the creation of healthy, safe, and energy efficient housing.

Thomas Moore earned both her B.A. in Urban Communications and a M.A. in Broadcast Journalism at the American University in Washington, D.C. The proud grandmother of two, has three grown children. Daughters Nikki, an event planner, and Shani an attorney and screenwriter. Her son Wes, is the bestselling author of The Other Wes Moore and is Governor of Maryland, notably the first Black governor of Maryland and only the third in the U.S.

Joy Thomas Moore was born in Trelawney, Jamaica of a Cuban mother and Jamaican father.

Shanon Muir

Excellence in Entertainment Law Award

As Vice President, Enterprise Commercial Inclusion Strategy at The Walt Disney Company, Anastasia Ali leads a comprehensive, company-wide commercial strategy that deepens Disney’s relationship with new and existing Black consumers, in partnership with existing marketing and commercial business leads. In addition, she provides thought leadership by maintaining an ongoing pulse on Black communities through both traditional research and culturally relevant ways of listening and relationship building, normalizing reciprocity as a standard practice.

A dynamic and results-oriented marketing strategist with 15+ years of media and
entertainment experience, most recently, Anastasia served as the Vice President of
Marketing for The Walt Disney Studios. She joined the Company in 2013, and has
developed custom marketing campaigns for dozens of Disney films and series,
including “Aladdin,” as well as Marvel Studios’ “Black Panther,” “What If…?,” and “Ms. Marvel.” She also led the multicultural marketing campaign for the Oscar-winning Disney and Pixar film, “Soul.” Anastasia co-founded Disney’s Black Employee Resource Group, The Bond, and Disney Studio Marketing’s inaugural Center of Excellence for multicultural marketing, rePRESENT.

Prior to joining Disney, Anastasia produced content for a global audience on digital and cable platforms including BET.com’s groundbreaking web series “Buppies,” which garnered a viewership of over five million. She produced TV One’s first scripted show “Love That Girl!” which was nominated for four NAACP Image Awards and won the Visionary Award from the National Association for Multiculturalism in Communications. She also worked in celebrity brand management, where she brokered deals with Toyota, P&G, the United Negro College Fund and the Ministry of Tourism of Trinidad and Tobago.

Anastasia obtained a Master of Business Administration from the UCLA Anderson
School of Management and holds a Bachelor of Arts degree with Honors from
Brown University. She is proudly Afro-Latina and Indo-Caribbean; her parents emigrated to the U.S. from Panamá and Trinidad.

Sharon Matthews

Visionary Award

Sharon Matthews is the deputy managing editor of Originals and Vice President of L.A. Times Studios. With over 25 years of experience in broadcast, tv, film, digital, and print media, she joins the Times to set and oversee the strategy, development, production, and integration of original content for unscripted and scripted original series and studio shows.

Before joining the Times in October 2022, Matthews was a senior director of originals for Andscape (formerly known as the Undefeated). Matthews expanded its digital storytelling platform into a multimedia video storytelling division of the Walt Disney Co., developing and producing more than 20 specials. Highlights include Emmy nominated special The Stop: Living, Driving and Dying While Black, an examination of the experiences Black Americans have with law enforcement and the long-lasting impact these interactions have on African-American communities. Collaborating with Grammy-nominated and Golden Globe winner Andra Day on Rise Up and teamed up with Oscar winner Common on The N-Word – An original special shot at the 16th Street Baptist Church. Unapologetic – brings Black female athletes’ challenges and triumphs into the limelight. Time For Change: We Won’t Be Defeated – A one-hour special featuring well-respected ESPN anchors, analysts, contributors, and authors who shine a light on the Black athletes’ experiences with injustice. Matthews served as an Executive Producer on “Tiger Woods America’s Son,” An in-depth look at Tiger Woods’ complex racial identity and how he became the first African-American golfer to win a major tournament at The Masters in 1997. “A Room of Our Own.” explores the connection that Black athletes have with music and the impact of that association in powering social movements. In 2021, she led the development and production of the award-winning special “The March On Washington: Keepers Of The Dream,” a one-hour documentary tracing the uncensored journey of the Civil Rights Movement through the eyes of the heroes in partnership with National Geographic and available on Hulu.

