This year’s Governors’ Award was presented to John A. Mays at the 2014 Suncoast EMMY® Awards which were held at the Westin Beach Resort & Spa in Fort Lauderdale, Florida on Saturday, December 13, 2014.
John A. Mays
John Mays has been involved with the Suncoast Chapter of The National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences since 1994 when he was elected to the Board of Governors. From 1998-2002 he was Chairman of the expansion committee, 1997 and 1998 he was on the outside judging committee, currently he is the Chairman of the EMMY® Awards Committee.
John is also one of the chapter’s representatives as a National Trustee and received the Silver Circle Award in 2010. He was the Co-producer of the Suncoast Emmy® Awards from 1994 to 2004 and has directed and produced the Suncoast EMMY® Awards every year since 2005.
John is currently the Production Manager for WFOR/CBS4 and MYTV33. He has held that position for ten years. He has been with CBS for 18 years, starting as a Director/Technical Director, moving to Assistant Production Manager prior to his current position.
While with WFOR CBS4, John has been a part of many high profiles projects; including Super Bowls, Miami Heat Championship parades, Hurricane coverage including hurricane Wilma.
Most recently John was the Production Manager for the infamous “FANGATE” debate between Florida Governor Rick Scott and his opponent Charlie Crist for Florida’s 2014 Governor’s race.
Along with his Production Manager responsibilities, he has been the Executive Producer for the Miami Dolphins preseason games for the past ten years, which has garnered 3 EMMY® nominations.
John was born in Roanoke, Virginia. His family moved to South Florida in time for him to attend Fort Lauderdale High School. His guidance counselor recommended a special off-campus course in broadcasting at Nova High School that sparked his interest in a career in television. After graduating from high school he attended Miami Lakes Technical Education Center which led to his first job at WBBH in Fort Myers in 1981. Prior to working in Miami, he was a Director/Technical Director at WPTV and WPEC in West Palm Beach.