A CYNOPSIS MESSAGE FROM NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC CHANNEL
“DAVID LYLE”
Congratulations to our CEO
named one of Cynopsis’
Most Intriguing People of 2013
Cynopsis Media Presents: Cable & Research’s Most Intriguing People: Special Report – Part 2
04/04/13
by Michael Maloney
It’s still Thursday, April 4, Welcome to our final Special Report celebrating The Most Intriguing People of 2013, as chosen by the media industry and by Cynopsis. This prestigious list is a veritable who’s who of the movers, doers, and thinkers in our industry at this specific moment in time, carefully culled from the worlds of broadcast, cable, digital and advertising.
Cable has proved that it’s a go-to place for quality programming across all genres. And the senior level leaders in this report have been chosen for a variety of reasons: they may be in a new position that requires especially innovative problem solving, they might have recently brokered an impressive deal in a challenging market, and/or they may be responsible for ratings spikes or a chain of successes that deserve recognition and celebration.
Each of these individuals is being spotlighted in a series of Cynopsis Q&A’s in Special Reports being released throughout March and April. The following is the second in a two-part report on notables from cable. Enjoy!
A CYNOPSIS MESSAGE FROM COOKING CHANNEL
We proudly congratulate
––––– Michael Smith –––––
for being one of
Cynopsis’ Most Intriguing People of 2013.
COOKING CHANNEL
–––––––––––––––––––––––
What do you think was the biggest TV biz news story of 2012?
Fox Deportes #1 U.S. Latino Sports Network, with #1 U.S. Latino Sports News franchise (Central Fox).
Who do you consider your mentor and why?
I’ve had many mentors throughout my life, who have believed in me, supported me and helped me become a better person.
What was your first job?
I was a United Artist Theatre usher.
What changes or trends do you foresee in the next year or so in our industry?
Continued focus on the U.S. Latino market, with more and more focus on English media
What career accomplishment are you most proud of in the past year?
I’m most proud of having worked with and continuing to work with a phenomenal team.
What would people be surprised to know about you?
I take classical guitar lessons.
What TV do you watch on a regular basis (guilty pleasure or otherwise?)
I watch Seinfeld, Game of Thrones and Mad Men
What’s the one technology you couldn’t live without?
My iPhone for both music and communication.
What was the biggest TV biz news story of 2012?
The rapid pace of change in the content space new content creators, innovative formats, multi-screen consumption and where the value equation lies therein.
Who do you consider your mentor and why?
Lauren Zalaznick. She flung open the door to the digital world for me and let me run wild.
What was your first job?
I was a copy clerk for the Chicago Sun Times in the 8th grade back when journalists used typewriters and carbon paper. My job was to separate carbons and drop them into editors’ in-boxes. On my first week, I managed to break a cover story when I saw a classmate of mine doing something unusual (long story!) on Michigan Ave.
What trends do you foresee in the next year in our industry?
I foresee super-segmentation, increasing importance of data analytics, and more premium digital video.
What career accomplishment from the past year are you most proud of?
It was getting the entire Bravo team rallied around Top Chef’s twice Emmy-nominated digital video series Last Chance Kitchen. This transmedia project showed the importance of social in spreading the word: “If it doesn’t spread, it’s dead.”
What would people be surprised to know about you?
That I would like to come back as naturalist David Attenborough; check out “The Life of Birds.” It’s amazing!
What TV do you watch on a regular basis (guilty pleasure or otherwise)?
I watch 60 Minutes, Shahs of Sunset and The Good Wife. Sundays nights are busy!
What’s the one technology you couldn’t live without?
Multi-plug adaptors.
What do you think was the biggest TV biz news story of 2012?
The launch of the standalone 24-hour Disney Junior channel followed by the record-breaking Disney Junior TV movie Sofia the First: Once Upon a Princess. And, of course, the birth of Snooki’s baby, who we anticipate will be a future Disney Junior viewer!
