I do. Zaslav also oversaw NBCUniversal's interests in A&E, The History Channel, The Biography Channel, National Geographic International, the Sundance Channel and TiVo. The parties spilled onto the beach and ended with fireworks and shark-shaped cake made by the "Cake Boss.". (Photo by Amanda Edwards/Getty Images for Discovery, Inc.). David Zaslav, Discovery's CEO, will lead the combined Discovery-WarnerMedia. Anna Wintour, editor of Vogue, gave $6,000. He's used his salary to buy some of the most sought-after real estate around, buying the Hollywood home of "The Godfather" film director Robert Evans for $16 million and snapping up Conan O'Brien's apartment on Central Park West. Global Business and Financial News, Stock Quotes, and Market Data and Analysis. Later in the CNBC interview, Zaslav referred to growth on the right side of the company, which he described as including WarnerMedia-owned HBO and a growing portfolio of sports rights. Philip Anschutz, owner of the Washington Examiner, gave $168,500. In his contract extension, Zaslav also received stock options valued at $190 million. Usually you ditch people. Stay up to date with what you want to know. But at Warner Bros. She also wrote a $46,100 check to the McCarthy Victory Fund in June. The issue is that not enough of his CEO David Zaslav has quickly put his stamp on Warner Bros. Zaslav needs the house as badly as it needs Zaslav. If Evans faced a bad weekend, Zaslav confronts post-pandemic confusion: Netflix and Disney both missed forecasts for subscriber growth in the first quarter, and consumer spending on media shrank 2% in that period. Jeff Zucker is considered to be the person responsible for the CNNs shift away from the nonpartisan outlet it was before his tenure. Transparency matters. Media tends to be a reflection of where the country is. According to Deadline, he even made it known that corporate procedures had to be followed to the letter in regards to Zucker., Have a tip we should know? In comparison, WarnerMedias HBO and HBO Max topped 69 million worldwide customers combined at the conclusion of Q3, according toAT&Ts third-quarter earnings results, which were released late last month. Only 60 people in media leadership had donated more than$2,000 to a political candidate since 2019. [50], In 2017, Zaslav was inducted into the Cable Hall of Fame. Did you say to the left? Kernan said, before taking back the question, saying he probably shouldnt have said that.. LIBERTY MEDIA CHAIRMAN CHIDES CNN TO 'ACTUALLY HAVE JOURNALISTS' FOLLOWING AT&T-DISCOVERY MERGER, "None of us had anything to do with it. Spurred by the rapid proliferation of social media platforms, with questionable content,and a formerpresident who pummeled our free press repeatedly, its no wonder Americans are left wary and our information ecosystem is in shambles. And maybe, those legendary parties might start again. We use Not long ago when he dropped by his new home he ordered some changes: Michael Smith, Jeffrey Sprecher, the CEO of the Intercontinental Exchange and husband to Sen. Kelly Loeffler, R-Ga., who came under scrutiny for their stock dealings during the start of the coronavirus pandemic, gave nearly $1.3 million during the April-June quarter. [41] Zaslav also received backlash for the removal of many of Warner Bros' animated programs from streaming platforms and pulling some of the service's content in general, including Final Space (which was written off for taxes), Infinity Train, Summer Camp Island, Close Enough, The Not-Too-Late Show with Elmo and several hundred episodes of Sesame Street, among others, a decision Infinity Train creator Owen Dennis remarked rendered many of the programs effectively as "lost media". 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Jake Tapper Promises His Interview With Bill Maher Will Air Uncensored, NEW POLL: Trump Holds Gargantuan 30-Point Lead Over DeSantis And 61-Point Lead Against Nikki Haley, Buttigieg Defends Biden Not Going to East Palestine: His Visit Could Have Disruptive Effects, Nate Silver and Mehdi Hasan Throw Down Over Media Coverage of Covid-19 Lab Leak Theory, Ex-Obama Flack Jen Palmieri Praises Trump Visit to Train Wreck Site On MSNBC Says Biden Must Go. Sign up for free newsletters and get more CNBC delivered to your inbox. When Discovery assumes control of CNN, Zaslav will have a key decision to make right out of the box as it will have to replace newly-resigned CNN chief Jeff Zucker. Discovery CEO David Zaslav, whose media giant is set to close its merger with CNNs owner WarnerMedia this spring, made the surprise remark during a We've received your submission. Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by Refinitiv Lipper. Discovery and has publicly committed to keeping CNN after the merger. Zucker, who joined CNN in 2013 and led the network through the rise of Donald Trump to the presidency, abruptly resigned this week over a secret relationship he had with a colleague, CNN chief marketing officer Allison Gollust, which he did not disclose to the company as required. You couldn't say that about a lot of other American CEOs. [2] Zaslav spearheaded the transaction between AT&T and Discovery to combine with WarnerMedia and create the combined Warner Bros. All that represents both serious business and serious persuasion disciplines that place the Regency house in Beverly Hills in a vastly different role. That may now stretch to nine months, since Zaslav, having negotiated the $43 billion Discovery-AT&T deal, has now expanded his domain to include Warner Bros, HBO and CNN. and other data for a number of reasons, such as keeping FT Sites reliable and secure, A continuously updated summary of the news stories that US political commentators are discussing online right now. His sole donation to a Republican politician, U.S. Definitely to the left. "It's clear Team Trump needs to break the glass and pull the fire alarm. By subscribing, I agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. There are just under 100 days until Election Day. Farris Wilks, investor in the Daily Wire, gave $416,800 to Trump Victory and Club for Growth Action. His reputation for speed gave Discovery an edge over Comcast as a merger partner. According to OpenSecrets, an independent nonprofit that tracks money in U.S. politics, as of last week, 2,276 groups organized as super PACs have reported their numbers. Discovery is required to publish the ratio to Zaslavs pay to those of its median employee as part of the Dodd-Frank law. You may also opt to downgrade to Standard Digital, a robust journalistic offering that fulfils many users needs. [6][7], Zaslav was born to a Polish and Ukrainian Jewish family[8][9][10][11] in Brooklyn, New York. Zaslav didnt clarify in response, and it immediatelywent viral on social media, where users pointed to it as an acknowledgement that CNN leans left politically. Heidi Legg is the lead research fellow at the Future of Media Project at the Institute for Quantitative Social Science at Harvard University. WebHome. In a digital age, there are many new ways to influence. "I think of CNN in a totally different way than I thought about it years ago. + She has written extensively about the news media. Zaslavwill lead the combined company called Warner Bros. Who is David Zaslav? But even if that crowd decided to arrive, it would not include the late Evans or his panache (he died in 2019). Send us a tip using our annonymous form. [37][38][39], Since August 2022, Zaslav received heavy criticism for his decision to heavily shrink down the content library on the streaming service HBO Max, to be used as tax write-offs. Zaslav was speaking at the Paley International Council Summit when he made the remarks, which were covered by several news outlets virtually attending the media event. Only 14.5% of the 412 owners, executives, board members and investors had given to individual candidates, traditional PACs or super PACs from January 2020 to August 2021, as trackedby the FEC. Per Barr, Zaslav said he is waiting for the deal to close before discussing or simply divulging those types of plans. Now he will oversee WarnerMedia. Zaslav is on the board of Mexican programming giant Televisa, now merging with Univision. CNBC then cut away from Zaslav for breaking news on the January jobs report but came back to the Discovery honcho afterwards. Same goes for Jason Kilars future, we presume. Premium access for businesses and educational institutions. David Zaslav, the Discovery Inc. chief executive who has catapulted himself to the top of the media world through a wave of deal-making, will lead a new venture Not long ago when he dropped by his new home he ordered some changes: Michael Smith, the celebrity designer who President Obama hired to design his private quarters at the White House, will now tackle the Evans house. Marc Rowan at Apollo Management, the private equity firm that recently acquired Yahoo News for $5 billion, gave $1.75 million. Discovery chief says 'Journalism First' is new mandate at CNN 2023 USA TODAY, a division of Gannett Satellite Information Network, LLC. All rights reserved. Overall, the combined content spend of WarnerMedia and Discovery totaled $19 billion last year, more than Disney or even