The Following eight people are directly responsible for news and editorial policy in broadcast media today. If you don’t like what happens in the Big Broadcast Network News departments, these are the individuals who are accountable. This gang of eight represent the greatest concentration of socialist pursuasive power in the history of mankind.
Listed Below are the top executives of the Big Three Broadcast Networks. Names and corporate contact telephone numbers have been gleened from public information and public corporate filings. If you can find direct contact information for fax, email and direct dial please forward here and will get that information marqueed to help others.
ABC
Disney Media Networks:
ABC News
47 West 66th. Street
New York, NY 10023
Anne Sweeney:
Serves as co-chair, Disney Media Networks and president, Disney/ABC Television Group, where she is responsible for The Walt Disney Company’s entertainment and news television properties globally. She was promoted to this role in April 2004. Ms. Sweeney oversees the ABC Television Network, which provides entertainment, news and kids programming to viewers via more than 200 affiliated stations across the U.S. in addition to other technological platforms. ABC series, many of which are produced by ABC Studios, are distributed to more than 230 territories across the globe by Disney-ABC-ESPN Television. Disney/ABC Television Group also comprises Disney Channels Worldwide, a portfolio of 94 kid-driven, family inclusive entertainment channels and/or channel feeds available in 163 countries and 32 languages, spanning Disney Channel, Disney XD, Playhouse Disney, Toon Disney, Disney Cinemagic, Hungama, GXT, Jetix and Radio Disney brands. Ms. Sweeney also manages cable networks ABC Family and SOAPnet, as well as Disney’s publishing imprint, Hyperion, and the company’s equity interest in Lifetime Entertainment Services and A&E Television Network.
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Kevin Brockman, Executive Vice President;
Named executive vice president, Global Communications, Disney/ABC Television Group in March 2008, reporting to Anne Sweeney, co-chair, Disney Media Networks and president, Disney/ABC Television Group, and Zenia Mucha, executive vice president, Communications, The Walt Disney Company.
In this position Mr. Brockman oversees all corporate, news and entertainment communication efforts worldwide on behalf of the Disney/ABC Television Group, which is comprised of the ABC Television Network (which includes ABC Daytime, ABC News and ABC Entertainment); Disney Channels Worldwide, a portfolio of kids’ TV businesses which reaches more than 600 million people in 127 countries each month; cable networks ABC Family and SOAPnet; Radio Disney; Walt Disney Television Animation; Buena Vista Productions; ABC Studios; international distributor Disney-ABC-ESPN Television, the publishing unit Hyperion and ABC Corporate Initiatives. In addition he is responsible for the Group’s Photography, Broadcast Publicity, Ratings Publicity and Talent Relations activities, and is involved in corporate communications for ABC’s 10 owned television stations in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Houston, Raleigh-Durham, Fresno, Flint and Toledo.
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David Westin, President of ABC News:
Oversees all editorial and business aspects of the News Division. This includes all ABC News programs on the ABC Television Network, ABC News Radio — the #1 radio news network — ABC News.com and ABC News NOW.
Mr. Westin has led ABC News since 1997. In that time, ABC News aired over 40 documentaries, including by Peter Jennings on the 20th Century, Jesus and Paul, AIDS in Black America, tobacco, Guantanamo and Islam; by Diane Sawyer on North Korea, veterans’ hospitals, Russian orphans, foster care, poverty and prostitution; by Barbara Walters on Fidel Castro, Heaven, adoption and longevity; and by Bob Woodruff on traumatic brain injury suffered in Iraq. During Mr. Westin’s tenure, ABC News aired John Miller’s interview with Osama bin Laden from Afghanistan, the last such interview with a western journalist, as well as Barbara Walters’ interview with Monica Lewinsky, the highest rated news program in television history.
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CBS Corporation
51 W. 52nd Street
New York, NY 10019
PH: 212) 975-4321
Sumner M. Redstone (85)Executive Chairman of the Board
Leslie Moonves (59) President and Chief Executive Officer
Sean McManus
President, CBS News and Sports
Sean McManus was named President, CBS Sports, in November 1996 and President, CBS News, in October 2005. He is only the second person to hold both Division titles simultaneously; Roone Arledge held both at ABC from 1977-86.
As president of CBS News, McManus has undertaken a restructuring and retooling of the Division, both in front of and behind the camera. Most notable on the on-air side was the April 2006 announcement that Katie Couric would join CBS News as the new anchor and managing editor of the CBS EVENING NEWS and a correspondent for 60 MINUTES. Additionally, a new state-of-the-art newsroom at CBS News headquarters in New York and EVENING NEWS set were built, and a new primary control room was unveiled in July 2008.
