Many of the top companies in TV feature women in senior management roles. In the highest echelons of corporate management, however—boards of directors, division presidents and C-level executives— women still have a long way to go in achieving gender parity. In terms of board seats, the numbers shrink even further, with far fewer women serving as committee chairman or lead director than their male counterparts. Here’s an overview of women in top leadership positions at a selection of 20 of the largest (by total revenue) publicly traded companies operating in the TV arena. Along with key execs and board members, we also highlight corporate programs intended to bolster education, mentorship and/ or leadership advancement for women. Descriptions of programs are culled from official company materials. Execs noted include only those with titles of chairman/ chairwoman, president or “chief,” as in chief finance officer, chief operating officer, etc.
AMC NETWORKS
Jennifer Caserta Priore, President and GM, IFC
Sarah Barnett, President and GM, SundanceTV
Arlene Manos, President of National Ad Sales
AT&T
Cynthia B. Taylor, Board of Directors, Audit Committee
Laura D’Andrea Tyson, Board of Directors, Public Policy and Corporate Reputation Committee and Audit Committee, AT&T
Beth E. Mooney, Board of Directors, Corporate Development and Finance Committee, AT&T
Joyce M. Roché, Board of Directors, Executive Committee; Corporate Governance and Nominating Committee; and Chair of Human Resources Committee, AT&T
CORPORATE PROGRAMS:
AT&T Women’s Leadership Council “embodies the breadth of diversity in our female management population and spearheads initiatives designed to keep AT&T relevant and attractive to women.”
WOW! AT&T World of Women internal website offers AT&T women and men role models and tools to assist with career planning, integrating work and family, connecting with others and becoming an authentic leader.
The company also has three women’s employee groups around the globe: Women of AT&T, AT&T Women of Finance, and AT&T EMEA (Europe, Middle East, Africa) Women’s Network.
CBS CORP.
Shari Redstone, Board of Directors, Vice Chair and Director
Linda M. Griego, Board of Directors, Director
CBS ENTERTAINMENT
Nina Tassler, Chairman, CBS Entertainment
CBS TELEVISION DISTRIBUTION
Hilary Estey McLouglin, President, Creative Affairs, CBS Television Distribution
CBS FILMS
Terry Press, Copresident, CBS Films
CBS INTERACTIVE
Renee Budig, Chief Financial Officer and Executive VP, CBS Interactive
CBS OUTDOOR
Jodi Senese, Chief Marketing Officer, Executive VP, CBS Outdoor
SIMON & SCHUSTER
Carolyn Reidy, President/CEO, Simon & Schuster
SHOWTIME
Chris Spade, Executive VP and Chief Financial Officer
CORPORATE PROGRAMS:
CBS Diversity’s Women’s Networking Group is an initiative focused on leadership, mentorship, and empowerment for women.
CBS Supplier Diversity is a corporate-wide business strategy that encourages and measures the use of women and minority-owned vendors and professional services and suppliers.
The Diversity Blog on the CBS Diversity website at diversity.cbscorporation.com showcases content from CBS contributors and select media industry leaders sharing personal news and views on how they are making an impact within their workplace and their communities.
CHARTER COMMUNICATIONS
N/A
CABLEVISION
Kristin Dolan, COO
COMCAST
Dr. Judith Rodin, Board of Directors, Comcast Corp.
NBCUNIVERSAL
Bonnie Hammer, Chairman, NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment Group
Patricia Fili-Krushel, Chairman, NBCUniversal News Group, NBCUniversal
Linda Yaccarino, President, Advertising Sales, NBCUniversal
NBCUNIVERSAL CABLE
BRAVO
Frances Berwick, President, Bravo and Oxygen Media
SPROUT
Sandy Wax, President and GM, Sprout Beth Hanssens, Chief Financial Officer and Senior VP, Finance, Sprout
E! ENTERTAINMENT
Suzanne Kolb, President, E! Entertainment
Cyndi McClellan, President, Network Strategy and E! News, E! Entertainment
USA NETWORK/CLOO
Cynthia Chu, Chief Financial Officer, USA Network
THE WEATHER CHANNEL COMPANY
Jennifer Dangar, President, Distribution and Business Development, Weather Channel Co.
NBCUNIVERSAL ENTERTAINMENT
Jennifer Salke, President, NBC Entertainment
NBCUNIVERSAL NEWS
Deborah Turness, President, NBC News
NBCUNIVERSAL OWNED TELEVISION STATIONS
Valari Dobson Staab, President, NBCUniversal Owned Television Stations
Jackie Bradford, President and General Manager, NBC4 Washington
Christine Dorfler, CFO, NBCUniversal Owned Television Stations
TELEMUNDO
Jacqueline Hernandez, COO, Telemundo Media
NBCUNIVERSAL TELEVISION & NEW MEDIA DISTRIBUTION U.S. AND CANADA
Frances Manfredi, President, NBCUniversal Television & New Media Distribution, U.S. & Canada
CORPORATE PROGRAMS:
Women’s Network@NBCUniversal (WNN) is an employee-resource organization designed to foster women’s professional development and help to attract, retain, and develop successful women across NBCUniversal.
