FOX News announced a new senior leadership team and management structure today, naming Fox Television Stations CEO Jack Abernethy and Senior Executive Vice President Bill Shine to serve as Co-Presidents effective immediately. The announcement was made by the network’s founder, Rupert Murdoch, Executive Chairman of 21st Century Fox and Executive Chairman of FOX News Channel & FOX Business Network, to whom Mr. Abernethy and Mr. Shine will report.
In their new roles as Co-Presidents of FOX News Channel (FNC) and FOX Business Network (FBN), Mr. Abernethy and Mr. Shine will divide responsibilities for all facets of the networks. While continuing to run FOX Television Stations (FTS), Mr. Abernethy will oversee all business components of FNC and FBN including finance, advertising sales and distribution units. Mr. Shine will run all programming and news functions of each network, including production, technical operations and talent management. Shine will continue to oversee all strategic planning throughout the current election season, including election night.
In addition, Suzanne Scott has been named Executive Vice President of Programming and Development for FNC and will continue reporting to Mr. Shine. In this position, Scott will supervise FNC’s daytime and primetime opinion shows and lead development of new programming.
Jay Wallace, Executive Vice President of News Editorial, will continue to manage the news division, also reporting to Mr. Shine. He was promoted to this role in April of 2016 and has been with the network in a variety of roles within the hard news unit since its inception.
In making the announcement, Mr. Murdoch said, “Jack was integral to the launch and success of FOX News nearly 20 years ago and we’re delighted he’s returning to take on this additional role. As we continue to benefit from his strong leadership of Fox Television Stations, his strategic vision and deep knowledge of the cable news business will ensure continued growth of FOX News and FOX Business Network for generations to come.”
He added, “Bill Shine has developed and produced a signature primetime that has dominated the cable news landscape for 14 of his 20 years with FOX News. His leadership and keen eye for programming has played a fundamental role in the success of both FOX News and FOX Business Network.”
FOX News also announced that Chief Financial Officer Mark Kranz will be retiring. Throughout his tenure, Mr. Kranz was promoted from Director to Vice President of Finance, eventually assuming the role of CFO for both FNC and FBN. He joined the network from Viacom in 1997.
In commenting on the announcement, Mr. Murdoch said, “Over his 19 years with FOX News, Mark Kranz was instrumental in increasing profitability across all of our key properties. We are grateful for his many contributions to the company and we extend our best wishes to him as he embarks on a new chapter.”
Mr. Murdoch continued, “While this has been a time of great transition, there has never been a greater opportunity for FOX News and FOX Business to better serve and expand their audiences. Together with our worldwide team of dedicated professionals, we are the most influential and powerful brand in television.”
About Jack Abernethy
In his role as CEO of FOX Television Stations, Jack Abernethy oversees 28 owned and operated stations in the nation’s largest television markets, including WNYW/WWOR in New York, KTTV/KCOP in Los Angeles, KDFW/KDFI in Dallas, WTXF in Philadelphia, WTTG/WDCA in Washington, D.C. and KTVU/KICU in San Francisco. He also operates FOX Television Stations’ first-run development and the programming service, MyNetworkTV.
Prior to this position, Mr. Abernethy served as the Executive Vice President of FOX News, where he led development for long-term strategic and business plans for the network. His responsibilities at FOX News evolved to include oversight of finance, legal & business affairs and affiliate sales. Mr. Abernethy also spearheaded the launch of FOX News Radio to more than 500 stations across the country.
Before joining FOX News in 1996 as part of the network’s launch team, Mr. Abernethy had a distinguished 15-year career with NBC. While there, he held a variety of executive finance management positions at the NBC Television Stations division, before being named Vice President of Finance and Operations for CNBC.
About Bill Shine
Bill Shine has served as Senior Executive Vice President of Programming for FNC and FBN since August 2014. In this capacity, he ran all programming and synergies for both networks. Previously, he oversaw all opinion programming and production as an Executive Vice President.
Mr. Shine notably launched a new primetime line-up in the fall of 2013, which included the debut of The Kelly File, now the second highest rated show in cable news behind only The O’Reilly Factor. He has led FNC’s powerhouse daytime and primetime programming to its number one status in cable news for 175 consecutive months, routinely topping basic cable for multiple quarters as well. Under his leadership of both networks, FNC is on track to have its highest rated year ever and FBN’s key programs continue to edge CNBC.
Mr. Shine began his career at FNC as producer of Hannity & Colmes when the network launched in October 1996. Under his direction, Hannity & Colmes’ ratings grew 200% and became a formidable competitor to CNN’s Larry King Live. He also served as the executive producer of The Pulse, an investigative newsmagazine on the FOX Broadcasting Network from 2001 to 2003. Shine was named Network Executive Producer in December 2000 and was promoted to Vice President, Production in 2003.
Prior to FNC, Mr. Shine was the producer/director of the late night show Final Edition at News Talk Television. He began his career in 1985 as a producer/director at WLIG-TV in Long Island, New York.
About Suzanne Scott
Suzanne Scott has served as Senior Vice President of Programming and Development since 2009. In that role, she assisted in the launch of FNC’s new primetime line-up in the fall of 2013. Having worked at FNC since its inception, Ms. Scott has risen through the ranks in a number of programming positions, including Vice President of Programming (2007), Network Executive Producer (2005) as well as associate producer, producer and senior producer of On the Record with Greta Van Susteren (2002-2005). In addition, she is responsible for the launch of numerous on-air and digital initiatives, including the 2002 primetime debut of On the Record. Ms. Scott began her career at FNC as a programming assistant and served in the same capacity at CNBC prior to this.
About FOX News Channel
FOX News Channel (FNC) is a 24-hour all-encompassing news service dedicated to delivering breaking news as well as political and business news. A top five cable network, FNC has been the most-watched news channel in the country for more than 14 years and according to a Suffolk University/USA Today poll, is the most trusted television news source in the country. Owned by 21st Century Fox, FNC is available in more than 90 million homes and dominates the cable news landscape, routinely notching the top ten programs in the genre.
[Source: Fox News]
