Ryan Williams is the Digital and Special Events Producer at the D.C. Public Library - based at the historic Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library in Washington, D.C..Since joining at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, Ryan has successfully produced the reopening of the MLK Library’s $211 million renovation, shepherded the library’s talent management initiative, created virtual programming and an in-house studio and production team for the library’s marketing, streaming and content goals. He also led the library’s 50th anniversary programming, bringing noted artists, authors and social justice activists as regular guests for city residents, including Angela Davis, Misty Copeland, Phylicia Rashad, and H.E.R.

He previously served as Director of Multicultural Initiatives and Foundation Outreach at NBC News, MSNBC and NBC News Digital. In 2016, he created NBC OUT, the LGBTQ news division of NBC News Digital, which became an industry first for a legacy broadcast network. In 2015, he created NBCBLK, the African American news division of NBC News Digital after the departure of theGrio.com, and led partnership and promotional efforts for NBC OUT, NBCBLK, NBC Asian American and NBC Latino.  

He joined NBC News in 2011, as part of NBC News’ Education Nation team, a nationwide initiative and dialogue on K-12 and higher education issues then seen on all broadcast and digital platforms. In 2018, Ryan took part in an 18-month NBC News Executive Leadership program, led by then NBC News Group Chairman Andrew Lack. Ryan actively contributed to the Comcast NBCUniversal Diversity Council, the Comcast NBCUniversal Strategic Health Partnerships Task Force, and launched the Washington D.C. NBCUniversal Black Employee Network in 2015.

Before NBC News, Ryan served as Managing Director of the National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ), creating programs and partnerships for the largest journalist of color organization in the U.S. Ryan later served as two-time convention chair, and currently serves as an at-large board member for the Washington D.C. chapter of NABJ.