Netflix. [46] He is chair of the Auschwitz: The Past Is Present Committee which promotes awareness of the Holocaust. It is intended to be the backbone of our civilization and functioning governance. But here is where it fell short. While Evans principal scenario was to package the chemistry between filmmakers and top stars, Zaslavs social objectives may be more corporately focused. The company did not break out Discovery+ numbers specifically, so this tally includes its other, much smaller SVOD platforms, but the majority of that 20 million figure is made up of Discovery+ numbers, per Discovery. David Zaslav, who led the merger with CNN and Discovery, donated over $240,000. Oracle Chairman Larry Ellison has also been close to the president and was one of the donors advising Trump at the start of the pandemic. Biden and the Democratic National Committee outraised their opponents in the second quarter. Last year, Zaslav vowed to take a hands-on role in the operations of CNN. personalising content and ads, providing social media features and to Zucker and Trump were friends in the 2000s as they teamed up on the wildly popular NBC reality show "The Apprentice," but they became bitter political enemies as Trump took over the Republican Party beginning in 2015 and romped to the White House. He was granted no options. Market data provided by Factset. Last November, Zaslav told Deadline that he would take a hands-on approach at CNN and other WarnerMedia properties. David Zaslav the CEO of Discovery Inc., and Bob Iger, the former CEO of Disney who is now the company's executive chairman, are among the top executive Democratic donors from the second quarter. CNN, which has struggled to attract viewers during the Biden era,is part of the deal and many industry observers felt the decision to revert to more straight news began this week when Zucker was forced out. Its a mess. What does media constitute? Fox News positions itself as a conservative-leaning network, serving those on the political right. But times have changed. 2023 FOX News Network, LLC. JEFF ZUCKERS CNN EXIT: FIERY MEETING, SOMBER CONFERENCE CALL PROVE MANY STAFFERS ALREADY MISS FORMER BOSS, "So youve got a guy whos run it for nine years," Kernen said, referring to Zucker. Data is a real-time snapshot *Data is delayed at least 15 minutes. [51], In 2022, he was named one of Time's 100 Most Influential People. The lack of transparency in super PAC donations loomed as we scoured the FEC database. Subscribe to Deadline Breaking News Alerts and keep your inbox happy. The TV deal maker will head the new venture formed by his companys merger with AT&Ts WarnerMedia, as he seeks to build a streaming juggernaut. Laurene Powell Jobs donated over $2 million. Get our latest storiesin the feed of your favorite networks. Discovery cant play any role in CNNs operations until the deal concludes. "Was there any conjecture that John Malone is behind the curtain? James Murdoch, who left the family Fox News business, donated over $2.25 In September 2020, Zaslav confided to a close friend that he was concerned about the fate of the company he'd spent 15 years building. A Real Clear Politics polling average shows Biden ahead of Trump by close to 10 points. AT&T CEO John Stankey, who oversees WarnerMedia, has been focused on the merger with Discovery, and is thought to be disinterested in any aspect of the CNN operation. When Discovery assumes control of CNN, Zaslav will have a key decision to make right out of the box as it will have to replace newly-resigned CNN chief Jeff Zucker. He also said, per Deadline: I think overall wed probably be better off if we just had news networks in America, rather than those with an opinion element. Discovery CEO David Zaslav was confronted on Friday about the future of CNN, the liberal network he is set to oversee once a looming merger is official, but claimed the ousting of now-former CNN boss Jeff Zucker had nothing to do with rumors the network could shift to a nonpartisan approach. His well-documented views were notsecret. It is nearly impossible to know where the money is spent,even if you can run down the roster of donors. university That leaves $1 billion unaccounted for. Holiday Haunt. According to campaignmoney.com, during the 2020 election cycle Zaslav donated $124,250 to the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee out of his total $253,250 in political donations. WBD President and CEO David Zaslav spent time with Abrams before the close of the merger earlier this year and is a fan. Before her recent spending spree, Catz had given very few political contributions this cycle. Craig