McManus has also aggressively worked to build a strong corps of reporters, as well as to develop the next generation of CBS News correspondents. He has designated and assigned key beats–Chief Foreign Affairs Correspondent Lara Logan, Chief White House correspondent Jim Axelrod, Chief Investigative Correspondent Armen Keteyian, National Correspondent Byron Pitts among them-and has signed distinctive young talent, including Nancy Cordes, Seth Doane, Jeff Glor, Maggie Rodriguez, Daniel Sieberg and Ben Tracy. McManus has also added strong veteran correspondents to round out the group, including Jeff Greenfield, Chip Reid and Dean Reynolds. He announced that CNN’s Anderson Cooper would contribute several stories to 60 MINUTES and CNN’s Dr. Sanjay Gupta would contribute to the CBS EVENING NEWS.
McManus put in place a new management team, as well, including a new senior vice president, three new vice presidents, four new bureau chiefs, a new international editor and new executive producers of the CBS EVENING NEWS and THE EARLY SHOW. He also led the Division through the tragedy of colleagues Paul Douglas and James Brolan being killed in a car bomb attack in Baghdad on Memorial Day 2006 and correspondent Kimberly Dozier being critically injured.
On the sports side, McManus led the CBS Corporation’s efforts in acquiring broadcast rights to the National Football League in January 1998 and, in November 2004 with Leslie Moonves, re-negotiated the contract to retain the rights for CBS until 2011. He also serves as executive producer overseeing all aspects of CBS Sports’ coverage of the NFL, including production, on-air talent, advertising and promotion. In addition, McManus serves as executive producer for the acclaimed show INSIDE THE NFL on Showtime.
During McManus’ more than 11 years as President of the Division, CBS Sports has become the year-round leader in network sports television. In November 1999, he led CBS to an unprecedented landmark agreement with the NCAA which extended the exclusive over-the-air broadcast rights, as well as rights to the Internet, marketing and corporate sponsorship, merchandising, licensing, cable television, radio, satellite, digital and home video to the NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Championship until 2014. The 11-year pact is the most comprehensive sports agreement in history.
McManus reached a new multi-year agreement with the PGA TOUR to extend its broadcast rights through 2012 and to remain the TOUR’s dominant broadcast partner. He also recently extended broadcast rights to the PGA Championship through 2011. In addition, McManus extended CBS’s agreement with the United States Tennis Association to broadcast the U.S. Open through 2011, extended the agreement with the Big Ten to broadcast the conference’s basketball games through 2010 and extended the Southeastern Conference (SEC) football and basketball agreements in another landmark deal, a 15-year extension, through the 2023-24 season.
Complementing the on-air talent roster that had already included Jim Nantz, John McEnroe, Billy Packer and Ken Venturi, McManus was responsible for adding Greg Gumbel, James Brown, Dick Enberg, Verne Lundquist, Phil Simms, Dan Dierdorf, Lesley Visser, Boomer Esiason, Shannon Sharpe, Dan Marino, Nick Faldo, Bill Cowher, Randy Cross and Clark Kellogg to CBS Sports’ announcer lineup.
In addition, McManus led CBS’s efforts in securing a partnership with SportsLine USA that created CBS SportsLine, now known as CBSSports.com, one of the most successful sports Internet sites. In January 2008, McManus began overseeing CSTV’s cable and digital businesses initiating its rebranding as CBS COLLEGE SPORTS NETWORK.
Prior to his CBS Sports tenure, he was Senior Vice President of U.S. Television Sales and Programming for Trans World International, the television division of International Management Group, the world’s largest sports marketing firm (1987-96).
Before that, McManus was Vice President, Program Planning and Development at NBC Sports (1982-87), becoming the youngest vice president in the history of the network at the age of 27. He was responsible for all programming and was instrumental in the rights negotiations for the Olympics, the NFL, Wimbledon, the Breeders’ Cup, the Orange Bowl, auto racing and NCAA college basketball. McManus joined NBC Sports in 1979 as an associate producer assigned to the NFL, Wimbledon, the PGA TOUR, “Sportsworld,” auto racing and the Tour de France.
He began his career in 1977 at ABC Sports as a production assistant and associate producer.
McManus is the son of the late legendary sports broadcaster Jim McKay. He was graduated cum laude from Duke University in 1977 with a degree in English and history.
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NBC Universal, Div. General Electric
NBC News
30 Rockefeller Plaza
New York, N.Y. 10112
JEFF ZUCKER
President and Chief Executive Officer, NBC Universal
Jeff Zucker is President and Chief Executive Officer of NBC Universal. He has held that position since February 2007.
NBC Universal is one of the world’s leading media and entertainment content companies, with assets that include the U.S. broadcast networks NBC and Telemundo; cable networks USA, Syfy, Bravo, Oxygen, CNBC, MSNBC and the Weather Channel; movie studios Universal Pictures and Focus Features; digital properties such as Hulu (a joint venture with News Corporation and Disney) and iVillage; an extensive array of international television channels in Europe, Asia, and Latin America; and theme parks in Hollywood and Orlando. Formed in 2004 through the acquisition by NBC of Vivendi Universal Entertainment, NBC Universal is 80% owned by General Electric and 20% owned by Vivendi.
