MTV Networks has shuffled its management ranks, mostly expanding the responsibilities of Viacom veterans in the wake of that company's takeover of CBS.
MTV President Judy McGrath was named president of the MTV Group and chairman of its Interactive Music unit, giving her the added responsibility of the company's Internet operations. The music network's General Manager, Van Toffler, was promoted to MTV president.
The newly acquired CBS Cable operation will be split in two. VH1 President John Sykes will add CBS' country-music service CMT. That's a loss for longtime TNN President David Hall, who will, however, remain in charge of that Nashville, Tenn.-based operation and report directly to MTVN Chairman Tom Freston.
Viacom also named Bill Roedy president of MTV Networks International, adding Nickelodeon to his portfolio of MTV's and VH1's foreign operations.
"There's no losers, it's all winners this week," Freston said. As for TNN's Hall, "David now is going to focus all his energies on the biggest project for our company, the reinvigoration of TNN."
Hall will get a lot to play with: Viacom has cut a deal to secure TV rights to the Nielsen-boosting WWF for TNN.
A couple of executives lose their direct path to Freston. For example, the MTVi group, which includes music site SonicNet, had been reporting to the MTVN chairman but now go up through McGrath. But Nicholas Butterworth, MTVi president and CEO, remains in place, preparing the unit for an IPO.