Joint Diversity Advisory Council (JDC): This innovative external JDC provides advice to senior executive teams at Comcast and NBCUniversal regarding the company’s development and implementation of diversity and inclusion initiatives. The JDC is comprised of national leaders in business, politics and civil rights, including an all-female nine-member subcommittee representing women’s interests.
Pipeline Programs: NBCUniversal has numerous programs designed to serve the needs of a wide range of diverse communities, including women. Two of the company’s pipeline programs that strongly encourage women in particular to apply are Late Night Writers Workshop and Directing Fellowship Program:
Late Night Writers Workshop: The NBCUniversal Late Night Writers Workshop is a program focused on exposing talented joke, sketch and comedy writers to NBCUniversal’s late-night & alternative lineup and readying them for a staff writer position. We are looking for writers who are “almost there” but need that final bit of preparation and exposure to key industry players. We particularly encourage female writers and those of diverse backgrounds to apply.
Directing Fellowship Program: The Directing Fellowship Program is designed to take directors accomplished in their respective fields (features, commercials and/or music videos) and have them work alongside episodic television directors.
Team NBCUniversal: Launched in 2012, TEAM is a cross-functional mentoring experience designed to provide leadership development and cross-business exposure for rising female and male leaders at pivotal career points. Through cross-functional teams comprised of an executive mentor and three to four peer mentees, participants engage in discussions aimed at broadening one’s business acumen, personal brand, collaboration skills, and professional network. In 2013, NBCUniversal ran the second year of TEAM. The 2013 class was comprised of 77% women and 70% people of color.
DIRECTV
Nancy S. Newcomb, Board of Directors, Audit Committee and Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee
Lorrie Norrington, Board of Directors, Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee and Compensation Committee; Independent Advisor
DISCOVERY
CORPORATE MANAGEMENT
Adria Alpert Romm, Chief Human Resources and Global Diversity Officer, Discovery Communications
BUSINESS AND BRAND MANAGEMENT
Eileen O’Neill, Group President, Discovery Channel, Science Channel and Velocity
Marjorie Kaplan, Group President, TLC and Animal Planet
Margaret Loesch, President and CEO, The Hub
Oprah Winfrey, Chairwoman, CEO and Chief Creative Officer, OWN
Sheri Salata, President, OWN and Harpo Studios
Harriet Seitler, Chief Marketing Officer and Executive VP, OWN
INTERNATIONAL MANAGEMENT
Dee Forbes, President and Managing Director, Discovery Networks, Western Europe
Kasia Kieli, President and Managing Director, Discovery Networks, Central and Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa
CORPORATE PROGRAMS:
Women’s Leadership Network (WLN): The mission of the Women’s Leadership Network is to foster strong association among the women of Discovery and their peers, provide resources for leadership and professional development, and act as a catalyst for high-performance execution both at individual and companywide levels. As the fastest growing group throughout Discovery, the WLN is headed by some of Discovery’s strongest women leaders. This year the group launched Discovery’s first women-focused mentoring program tasked with promoting personal growth, networking and camaraderie. With over a dozen leaders from VPs and above volunteering to serve as mentors—younger careerists within the company have been able to find not only mentors, but champions for their career growth.
DISH NETWORK
N/A
WALT DISNEY CO.
Susan Arnold, Board of Directors
Monica C. Lozano, Board of Directors
Sheryl Sandberg, Board of Directors
MANAGEMENT TEAM
Anne Sweeney, Co-Chair, Disney Media Networks; President, Disney/ABC Television Group
Rebecca Campbell, President, ABC Owned Television Stations Group
Janice Marinelli, President, Disney-ABC Domestic Television
Geri Wang, President, ABC Sales
Zenia Mucha, Executive VP and Chief Communications Officer, Walt Disney Co.
Jayne Parker, Executive VP and Chief Human Resources Officer, Walt Disney Co. .