Who do you consider your mentor and why?
Dede Allen, a film editor with whom I interned. She changed the way films were edited by defying all the established rules. She brought an emotional depth to her work that I have tried to emulate in my own career both as a film editor and a TV executive.
What was your first job?
I interned as an apprentice film editor on “Night Moves,” which starred Gene Hackman and was directed by Arthur Penn. I didn’t earn a cent, but it was the most valuable and rewarding work experience ever. My next job, which did pay, was on “Dog Day Afternoon.”
What changes or trends do you foresee in the next year or so in our industry?
I foresee more proliferation of content across digital and mobile platforms. Creation of new content that’s specifically designed for those platforms rather than just TV content, repurposed.
What career accomplishment are you most proud of in the past year?
It’s a toss-up between the incredible successful launch of Sofia the First and the public acclaim we’ve had for Doc McStuffins. People applaud it for the great job it’s doing in representing an admirable and worthwhile role model for young kids, especially little girls.
What would people be surprised to know about you?
I would have become a food stylist had I not gone into the TV and film business.
What TV do you watch on a regular basis (guilty pleasure or otherwise)?
I’m hooked on Downton Abbey, The Americans, Homeland, and I always count the days until the return of Mad Men. But the Food Channel is always on. (See above for why!)
What’s the one technology you couldn’t live without?
My Blackberry.
What was the biggest TV biz news story of 2012?
The big news is how cable ratings can now surpass the big networks in both fiction and nonfiction with stunning results. Look at The Walking Dead and Gold Rush. Cable is now the first stop for must-see TV.
Who do you consider your mentor and why?
Eileen O’Neill, Group President, Discovery and TLC Networks, has been my greatest mentor. I owe much to her careful guidance and sound advice on how to navigate tricky television situations. People may not know this, but she has a wicked sense of humor.
What was your first job?
I was a production assistant on a very on a very low-budget horror film in New York City. Always start from the bottom and work your way up!
What trends do you foresee in the next year in our industry?
Creatively, the trend of merging fiction and nonfiction in reality shows. Audiences can tell what’s real versus fake.
What career accomplishment in the past year are you most proud of?
Launching and overseeing major pop culture hit series for TLC Here Comes Honey Boo Boo, Breaking Amish, and breaking records with our third season of Long Island Medium.
What would people be surprised to know about you?
I’m clueless with directions and maps I owe so much to GPS.
What TV do you watch on a regular basis (guilty pleasure or otherwise)?
I’ll watch anything on Turner Classic Movies. I’m amazed that both Gen Y and Gen X don’t watch more of the classics.
What’s the one technology you couldn’t live without?
I wouldn’t survive without my iPhone and my DirecTV DVR.
What do you think was the biggest TV biz news story in the last year?
The enormous competition for consumers’ time. Also, how programs are using technology like second screens – to augment and enhance what they see. I don’t think anyone’s cracked the code on it.
Who do you consider your mentor and why?
Certainly, I consider Oprah, whom my mother watched when I was growing up in Oklahoma, as a mentor both for what she’s accomplished and her passion for the future. Also, Rick Torcasso, who hired me as a DJ and sent me to Seattle in 1992, a market that had two country stations that it didn’t need — and we were the third one. I asked him why he hired me. He said it was because I was too young and dumb to make any mistakes. We’re still in touch.
What was your first job?
In 1986, I wore orange tights, webbed feet and a big bill as “Chuck the Duck” for a country station. That led to a promotion to “Cody the Coyote.” It’d be 90 degrees and I’d stand on car dealership lots for hours at a time, waving at cars so parents would bring their kids in. I still have the costume.
What changes or trends do you foresee in the next year or so in the TV industry?
What’s happened with Netflix and House of Cards will change the face of people’s thinking. This binging effect drives higher viewership to shows on cable networks. They watch Walking Dead, Breaking Bad and Homeland the same way. People binge to get ready for a season.
