Russell pioneered the expansion of AFRTS from a single-channel, over-the-air system into the multi-channel, satellite-delivered network that now reaches millions of viewers in 177 countries.

Russell came a long way from his days as an Army signal officer in Vietnam listening to sounds of home on the American Forces Network. He made the Army's first conversion from black-and-white to color television at Fort Benning, Ga. He assisted the British Army in setting up its first TV production facility and even helped CNN get off the ground

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