Newmark has donated close to $100 million to journalism schools, content moderation research, new digital media outletsand journalists, as have Reid Hoffman, co-founder of LinkedIn, and big foundations like the Knight Foundation, Heritage Foundation, Open Markets Instituteand Pierre Omidyars Democracy Fund. Evans fought valiantly for Paramount to release Last Tango in Paris and Tropic of Cancer. Powered and implemented by FactSet Digital Solutions. Henry Kravis and George Roberts, owners of Business Insider and the German news empire Axel Springer and who recently purchased Politico and co-founded KKR Private Equity, collectively gave over $1.2 million. Other notable S&P 500 CEO contributions to Republican led groups in the second quarter include Robert Bradway, the chief executive of biopharmaceutical company Amgen; Daniel Amos, the CEO of insurance giant Aflac; and Gregory Brown, the CEO of Motorola Solutions. AT&T Inc., agreed to merge its WarnerMedia division with Discovery Communications Inc., creating a streaming giant to compete with Walt Disney Co.'s Disney+ and Netflix. Something we can likely all agree on is that trust in media is at an all-time low and Americans want reliable, nonpartisan news. Barry Diller, owner of The Daily Beast and Investopedia, gave $120,000. [12] At the age of 8, he moved to Rockland County where he graduated from Ramapo High School. Insider say he's known for relationship building but also being demanding with staff. You will be redirected back to your article in, Discovery's David Zaslav (inset) paid $16 million for Robert Evans' onetime Beverly Hills home, AMC CEO Adam Aron Defends New Sightline Ticket Pricing, Acknowledges Substantial Change To The Status Quo For U.S. Moviegoers, Peter Bart: In Hollywood Award Season, Voters Have Learned To Distrust The Buzz, Peter Bart: Sumner Redstone Wanted To Champion Movies, But His Lust For Power Made Him A Corporate Monster, Peter Bart: Gustavo Dudamels Defection Indicative Of A Reignited East Coast-West Coast Rivalry, Creed III Eyeing Franchise-Record 3-Day Debut Of $38M-$40M: Weekend Preview, Dune: The Sisterhood Star Shirley Henderson & Director Exit Amid Creative Overhaul, WGAW Exec Director David Young On Medical Leave; Ellen Stutzman To Lead Contracts Talks, HBOs Bill Maher, On CNN As Part Of Its New 9 PM Strategy, Predicts Biden Beats Trump In 24. The most significant donation record of any media owner was Michael Bloomberg, who donated $140 million during his run for president. The Evans events promised a sort of promiscuous elegance: Behind one door you would find the esteemed Helmut Newton photographing two lissome nudes passionately entwined; or Teddy Kennedy swigging beer amidst a bevy of starlets; or Henry Kissinger explaining Vietnam policy to Jill St. John; or agent Sue Mengers disseminating film gigs along with quality weed. [34], In May 2021, it was announced that Zaslav would serve as CEO of a proposed merger of Discovery with a spin-out of AT&T's WarnerMedia. His responsibilities extended to Bravo, CNBC World, SCI FI, ShopNBC, Sleuth, Telemundo, Telemundo Puerto Rico, mun2, Trio, Universal HD, USA Network, NBC Weather Plus and the Olympics on cable. Other top-paid Discovery executives included Chief Financial Officer Gunnar Wiedenfels, who earned $6.9 million in total compensation, down from the $7.4 million he earned in 2019. You've successfully subscribed to this newsletter! Zaslav, known for delivering fast yes or nos to business partners, would be able to move ahead with speed. Despite the increased support from CEOs, Biden and the Democratic National Committee outraised their opponents in the second quarter. Legal Statement. Warner Bros Discovery (WBD) has reported financial results for the quarter and year ended December 31st 2022. Where the country was when we launched MSNBC was much more fact-based and less divided.. [16], Zaslav joined NBC in 1989. Listen to a portion New York (CNN Business)Discovery ( DISCA) CEO David Zaslav praised CNN on Friday and said "news is going to be really critical" to the future of the soon to be combined Warner Bros. Discovery, despite the sudden ouster of CNN boss Jeff Zucker earlier this week. S. I. Newhouse School of Public Communications, "Discovery Communications 2011 Proxy Filing", "AT&T announces $43 billion deal to merge WarnerMedia with Discovery", "Discovery Chief Got Options Valued at $190 Million on Eve of AT&T Deal", "Discovery Hands CEO David Zaslav Stock Options Valued At $190M In Contract Extension; Sets Base Salary At $3M, Target Bonus At $20M Update", "Compensation Information for David M. Zaslav, President and Chief Executive Officer of DISCOVERY INC", Variety Magazine: "Industry Heavyweights Support Auschwitz 70th Anniversary Commemoration" by Cynthia Littleton, Jewish Business News: "Steven Spielberg And David Zaslav Commemorate Auschwitz Liberation 70th Anniversary", Algemeiner Journal: "Hollywood Heavyweights to Join Spielberg at Auschwitz Commemoration Ceremony in Poland", The Cable Center: "David Zaslav: Oral and Video Collection Interview", "David Zaslav 2004 Oral and Video History", "10 Things You Didn't Know About David Zaslav", "MIPCOM: Discovery CEO David Zaslav Celebrated as Personality of the Year", http://corporate.discovery.