The National Geographic Society, headquartered in Washington, D.C., United States, is one of the largest nonprofit scientific and educational organizations in the world.

[2] Founded in 1888, its interests include geography, archaeology, natural science, the promotion of environmental and historical conservation, and the study of world culture and history.

[7] The National Geographic Society began as a club for an elite group of academics and wealthy patrons interested in travel and exploration.

Bell and Gilbert Hovey Grosvenor devised the successful marketing notion of Society membership and the first major use of photographs to tell stories in magazines.

[11] The National Geographic received the prestigious Prince of Asturias Award for Communication and Humanities in October 2006 in Oviedo, Spain.

[15] In 2013, the society was investigated for possible violation of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act relating to their close association with an Egyptian government official responsible for antiquities.

[16] On September 9, 2015, the Society announced that it would re-organize its media properties and publications into a new company known as National Geographic Partners, which would be majority-owned by 21st Century Fox (21CF) with a 73% stake.

On June 29, 2023, National Geographic laid off the remaining staff writers for their magazine and announced the end of their physical news-stand publications in the United States in 2024.

Up to mid-2011, the medal has been twice presented: The Society operates the National Geographic Museum, located at 1145 17th Street, NW (17th and M), in Washington, D.C.

Permanent exhibits include artifacts like the camera Robert Peary used at the North Pole and pottery that Jacques Cousteau recovered from a shipwreck.

Music and Radio division president David Beal was appointed head of Nat Geo Entertainment.

The books make claims to describe, among other things, plants, herbs, and essential oils purported to help treat diseases and ailments.

While giving some appropriate warnings about such concerns as anecdotal evidence and side effects are given, the books have been criticized from a medical perspective for a number of reasons.

These include making recommendations that lack scientific evidence, inconsistent claims from one book to the next as well as internal contradictions, and failure to mention effective and safe alternatives.

Experts such as Harriet Hall, Joe Nickell, Cees Renckens and Barry Kosmin addressed each subject in the series of books.

[38] The society formed in October 2007 National Geographic Entertainment division to include Cinema Ventures and Feature Films.

[39] Basttsek ended up also over seeing Nat Geo Cinema Ventures distribution and big screen production before he left in 2012 becoming president of Cohen Media Group.

Partner museums would receive immediate market exclusivity on their 2 new digital 3D films per year and gain access to the National Geographic organization from members to exhibition to television.

National Geographic television specials and series have been aired on PBS and other networks in the United States and globally for many years.

Most of the specials were narrated by various actors, including Glenn Close, Linda Hunt, Stacy Keach, Richard Kiley, Burgess Meredith, Susan Sarandon, Alexander Scourby, Martin Sheen, and Peter Strauss.

The original News Corporation launched National Geographic Channel in Asia and Europe in the late 1990s, in partnership with the Society.

The Society provides programming to the National Geographic-branded channels worldwide, while, as of March 2019, The Walt Disney Company's subsidiaries (Walt Disney Television in the United States and Fox Networks Group outside the United States) handle distribution of the channels and advertisement sales.

[15] In 2009, the division became a full-service record label as Nat Geo Music with Mat Whittington appointed as president.