What career accomplishment are you most proud of?
Hands down, the turnaround of OWN is one of my proudest accomplishments. There’s no way I could have done it without Sheri (Salata, President, OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network and Harpo Studios) and Oprah. We all watch each other’s backs. If there’s ever a point of difference, we’ll have a conversation. Literally every time, it becomes obvious what the answer is.
What would people be surprised to know about you?
My life is balanced. I’m up at 4:30 each morning and I am at the office by 7 a.m., but I get home to my wife and two girls by 5 or 5:15 p.m. every day. Oprah is so supportive of that.
What TV do you watch on a regular basis (guilty pleasure or otherwise)?
I’m a sports junkie. I love college football, baseball and basketball.
What’s the one technology you can’t live without?
I am so wired it’s frightening. There are four televisions in my office and six at home. But what I need most is my iPhone.
What do you think was the biggest TV biz news story of the last year?
The Hatfields & McCoys showed that the proliferation of unscripted entertainment can successfully bring scripted material into one’s armory of weapons.
What career accomplishment are you most proud of in the past year?
We had some great ratings successes. Losers have meetings, but winners have parties. We had a lot of parties.
What changes or trends do you foresee in the next year or so in our industry?
Continued fascination with platforms and windows and how they become economic drivers. There will be a lot of people in unscripted entertainment running toward comedies. Sons of “Duck Dynasty” with mixed success, I predict. Miniseries are coming back — even on a network level.
Who do you consider your mentor and why?
I’ve learned from lots of people, but especially from Jamie Bennett in my early years. Jamie convinced me to leave Australia and work in London. He was my boss, who ran Pearson Television.
What was your first job?
I cleaned bricks in Sydney Australia. I had to clean a run of 1,000 to get paid. Everyone needs a hard and boring job; when you’re covered in dust and exhausted, you think, There’s gotta be something better than this.
What would people be surprised to know about you?
I’m a warm, caring person. No, no, no…during a dull meeting I get out watercolors and paint.
What TV do you watch on a regular basis (guilty pleasure or otherwise?)
The Colbert Report.
What’s the one technology you couldn’t live without?
Listening to music.
What do you think was the biggest TV biz news story of the last year?
In my world, it was David Zazlav (President and CEO of Discovery Communications) saying that OWN would be profitable in 2013. As a network executive, Jeff Zucker’s move to CNN has been very intriguing. Also, the whole multi-platform engagement of the Olympics last summer hits at my core. We’re a top ten social network right now, fueled by Oprah’s connection with people.
Who do you consider your mentor and why?
Perry Stebor, an executive producer at an advertising agency, who let me type his letters. And, of course, Oprah, who is a life mentor.
What was your first job?
My first job was typing land and plot descriptions at a title company in Dallas.
What trends do you foresee in the next year or so in the TV industry?
I see more engagement in the world of social media; it’s appealing to advertisers if your brand allies with theirs. It’s going to be crazy good when that unfolds.
What career accomplishment are you most proud of?
The pivot that we made to turn the ship around and head in the right direction.
What would people be surprised to know about you?
I once delivered a stranger’s baby in the parking lot of a 7/11. I often think of them in my prayers. It was profound.
What TV do you watch on a regular basis (guilty pleasure or otherwise)?
Anything that Shonda Rhimes writes. She’s the genius of geniuses. My guilty pleasure is watching the entire run of The West Wing once a year. The writing is gorgeous and the acting is great. I love the earnest optimism of when good wins.
What’s the one technology you can’t live without?
I have phones and tablets (mini and regular sizes). But what I like best is my cup of black pencils with erasers, and some paper.
A CYNOPSIS MESSAGE FROM COOKING CHANNEL
We proudly congratulate
––––– Michael Smith –––––
for being one of
Cynopsis’ Most Intriguing People of 2013.
COOKING CHANNEL
–––––––––––––––––––––––
What was the biggest TV biz news story of the last year?
