The list below is a sampling of Hall of Fame members who championed this issue.
- John "Jock" Elliot Jr. - As chairman emeritus of Ogilvy & Mather, he has always been a crusader for fairness to minorities and women.
- Helen Lansdowne Resor - was instrumental in the advancement of women in the field, employing talented woman writers and using her influence in paving the way for those to come.
- Philip H. Dougherty - used his high-profile column to highlight the industry's failure to provide opportunities for women and minorities helped to initiate many positive changes.
- Jo Foxworth - broke through barriers against women with work for Westinghouse, Buick, Ligget & Myers, Exxon, Hilton Hotels, Simmons and Coca-Cola. Foxworth has written three books, for which countess advertising students - particularly women can look up to her as a role model.
- Frank L. Mingo - Mingo-Jones, co-founded with Caroline Jones in New York in 1977, was one of the first African American advertising agencies formed and grew to become one of the foremost ethnic agencies in the country. Mingo dedicated himself to strengthening and building the African American community. His contributions helped develop programs attracting and sustaining more minorities in the advertising business.
- O. Milton Gossett - has been a pioneer of diversity, serving as an ambassador for the advertising industry in recruiting minority talent. He established a program enabling college students to travel to New York to visit the advertising business. In recognition of his efforts, Gossett was selected as one of the first recipients of the American Advertising Federation Diversity Achievement Award.
- Peter A. Georgescu - has devoted his time and energy to A Better Chance, a national organization dedicated to identifying, recruiting and developing leaders among young people of color throughout the U.S. He helped them find a national spokesperson, persuading none other than Oprah Winfrey to fill that role. A Better Chance President Judith Berry Griffin said of Georgescu, "Having achieved so much in his professional and personal life, Peter did not have to look back … but he made a different choice. And because he did so, thousands of lives have been and will be changed forever. "
- Patricia Martin - When the first women representatives were hired, it was Martin who was their champion and mentor. She served on an internal committee to set standards for female employees and especially working mothers.
- Katherine Graham - was a pioneer for women in business, becoming the first woman to head a Fortune 500 company, the first to serve as a director of the Associated Press and the first female director of the American Newspaper Publishers Association. Her 1997 memoir, which chronicled her extraordinary life and career, was awarded the Pulitzer Prize.
- Charles D. Peebler, Jr. - recognized the value of diversity, establishing a strong multicultural network of agencies. Leading agencies within the African American, Hispanic and Asian communities culminated in the New America Strategies Group at True North.
- John H. Johnson - His dedication to the creation of media outlets that met the unique needs of African Americans and that could deliver advertising messages in cultural context also contributed to the birth of African American-owned advertising agencies. He greatly influenced Madison Avenue to change their marketing to speak directly to Black America, pushing for the use of models of color in ads, among many other innovative ideas. All of this led to more opportunities for African Americans in advertising, public relations and modeling.
