KBS chief executive and president Kim In-kyu received the 2012 International Emmy Directorate Award in recognition of his 40 years of service at the country’s largest public broadcaster and his leading role in Asia’s broadcasting industry, the company said Tuesday.

Kim was honored at the 40th International Emmy Awards Gala held Monday (on U.S. EST) in New York at the Hilton Hotel. Kim is the first Korean to win the award.

“KBS is one of the great television services in the world, and Kim one of the leading media figures in Asia,” Bruce L. Paisner, president & chief executive of The International Academy of Television Arts & Sciences that presents the award, was quoted by the KBS as saying.

Kim, 62, joined KBS in 1973 as a reporter and has served in several key positions, including as a member of the KBS board of directors and chief of the news bureau. In 2009, Kim was appointed to KBS’ top post. He is also the president of the Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union, a three-year term he began serving in 2011.

Introduced in 1973, the International Emmy Awards recognize excellence in television programming produced outside of the United States. (Yonhap News)