The Walking Dead’s record-breaking ratings.
Who do you consider your mentor and why?
I consider my boss, Brooke Johnson, President of Food Category for Scripps, my mentor. She’s been invaluable at nurturing my growth and development for the past ten years.
What was your first job?
When I was 13-years-old I worked as a newspaper delivery boy. My first TV job was at KRON-TV in San Francisco when I was 21.
What trends do you foresee in the next year or so in our industry?
I foresee continued fragmentation due to the increasing digital distribution outlets.
What career accomplishment are you most proud of in the past year?
Celebrating Cooking Channel’s most watched month, quarter, and year.
What would people be surprised to know about you?
I was born in a small town in Western Canada.
What TV do you watch on a regular basis (guilty pleasure or otherwise)?
I love British dramas like Luther and Sherlock. My guilty pleasures are prime time soaps Revenge and Deception.
What’s the one technology you couldn’t live without?
The Internet.
What do you think was the biggest TV biz news story of the last year?
The biggest TV news was the announcement that Prince William and Kate Middleton are expecting a baby. Kidding! For us, it was BBC America having its best year ever. It was a great year for cable, which is very much in the ascendancy.
Who do you consider your mentor and why?
My mentors are the people who are consistently great at their jobs while retaining their basic humanity and sense of humor. It’s a rare combination of qualities. Frances Berwick, President of Bravo, is an exemplary example as are Perry Simon and Richard De Croce from BBC America.
What was your first job?
I worked at an ice-cream store at Bondi Beach in Australia until I broke my wrist. My first media job was working at SBS TV in Australia as the assistant to a popular TV host.
What changes or trends do you foresee in the next year or so in our industry?
The continuing importance of social media to launch and carry shows; social media opportunities are an intrinsic part of the development process and not just a marketing tool at show launch.
What career accomplishment are you most proud of in the past year?
I’m most proud of my role in establishing BBC America as a new destination for original programming. I’m also proud of the excellent talent that I have had the pleasure to work with over the last year including Richard Hammond, Dominic Monaghan and Chris Hardwick.
What would people be surprised to know about you?
I’m Australian — not British.
What TV do you watch on a regular basis (guilty pleasure or otherwise?)
I’m currently obsessed with Girls. I also love Breaking Bad, Homeland, Luther, Tosh 2.0, The Daily Show and The Colbert Report. Guilty pleasures are Real Housewives of anywhere and House Hunters International.
What’s the one technology you couldn’t live without?
My iPhone, iPad and Kindle in equal measures.
What do you think was the biggest TV biz news story of 2012?
It’s what’s happened at Apple since the passing of Steve Jobs in 2011. The company is seeing increased competition in the smart phone/tablet space from competitors like Microsoft and Samsung. Will Apple continue to dominate or will someone else take the reins?
Who do you consider your mentor and why?
I don’t have one mentor. I’ve had numerous bosses. My father was a big influence. He was a media director at HBM/Creamer in New York. Then, he was transferred to Providence, which is how I started working in Rhode Island.
What was your first job?
When I was a senior in college, I did planning and buying at advertising agency Leonard Monahan Saabye in Rhode Island, which was good because those would have been separate functions in New York. The agency hired me after I graduated.
What changes or trends do you foresee in the next year in the TV industry?
I’m hoping that the conversation between the marketers and media companies becomes more holistic, that they get away from digital versus linear and make it all one. We still talk in silos.
What career accomplishment are you most proud of?
I had a huge influence in the making of behavioral changes in how we talked about TV and video when I was at MediaVest. We used to be called “TV buyers,” but we changed to calling ourselves a “Video Investment and Activation group.” That gained momentum. Other agencies followed suit.
What would people be surprised to know about you?
I come from a musically inclined family and played drums as a kid, as did my father. My kids do, too. I always thought of myself as Sheila E. Remember that song she played with Prince?
