FBI’s Jackson Field Office Announces 2010 Recipient of the FBI Director's Community Leadership Award

Tanya Carter, assistant news director and weekend anchor for WABG-TV in Greenville, Mississippi, has been awarded the 2010 FBI Director's Community Leadership Award. Daniel McMullen, Special Agent in Charge (SAC) presented the award to Ms. Carter during the Jackson Field Office All-Employee Conference on Friday, December 10, 2010.

Since 1990, the FBI Director's Community Leadership Award (DCLA) has been a principal means by which the FBI has publicly recognized the achievements of individuals and organizations who have worked diligently to prevent crime, drug, and gang violence and to promote education in their community. Each of the FBI's field offices selects one individual or organization each year to receive this award.

Ms. Carter was nominated for the Jackson Field Office FBI Director's Community Leadership Award for 2010 based on her outstanding contribution towards education programs, youth organizations, and advancing cooperation with ethnic and minority groups.

The nomination for Ms. Carter was written as follows:

Tanya Carter serves as the assistant news director and weekend anchor for WABG-TV6 in Greenville, Mississippi. She came to the Mississippi Delta from New York City with a reputation as a solid, straight-forward, "no nonsense" reporter, and joined the ABC Six News Team, as a general assignment reporter in July 2003. She is also a 2009 graduate of the FBI Citizens' Academy, hosted by the Jackson Field Office.

Carter graduated from Hofstra University, New York, with a degree in television broadcasting, after first attending Bronx Community College in New York. While a student at Bronx, Carter was selected to participate in the Upward Bound Program, funded under the Title IV Higher Education Act of 1965. According to Carter, this was a turning point in her life. The Upward Bound Program gave her the motivation and confidence to improve her life and pursue her dream of a career in journalism and broadcasting. As a result of her personal experience with the Upward Bound Program, this award-winning journalist volunteered to serve as a mentor and positive role model with the Mississippi Valley State University's 2010 Upward Bound Youth Summer Program. During the 2010 program, Carter provided career counseling services to more than 160 students. Every Thursday, Carter exposed the students to different career possibilities by providing speakers from various backgrounds and professions, to include medicine, law enforcement, hospitality, and tourism to inspire and encourage the participants in the program.

On June 24, 2010, Carter invited representatives from the Jackson Field Office to present a mini-Citizens' Academy to the Upward Bound students. Special agents and professional support personnel provided information concerning the history of the FBI, the FBI mission past and present, Internet safety, and gangs. Members of the ERT and SWAT demonstrated evidence recovery and tactical equipment and techniques, much to the delight of the students. Many of the attendees have since corresponded with Carter, voicing their new-found interest in pursuing careers in law enforcement, particularly with the FBI.

Carter has been instrumental as an advocate for the FBI by providing opportunities for the Jackson Field Office Special Agent in Charge to speak to political and civic groups within the Mississippi Delta community. As a tenacious, persistent, but fair reporter, Carter is viewed as honest and approachable, and she often receives "crime tips" from her viewing audience. As the situation warrants, Carter encourages tipsters to contact the appropriate authorities with their information, thereby initiating dialogue between individuals and law enforcement. Carter credits the instruction she received in the Citizens' Academy for making her realize the need for partnerships between law enforcement, the media, and the public.

Carter is a strong supporter of the law enforcement community and has earned the respect of many federal, state, county, and local agencies. For several years, the U.S. Marshal Service invited Carter to participate in Operation FALCON (Federal and Local Cops Organized Nationally). Operation FALCON is a national fugitive apprehension initiative started in 2005 by the U.S. Marshal Service. The operation took her to Clarksdale, Mississippi, where some of the most notorious criminals, violent offenders, gang members, and sex offenders were arrested. She even produced a documentary about Operation Falcon. In 2006, that documentary was awarded the Mississippi Associated Press Award for Best Documentary.

Carter has been the recipient of several humanitarian, journalism, and broadcasting awards from The Mississippi Association of Broadcasters, including:

-2010 Mississippi Association of Broadcasters, "Spirit of Giving," Silver Award

-2009 Mississippi Associated Press Award, General News, "Breaking Down the Language Barrier"

-2008 Mississippi Associated Press Award for Best Public Affairs, "Meth Awareness"

-2006 Mississippi Associated Press Award for Best Documentary for the U.S. Marshal Service "Operation Falcon"

In addition, the Mississippi Supreme Court nominated Carter for the Donald W. Reynolds National Center of Courts and Media in the National Judicial College, Basic Legal Affairs Reporting for Journalists Scholarship. Ms. Carter and other recipients of the Director's Community Leadership Award will be recognized and honored at a ceremony to be held in Washington, D.C. in the Spring of 2011.