Below is a compilation of the latest moves in the industry.
Andrew Lack has been named CEO of the Broadcasting Board of Governors, the federal agency tasked with overseeing U.S.-government supported civilian international media outlets. Lack, previously chairman of Bloomberg Media Group, will supervise Voice of America, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Radio Free Asia and more.
Dolly Rosell has been promoted to executive VP of sales at 2G Digital. The senior VP of sales for the past three years, Rosell will use her more than 20 years of experience to help supervise national sales, manage relations with studio clients and organize sales and marketing goals long term.
Lisa Sherman will serve as the new president and CEO of the Ad Council. Formerly VP and general manager of Viacom Networks’ LogoTV, Sherman will start Nov. 3, taking over for Peggy Conlon, who has been in the position for 15 years. The Ad Council is behind such iconic campaigns as Smokey the Bear and Friends don’t let friends drive drunk.
Despite accusations from Baltimore Ravens owner Steve Bisciotti, ESPN and its reporters stood by their story on the team’s response to the Ray Rice video. Bisciotti, in a press conference Sept. 22, suggested that some of ESPN’s Sept. 19 report, which claimed the Ravens tried to shield Rice from the video’s fallout, was manufactured.
The teams behind the CW shows The Vampire Diaries and The Originals have planned a 5K walk-a-thon in memory of Sarah Jones, a camera assistant on The Vampire Diaries who died Sept. 22 in a Georgia train accident. Proceeds for the walk-a-thon, to be held Oct. 5 in Atlanta, will go to the Sarah Jones Film Foundation.
Omnigon has upped David Nugent to chief commercial officer. Previously senior VP of business development and a founding partner, Nugent will now emphasize the continued global expansion and growing market share for the digital consulting firm in the sports, media and entertainment industries.
Entertainment Studios has added Freddy J. Nager to its global strategies team. Nager will help the company in the realm of creative direction, brand development, content strategy and media integration for all media assets within Entertainment Studios, the independent producer and distributor for first-run syndicated TV programming.
Jill Tarlov, a former WINS New York employee and wife, died Sept. 18 from injuries sustained when she was hit by a cyclist in Central Park, according to CBS. Tarlov was 59. Her husband Mike Wittman is CBS TV Stations senior VP of finance.
NBCU has welcomed Paul Gómez as senior director of government affairs for Telemundo in Washington. Previously Walmart’s director of corporate affairs constituent relations, Gómez will work with Comcast and NBCU executives on government relations strategy, reporting to Melissa Maxfield, a senior VP at parent company Comcast, and NBCUniversal’s Joe Uva.
On Sept. 19, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell made his first public comments on the league’s domestic violence controversy in more than a week. He was hammered on the league’s lack of transparency as well as its response, considered slow and reactive, to the issue of domestic violence and the Ray Rice scandal.
Advanced Broadcast Solutions has hired Mindy Siegel Baggett as director of operations, the professional video and audio systems integration firm announced Sept. 19. Baggett, a former assistant public school principal, is the latest addition in the firm’s ongoing effort this year to better operations throughout the company.
Invision has tapped Christina Barlowe as senior VP, sales and consulting services, effectively immediately. Barlowe will supervise sales of Invision’s products while continuing her role with consulting services functions. With Barlowe at the helm, the new sales and consulting services team is looking to grow its clients’ current ad revenue streams and streamline workflow.
Kevin Systrom has joined KCRW’s board of directors, the station announced Sept. 18. Co-founder and CEO of Instagram, Systrom brings his technology expertise to his first board membership. KCRW recently unveiled a new website and broke ground on a media center, both showing KCRW’s interest in technological advances.
Twitter has a new head of North American media partnerships: Kirstine Stewart. Previously in charge of Twitter’s Canadian unit, Stewart will report to Katie Stanton, who runs Twitter’s global media group. Stewart takes over for Chloe Sladden, who departed the company in June.
CBS Entertainment announced Sept. 18 that it had bumped up Karen Church and Fern Orenstein as senior VPs, casting. Church handles casting for current CBS comedies, including The Big Bang Theory, while Orenstein does casting for long-form and event series, reality programming and mobile content.
Golf lifestyle network Back9Network announced on Sept. 18 the addition of seven new on-air personalities to headline studio shows. They are Shane Bacon, Erica Bachelor, Matty Blake, Caite Upton, Jeff Rude, John Maginnes and Will Christien.
Sue Frogley has joined Starcom MediaVest Group as global commercial director, the company announced Sept. 18. Frogley, formerly president of commercial operations at Dentsu Aegis Media, will take charge of building a strong commercial capability and practice to power client revenue.
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer International Television Distribution has appointed Matt Vassallo as senior VP, international television distribution, free TV sales & strategy and Latin America, the company announced Sept. 17. Vassallo will oversee the distribution and sales strategy of all MGM international content for free TV and ad-supported video on demand.
WCPO 9 On Your Side announced that Jennifer Ketchmark has joined the 9 First Warning Weather team. Previously the weekend meteorologist for WXIN Indianapolis, Ketchmark will be the meteorologist for “Good Morning Tri-State” in the Cincinnati market starting Oct. 20.
The National Cable & Telecommunications Association is getting a retrofit. Its annual convention has been renamed and reformatted to become the Internet and Television Expo to have video providers and distributors join the traditional Cable Show crowd at the three-day gathering.
Mike Smythe will retire from his position as general manager of KBSI-WKDA Paducah-Cape Girardeau on Sept. 26. He took on the role in February 2012 after retiring as GM at Raycom’s KFVS-WQWQ. Sinclair operates Fox affiliate KBSI and MyNetwork TV station WKDA through a local marketing agreement.
WVEC Norfolk’s Kari Jacobs is moving up from director of sales to general manager. Jacobs, who is succeeding Brad Ramsey, the new VP of sales at parent Gannett Broadcasting, has been director of sales at the ABC affiliate for three years. Before that, she was local sales manager for Cox Media in Norfolk.
Former Qualcomm executive Dennis Kish has been appointed to head up Google Fiber, The Wall Street Journal reported Sept. 16. He succeeds Milo Medin, the cable broadband industry veteran who is staying on as an advisor to Google Fiber as well as VP for access services. Kish was previously Qualcomm’s senior VP.
Veria Living network is changing its name to Z Living, effective Oct. 2. The wellness-focused network is making the switch to reflect its affiliation with India-based media conglomerate Zee Entertainment. The channel has had trouble breaking onto U.S. cable systems.