What TV do you watch on a regular basis?
I’m a big fan of Homeland. I love how Dallas was brought back. I’m really into that show. I hear the ending of this season is great — and even though it’s on TNT I haven’t seen it yet! I also watch The Bachelor with my 15-year-old daughter.
What’s the one technology you couldn’t live without?
I live on both my iPhone and my iPad.
What do you think was the biggest TV biz news story of 2012?
The rapid fragmentation of viewing habits is creating challenges and opportunities for TV business models. For viewers, TV is better than ever.
Who do you consider your mentor and why?
My dad — he’s an iconoclast and visionary and he loves his work.
What was your first job?
My first job was doing the daily “man/woman on the street” interview as a summer job for my local hometown newspaper. I’d ask a topical question like “What do you think of Nancy Reagan’s ‘Just Say No’ campaign?” and take a photograph of the person I interviewed.
What changes or trends do your foresee in the next year or so in our industry?
More of everything: time-shifting, streaming, on-demand, binge-watching and live TV-watching accompanied by smartphones and tablets.
What career accomplishments are you most proud of in the last year?
We doubled users of our mobile apps as well as our next-generation digital TV Guide, the Watchlist all with no marketing spend after we reinvented our products and redefined the TV Guide brand for a new generation of smartphone and tablet users. Now, with mobile scale and ROI-delivering native ad units, we’re seeing significant revenue growth. I’m incredibly proud of our world-class team and our ability to continually disrupt TV Guide’s products and business models.
What would people be surprised to know about you?
I was a degenerate child gambler, who spent most summer nights at the racetrack betting on horses. But I usually ended “up” for the season.
What TV do you watch on a regular basis (guilty pleasure or otherwise)?
Currently, my top 5 are Justified, Girls, Nashville, Downton Abbey, and the recently-canceled The Hour (Boo!).
What is the one technology you could not live without?
Smartphone.
What do you think was the biggest TV biz news story in the last year?
Measurement is continuing to pick up steam and have momentum. We are in a research crisis in our industry. It has rarely kept up with changes in the media landscape. There’s an urgency to address this. When it comes to measurement, the consumer has moved on but our industry has not.
Who do you consider your mentor and why?
My parents are my mentors. I am one of three daughters. My old fashioned Italian dad didn’t have a son, so I got that job. My mom stressed the need for education and financial security.
What changes or trends do you foresee in the next year or so in our industry?
To help accelerate the “solve” for measurement. If we’re smart we can figure this out sooner rather than later.
What was your first job?
I was a cashier at Waldbaum’s. That’s where I picked up my prowess on a calculator. And I was taught at an early age that the customer is always right.
What career accomplishment are you most proud of in the past year?
I am so grateful for the opportunity to come to NBCUniversal and work for [CEO] Steve Burke and to have been given the chance to build an incredible team to represent an unprecedented array of brands in one portfolio.
What would people be surprised to know about you?
I am an identical twin. My sister Lori is known in our family as the “good twin” and I’m the “TV twin.” She’s the chief nursing officer at Texas Children’s Hospital. We’ve already spoken twice today and it’s only 8:20 a.m.
What TV do you watch on a regular basis (guilty pleasure or otherwise)?
Although I am now forced to live without my beloved 30 Rock, I also love Modern Family, The Biggest Loser and Suits.
What’s the one technology you couldn’t live without?
My iPhone5 — with the Saks.com app! I got my new phone after I dropped my iPhone 4 and it shattered into a million pieces.
Ryan Murphy, Creator, American Horror Story, FX
David Nevins, President, Entertainment, Showtime Networks
Henry Schleiff, President & GM, Investigation Discovery, Destination America & Military Channel
Later —
Michael Maloney
04.04.13
Roberta Caploe: Editorial Director
Denise O’Connor: Group Publisher, Cynopsis Media
Diane K Schwartz: Senior Vice President, Media Communications Group
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