Apple CEO Tim Cook Coming to DC's Newseum for Special Award

WASHINGTON, DC — The Newseum will honor Tim Cook, chief executive officer of Apple, with the 2017 Free Expression Award, the Newseum announced this week.

Cook has been in charge of Apple since 2011 after its founder, Steve Jobs, passed away from pancreatic cancer. He will accept the award at the Newseum on April 18.

"Cook ... will be recognized for his leadership in creating technology that has had a profound impact on how we communicate," the Newseum said in a statement. "Further, he has used his spotlight to take a public stand on major societal issues, including racial equality, privacy, protecting the environment, access to education and LGBT rights."

The 2017 Free Expression Awards are presented in a total of five categories, with Cook winning in the Free Speech category.

"Honorees have taken personal or professional risks in sharing critical information with the public, have been censored or punished by authorities or other groups for their work, or have pushed boundaries in artistic and media expression," the statement notes.

Among the other honorees are Playboy founder Hugh Hefner and U.S. Rep. John Lewis, who who fought for civil rights alongside Martin Luther King, Jr. and recently got into a spat with President Trump.

Image via Newseum