Beverly Hills, Calif. —Salaam Coleman Smith has been named executive VP strategy and programming at ABC Family. The announcement was made by network president Tom Ascheim on Tuesday at the TCA summer press tour.
"She will be a key part of building our future," Ascheim said. "She's a great executive. She's an even greater person, and I'm thrilled she'll be part of our team."
Coleman Smith most recently served as president of Style Media before the net was subsumed into Esquire in 2013, leaving her without a post. She joined Comcast in 2003, first serving as senior VP of programming for E! and Style, before being named president of Style Network in 2008. Prior stints include MTV Networks, where she was vice president of programming for Nickelodean and Nick at Nite.
Coleman Smith's hire follows the announcement last week that chief creative offiver and executive VP Kate Juergens and Lynn Stepanian, senior VP, acquisitions and scheduling, would leave ABC Family as part of a restructuring. Ascheim said that a search for Juergens' replacement is ongoing.
When announcing Stepanian and Juergens' departure July 8, Ascheim noted that he would have news soon regarding a new head for new combined business strategy, planning and development departments, but was just beginning the search for Juergens' successor.
