Ruth Morrison

Not one to color inside the lines, Ruth J. Morrison is the CEO, Executive Producer, and Founder of What’s The 411TV, which produces the award-winning news and information television show, What’s The 411; What’s The 411Sports; and soon-to-be What’s The 411Business. A video streaming pioneer, she developed and launched from conception the City of New York’s multi-channel cable television network; managed the digital marketing of a 30-city concert tour; managed the marketing of the largest college football game held at Giants Stadium; and served as a U.S. Congressional communications director and legislative advisor. Ms. Morrison was the first African-American independent television producer to distribute a weekly show on WNYC-TV and the first African-American woman to cover the New York Knicks as a beat reporter. With global insights, she licensed What’s The 411 to a broadcaster in South Africa and, for three years, she worked in Brasil as an entertainment and television licensing consultant.

Ms. Morrison was the first Executive Director for the Brooklyn International Trade Development Center (BITDC), New York City’s first and only small business development center whose sole mission was to assist small businesses with selling their products and services to foreign markets. In this capacity she partnered with several federal agencies responsible for international business development including the Export Import Bank of the United States; Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC); the International Trade Administration; and the U.S. Minority Business Development Agency. She helped to launch the Allied African Nations Chamber of Commerce and was an active member of committees implementing the U.S. – Brasil Joint Action Plan, which is under the auspices of the U.S. State Department and the government of Brasil.

Under Ms. Morrison’s leadership, BITDC created an Emerging Market Seminar Series; and promoted and recruited companies to participate in business opportunity missions to many countries around the world, most notably Dubai, Abu Dhabi, the Canary Islands, the UK, and Haiti following the earthquake.

Ms. Morrison earned a master’s degree in Interactive Telecommunications from New York University, completed her coursework towards a Ph.D. in political science at Columbia University and she was a Communications Fellow at the Annenberg Washington Program of Northwestern University.

An author and speaker, she is a member of the MIT Enterprise Forum of New York City and a former board member of the New York Software Industry Association and BRIC Arts Media. She is the recipient of numerous honors including awards from the European Federation of Black Women Business Owners and Nation to Nation Networking for her efforts in building alliances among black-owned and women-owned businesses globally.