In yet another realignment, Turner Broadcasting System Inc. is putting TBS
Superstation under the purview of Turner Network Television chief Steve Koonin,
officials said Tuesday.
Koonin, most recently executive vice president and general manager of TNT,
will now head both that general-entertainment network and TBS as executive VP
and chief operating officer in the changes announced by Mark Lazarus, president
of Turner Entertainment Group.
Under Koonin's watch, TNT has knocked Lifetime Television out of its No. 1
spot in the primetime ratings.
"Consolidating our entertainment networks under one head with responsibility
for all programming, on-air promotion, marketing and day-to-day operations will
aggressively position Turner Entertainment for growth," Lazarus said in a
prepared statement.
"TNT's successful branding as the destination for drama has resulted in
industry-leading growth across all dayparts," he added.
Dennis Quinn, who has served as TBS' executive VP and GM since 1999, will
remain at Turner in a corporate role. He has been asked by TBS Inc. chairman and
CEO Philip Kent to join the company's operations and strategy unit as an
executive VP.
Quinn will be part of an executive strategy group that includes chief
technology officer Scott Teissler, executive VP of entertainment-network
operations and Turner Studios Dan Darling and executive VP Jim McCaffrey, who
heads the unit.
Koonin, a veteran of The Coca-Cola Co., joined TBS Inc. in 2000 as GM of TNT.
He spearheaded its positioning as the destination for dramatic programming,
bolstered by off-network fare such as ER, Law & Order, NYPD
Blue and The X-Files.