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/DZ-bio-8.7.15.pdf, "New Chief at Discovery Is 2nd Senior Executive to Leave NBC This Week", "Manhattan Jewish Historical Initiative, 4th Annual Jewish Hall of Fame Class of 2020 | World Liberty TV - Multicultural Online TV", "David Zaslav, President and CEO, Discovery Communications", "Zaslav Holds To Growth Plan At Discovery", "Planet Green Moves Away From Its Eco Theme", "Tuned In: The Hub Network Offers Programs for Younger Children", "Discovery, Winfrey to Team Up On Network", "TCA: Discovery Sets Launch Date For Velocity, Adds Big Names to 'Curiosity', Preps Science Channel's 'Trek Nation', Introduces 'Weed' Team", "Discovery Launches Velocity Channel, Aimed at Rich Men", "Discovery Hopes for Payoff on Crime Channel", "Discovery Closes Scripps Acquisition, Creating Non-scripted Content Giant", "Media Companies, Seeing Profit Slip, Push Into Education (Published 2012)", "Discovery Rebrands Velocity as Motor Trend Network (EXCLUSIVE)", "Discovery completes Scripps deal, targets OTT opportunities", "David Zaslav And John Stankey Outline Plans For Merging Discovery And WarnerMedia, Addressing Future Of Jason Kilar, CNN, Streaming", "Warner Bros. I wrote about why I got a COVID shot:Then I was fired from my job. Man, you werent kidding, Kernen said, also laughing. Zucker's leadership of CNN since 2013 saw the network lurch farther to the left, particularly after the political rise of former President Donald Trump. [45] His daughter Ali Zaslav is a congressional producer with CNN.[53]. Discovery. Biden has said he wants to raise the corporate tax rate to 28% from 21%. Sprecher also gave at least $106,500 to the National Republican Senatorial Committee, the official campaign arm of Republicans running for Senate seats. organisation Zaslavs comment drew a surprised response from CNBC host Joe Kernan, who wondered aloud if it was a reference to CNNs ideological bent. For now, a trio of CNN executives will assume Zuckers responsibilities at the network. Lowe remains on Discovery's board and a personal friend, said a Zaslav friend. David Zaslav, President and Chief Executive Officer of WBD, commented: With the major restructuring decisions behind us, this year we are focused on building and growing our businesses for the future, and were off to a great start. Did you say to the left?. His reputation for speed gave Discovery an edge over Comcast as a merger partner. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. (Photo by Mike Coppola/Getty Images for WarnerMedia) (Getty Images). Our system is awash in billions of political dollars. Zaslavs generous compensation plan continues the trend of rich COVID era paydays for media CEOs, some of whom made a show of forgoing a salary when the pandemic hit, only to quietly return to their former levels as the crisis dragged on. During Thursdays meeting, Zaslav warned that staff reductions were likely as he continued to remove layers of management and combines jobs. One Warner executive told friends that Zaslav's unexpected arrival would bring structure and order versus the "move-fast and break things" style of the WarnerMedia's current chief executive, Jason Kilar, whose future with the company is still unclear. In his New York days, Zaslav liked friends like Ron Perelman, Lorne Michaels and Jeff Zucker to hang at his Hamptons parties. [45] He also is a member of the Board of Trustees for the Paley Center for Media and the Mt. In another coup, in 2008, Zaslav convinced Winfrey to go into business with him and create a cable channel together. The public reason given was that Zucker didn't disclose a sexual relationship with CNN executive Allison Gollust, which immediately raised eyebrows as their relationship was widely known. All Rights Reserved. It raises the question: Does super PAC funding, often with a hefty and opaque line-item labeled media spend,fund some of these outlets?

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