Zucker has spent his entire career at NBC Universal, joining the company’s Olympic unit in 1986, straight out of college. In his more than 22 years with the company, he has had a diversified career as an award-winning producer and business leader.
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STEVE CAPUS
President, NBC News
Steve Capus was named president, NBC News in November 2005. He is the No. 1 News Division executive and is responsible for all aspects of America’s highest-rated and most-watched network News division, as well as MSNBC and NBC News Channel. Capus is also the arbiter of issues involving ethics, style, standards, safety and other matters that affect the Division’s journalistic bearing. Capus reports to Jeff Zucker, president and chief executive officer of NBC Universal.
Capus had served as senior vice president of NBC News since June 2005, and was the executive producer of NBC Nightly News since May 2001. In December 2004, when the broadcast made the first anchor change on any network evening newscast in more than two decades – from Tom Brokaw to Brian Williams – Capus oversaw the seamless transition. Under his direction, NBC Nightly News has remained the highest-rated evening newscast in America. Capus was also the executive producer for much of NBC News’ coverage of the terror attacks on September 11, 2001, the war in Iraq, and the “Decision 2002-2004” political coverage.
Capus has also received numerous awards, including four Emmy Awards, six Edward R. Murrow Awards, one Alfred I. duPont and six National Headliner Awards.
From 1997 to May 2001, Capus was the executive producer of MSNBC’s signature primetime newscast, The News with Brian Williams. He was also the executive producer of numerous NBC News breaking reports and MSNBC special broadcasts. Among them were the 2000 presidential primaries and election, the “Summit in Silicon Valley” with Tom Brokaw and the political series 100 Days, 1000 Voices. Before becoming executive producer of The News, Capus had served as the senior broadcast producer for MSNBC’s daytime news coverage since its launch in 1996.
RECENT NEWS: Comcast NBC Merger
General Electric Chairman Jeffery Immelt sent Sen. Orrin Hatch a $2,000 campaign contribution the same day his company announced a deal giving Comcast controlling interest in NBC Universal.
It was the first time Immelt has donated to the Utah senator, and yet the contribution capped a fundraising barrage during the previous month where top GE vice presidents and the company’s political action committee funneled a total of $23,000 to Hatch’s campaign account.
Hatch is expected to play a key role in the congressional review of the controversial merger. He is the ranking member of the Senate Judiciary’s antitrust committee, which will hold its first hearing on the Comcast-NBC deal Thursday.
In the $30 billion merger, Comcast would pay GE $6.5 billion in cash and pair its lucrative cable channels such as Versus and E Entertainment, with NBC Universal’s stable that include MSNBC, USA and Bravo.
Comcast would control 51 percent of the new company and GE would keep 49 percent, at least in the short term.
If government regulators OK the deal, Comcast would become one of the nation’s media titans, joining companies such as Disney and Time Warner in its size and scope. But critics say the merger puts too much media power into the hands of the cable provider, which could hurt competitors such as DirecTV and potentially impede the growth of Internet-based TV.
The Washington-based advocacy group Public Knowledge released a statement urging the government to “make certain competitors will have access to Comcast and NBC programming as the online market evolves.”
The governmental review by the Federal Communications Commission and the Justice Department could take as long as a year, but analysts don’t expect the deal to fall apart.
“It is quite likely to be approved. The key question is what conditions regulators will put on the merger,” said Paul Gallant, a former FCC employee who is a media analyst with Concept Capital.
Congress plays a largely unofficial role in the regulatory review. Their hearings act as a public way to flesh out potential problems and give members of Congress the ability to influence antitrust authorities.
“Senator Hatch definitely has a voice in this merger review,” Gallant said. “He understands how antitrust regulators think, so his views matter.”
For his part, Hatch promised that all involved would be “treated very fairly.”
“I will keep an open mind on the issue,” he said, giving a nod to some public skepticism over the deal. “I think it is justified to say that maybe there are some concerns that we will have to work our way through.”
Comcast and GE negotiated the merger during the past nine months. On Nov. 4, GE’s political action committee donated $6,000 to Hatch. Then the company’s executives held a Nov. 12 fundraiser. The last donation from Immelt came Dec. 3.
It was the first GE-related contributions Hatch has received in at least five years and is far more than the GE leadership team has ever sent to the six-term senator.
Hatch also received a $1,000 contribution from the political action committee of NBC’s rival CBS in late December.
GE spokesman Gary Sheffer said the fundraiser was originally planned for mid-October, but was delayed by scheduling conflicts.
“Over the years, and over the last few months, we have held events of this kind for members of Congress from both parties,” Sheffer said.
The senator has met with not only Comcast and GE but people “on the other side of the merger issue,” Eddington said. “He intends to carefully listen and analyze the information presented in the hearing tomorrow on this issue of great importance to the future of broadcasting.”
