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The head of CBS’s entertainment division is stepping down at the end of the year as the parent company of America’s most-watched broadcast network looks to cut costs in a challenging advertising market.
Kelly Kahl, the entertainment executive behind shows such as “The Equalizer,” “NCIS: Hawaii” and “Nation of Fire,” told employees about his departure in an internal email. Thom Sherman, head of programming at CBS parent Paramount, also said in a notice to employees that he plans to resign from his position.
Mr. Kahl will be replaced by Amy Reisenbach, CBS’s current Executive Vice President of Programs. In this role, Ms. Reisenbach oversaw the creative aspects of scripted series aired on CBS, as well as programming produced by CBS Studios for other broadcast networks.
“Kelly has been a strong advocate for the vitality of broadcast television and has been a stable and respected network through both good times and turbulent times,” CBS Chief Executive George Cheeks said in an email to employees Wednesday. leader.”
Across the media industry, companies are bracing for tough times as marketers look to cut ad spending in a tough economy. Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav and Disney CEO Bob Chapek both said they plan to lay off or suspend hiring as the market recovers.
Naveen Chopra, chief financial officer of Paramount, which owns CBS, predicted on the company’s third-quarter earnings call earlier this month that the company would cut costs, saying there would be “meaningful and substantial” growth in the coming months. reduce.
Paramount on Wednesday completed a reorganization of its advertising division that will result in the departure of fewer than 100 employees, according to a person familiar with the matter. The company has more than 20,000 employees.
Paramount is racing to replace revenue generated by its fading traditional TV business, which is still unprofitable but growing rapidly, with revenue from its streaming business. This month, Paramount said its flagship streaming service, Paramount+, added about 4.6 million subscribers in the third quarter, with revenue up about 65% compared with the same period last year. The company now has nearly 67 million streaming subscribers.
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