NETFLIX
Leslie Kilgore, Board of Directors, Director; Former Chief Marketing Officer, Netflix
Ann Mather, Board of Directors, Director and Chairman, Audit Committee
Tawni Cranz, Chief Talent Officer, Netflix
SCRIPPS NETWORKS INTERACTIVE
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Gina L. Bianchini, Founder & CEO, Mighty Software
Richelle P. Parham, Audit Committee, Member; VP and Chief Marketing Officer, eBay
Mary Peirce, Nominating and Governance Committee, Member; Trustee, The Edward W. Scripps Trust
Nackey E. Scagliotti, Compensation Committee, Member; The Edward W. Scripps Trust
LEADERSHIP
Kathleen Finch, President, HGTV, DIY and Great American Country
Brooke Johnson, President, Food Category
Cynthia Gibson, Executive VP, Chief Legal Officer and Corporate Secretary
SONY CORP. (SONY PICTURES TELEVISION)
SENIOR MANAGEMENT
Amy Pascal, Chairman, Sony Pictures Entertainment; Chairman, Sony Pictures Entertainment Motion Picture Group
Hannah Minghella, President, Production, Columbia Pictures
Nicole Seligman, President, Sony Corp. of America; ECP and General Counsel, Sony Corp.
DIVISION PRESIDENTS
Amy Carney, President, Advertising Sales, Strategy and Research
Karen Hedline, President, Micronics
STARZ
Susan Lyne, Board of Directors, and Chairman, Compensation Committee and Member, Nominating and Governance Committee; Chairman of Gilt Group
TIME WARNER
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Jessica P. Einhorn, Former Dean, Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS), The Johns Hopkins University
Deborah C. Wright, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Carver Bancorp
LEADERSHIP
Karen Magee, Executive VP and Chief Human Resources Officer
Carol A. Melton, Executive VP, Global Public Policy
HBO
Pamela Levine, Chief Marketing Officer
Sheila Nevins, President, HBO Documentary Films
TURNER BROADCASTING
Donna Speciale, President, Ad Sales
WARNER BROS. ENTERTAINMENT
Sue Kroll, President, Worldwide Marketing and International Distribution, Warner Bros. Pictures
Veronika Kwan Vandenberg, President, International Distribution, Warner Bros. Pictures
Diane Nelson, President, DC Entertainment, President and Chief Content Officer, Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment
CORPORATE PROGRAMS:
Breakthrough Leadership Program: This program is designed to develop high-potential women leaders by enhancing leadership skills, sharing strategies for business success and networking with and learning from other talented Time Warner leaders.
21ST CENTURY FOX
Delphine Arnault, Board of Directors; Executive VP, Louis Vuitton Malletier
21ST CENTURY FOX EXECUTIVES
Julie Henderson, Executive VP, Chief Communications Officer, 21st Century Fox
BUSINESS UNIT LEADERS
Dana Walden, Chairman, Twentieth Century Fox Television
TWITTER
N/A
VERIZON
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Shellye L. Archambeau, CEO, Metric Stream
Melanie L. Healey, Human Resources Committee, Member; Group President, North American and Global Hyper-Market, Super- Market and Mass Channel, Procter & Gamble
M. Frances Keeth, Lead Director, Chairperson, Corporate Governance and Policy Committee; Audit Committee and Finance Committee, Member
Kathryn A. Tesija, Corporate Governance and Policy Committee, Member; Executive VP, Merchandising and Supply Chain, Target Corp.
Sandra O. Moose, Corporate Governance and Policy Committee and Audit Committee Member; President, Strategic Advisory Services
CORPORATE OFFICERS AND EXECUTIVE LEADERSHIP
Rose Stuckey Kirk, President, Verizon Foundation and VP, Global Corporate Citizenship
Marni M. Walden, Executive VP and President, Product and New Business Innovation
CORPORATE PROGRAMS:
The Women’s Association of Verizon Employees is one of many Employee Resource Groups at Verizon. These volunteer organizations support Verizon’s strategic business goals, such as employee engagement and retention, diversity awareness and recruitment efforts, an understanding of the company’s customer base, and philanthropic initiatives. Such ERGs are intended to provide a stronger sense of community within the company.
VIACOM
Deborah Norville, Board of Directors
Shari Redstone, Board of Directors
Blythe J. McGarvine, Board of Directors
Christiana Falcone Sorrell, Board of Directors
BRAND LEADERSHIP
Debra Lee, Chairman and CEO, BET Networks
Michele Ganeless, President, Comedy Central
Cyma Zarghami, President, Nickelodeon Networks Group
Amy Powell, President, Paramount Television, Insurge Pictures and Digital Entertainment
Megan Colligan, President, Domestic Marketing and Distribution, Paramount Pictures
Loretha Jones, President of Original Programming, BET Network
LeeAnn Stables, President, Consumer Products, Executive VP, Marketing Partnerships, Paramount Pictures
WWE
Stephanie McMahon, Chief Brand Officer
Michelle D. Wilson, Chief Revenue and Marketing Officer
Patricia A. Gottesman, Board of Directors, Compensation Committee Member; President and CEO of Crimson Hexagon