Before joining ESPN in 2001, she spent six years at NBA TV Canada, launching original content for the specialty channel, scheduling, and programming, in addition to spearheading the production of its magazine shows, documentaries, and promos. She traveled to Afghanistan on the Canadian Prime Minister’s plane, bringing the Stanley Cup to the NATO base in Kandahar, Afghanistan.

In 2021, She also led the launch of The Undefeated on ESPN+ and the expansion of the Black History Always collection on ESPN+, nine documentary films by nine diverse creators sharing stories of Black resilience, joy, and excellence beyond the 28 days of February. During her 15 years at ESPN and The Walt Disney Company, she has successfully recruited & managed an abundance of producers, directors, editors, and production personnel building dynamic teams from the ground up. She is a master at nurturing creativity and bringing together teams that drive impactful storytelling. During her tenure, Matthews spearheaded “We the Fans,” a multiplatform storytelling project following the stories of the Chicago Bears faithful of Section 250 in Soldier Field. She also produced original programming for numerous ESPN Studio Shows, including “SportsCenter,” “Outside the Lines,” “College Gameday,” and “SC Featured.”

She is a decorated Emmy-winning producer with over three dozen industry awards, including the Edward R. Murrow Outstanding Journalism Award for her short film “Marko Cheseto: Running for His Life.” A 28-time New York Festivals gold medalist, the recipient of two Cablefax Trailer Awards, and a National Headliner Award. Matthews’ original ESPN feature “We the Fans — Dallas” won the NLGJA Award for Excellence in Journalism.

Matthews advocates for equality, inclusion, diversity in technology, and storytelling. She has participated as a featured panelist at the ESPNW summit, addressing many issues Black women face in the sports and media industries. Born in Kitchener-Waterloo, Ontario, Canada of Guyanese parents, Sharon is a graduate of York University and is a loving wife to Marcus Matthews – A Howard University Graduate.

Anastasia Ali

Luminary Award

As Vice President, Enterprise Commercial Inclusion Strategy at The Walt Disney Company, Anastasia Ali leads a comprehensive, company-wide commercial strategy that deepens Disney’s relationship with new and existing Black consumers, in partnership with existing marketing and commercial business leads. In addition, she provides thought leadership by maintaining an ongoing pulse on Black communities through both traditional research and culturally relevant ways of listening and relationship building, normalizing reciprocity as a standard practice.

A dynamic and results-oriented marketing strategist with 15+ years of media and
entertainment experience, most recently, Anastasia served as the Vice President of
Marketing for The Walt Disney Studios. She joined the Company in 2013, and has
developed custom marketing campaigns for dozens of Disney films and series,
including “Aladdin,” as well as Marvel Studios’ “Black Panther,” “What If…?,” and “Ms. Marvel.” She also led the multicultural marketing campaign for the Oscar-winning Disney and Pixar film, “Soul.” Anastasia co-founded Disney’s Black Employee Resource Group, The Bond, and Disney Studio Marketing’s inaugural Center of Excellence for multicultural marketing, rePRESENT.

Prior to joining Disney, Anastasia produced content for a global audience on digital and cable platforms including BET.com’s groundbreaking web series “Buppies,” which garnered a viewership of over five million. She produced TV One’s first scripted show “Love That Girl!” which was nominated for four NAACP Image Awards and won the Visionary Award from the National Association for Multiculturalism in Communications. She also worked in celebrity brand management, where she brokered deals with Toyota, P&G, the United Negro College Fund and the Ministry of Tourism of Trinidad and Tobago.

Anastasia obtained a Master of Business Administration from the UCLA Anderson
School of Management and holds a Bachelor of Arts degree with Honors from
Brown University. She is proudly Afro-Latina and Indo-Caribbean; her parents emigrated to the U.S. from Panamá and Trinidad.

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