Manhattan Neighborhood Network Ushers in New Era with Joe Hall as Incoming President & CEO

New York, NY, Jan 4, 2024 - MNN announced today the appointment of Joe Hall as the new President & CEO of Manhattan Neighborhood Network (MNN), an award-winning cultural organization and the largest community media center in the country.

Operating from two state-of-the-art facilities in Hudson Yards and East Harlem, MNN offers digital media education, training, production and distribution services to 450+ creators annually, reaching more than 400,000 cable TV subscribers, as well as online and live event audiences.

Damian Benders, MNN’s board chair emphasized, "Joe's appointment is not just a new chapter; it's a commitment to our roots of community empowerment and innovative storytelling. His track record speaks not just to his capability but to his deep resonance with our mission."  

Joe Hall stated, “MNN is a super smart, best practice organization with strong board leadership that has a bold vision of a more expansive creative offering moving forward.  For someone like me, this is the perfect moment to bring my relationships and passion to this dynamic mix – I’m genuinely honored to be part of MNN, and can’t wait to get working with all our stakeholders and community to impact the culture in new and exciting ways.”

Outgoing President & CEO Dan Coughlin added, “I'm proud of what the team has accomplished at MNN and confident that Joe is the right person to take the helm. His experience and creativity are exactly what MNN needs to move forward."

In 2000 Joe Hall founded Ghetto Film School (GFS) a nonprofit academy training 8,000+ underrepresented talent annually through its South Bronx, MacArthur Park (LA), and Tower Hamlets (London) operation hubs. GFS projects have been produced on five continents, with thousands of graduates now working in the film, television, and advertising industries. In 2009 Hall founded The Cinema School as the nation’s first film high school, raising $10M towards the school’s capital build-out and operations.

In 1992 Hall moved to the South Bronx as a social worker leading homeless relocation, job training, youth development, education, and health projects benefiting thousands of neighbors annually. He has been featured in The New Yorker, NY Times, CNN, Wall Street Journal, NPR, and PBS, and is a widely sought-after public speaker including AdColor, foundation conference keynotes, and the Metropolitan Museum’s Kerry James Marshall retrospective closing ceremony. 

Hall’s numerous professional awards include the 2005 NYC Mayor’s Award for Arts & Culture, and a Rockefeller Foundation Fellow residency in Bellagio, Italy. He has written OpEds and articles for multiple publications, contributed chapters for books on youth development and education, produced a documentary film for Sundance Channel, and sits on the board of WOCstar Fund investing in tech innovation by women of color-led startups.

Hall completed undergraduate studies at Curry College, and a Master of Social Administration from Columbia University.

About Manhattan Neighborhood Network:

Established in 1992, Manhattan Neighborhood Network is a media learning, production, and distribution hub that promotes creative expression, independent voices and community engagement, empowering local voices & diverse views.

For more information about MNN and its programs, to become a community producer, or to register for a class, please visit www.mnn.org.