He was excited by entertainment law at Boston University, 4. 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. Discovery Inc. Chief Executive David Zaslav told employees that he wants CNN to focus on maximizing its impact, not profitability, and set itself . 2 min read. . . Discovery executives are treating Zuckersunexpected exit as a fresh startfor CNN, according to the networks own media reporter, Brian Stelter. Did you say to the left? Kernan said, before taking back the question, saying he probably shouldnt have said that.. Netflix now finds itself atop the subscription streaming heap, ending 2022 with 231 million paid subscribers and $5.6 billion in profits. The CEO of Discovery, David Zaslav, appeared on CNBC Friday in an interview discussing the company taking over CNN and allegedly misstated that the network was the leader in news to the left when . For several years, Brian Stelters Sunday show on CNN, Reliable Sources, has been a reliable source of intelligent criticism of Fox News, rightwing media in general, Trumpism, and the increasingly authoritarian lurch of the Republican party. Despite the increased support from CEOs, Biden and the Democratic National Committee outraised their opponents in the second quarter. In the last 48 hours Warner Bros. Discovery's CEO David Zaslav has been painted as a villain. Zaslav is expected to name Zuckers permanent replacement when the merger closes. 'I would never do oppo research on anybody alleging anything like this,' he told investigators. Zaslav was cut off and did not finish his thought, but a spokesperson for Discovery told the New York Post that he was not using the term 'left' in the political sense, but rather to organize his conversation about Discovery's portfolio. Discovery cant play any role in CNNs operations until the deal concludes. Fox News positions itself as a conservative-leaning network, serving those on the political right. By Dade Hayes. Last week, CNN abruptly canceled the show and effectively fired Stelter and his staff. The entertainment giant owns the Warner Bros. film and TV studios, HBO, CNN, TBS, the Food Network . He donated $250,000 to Trump's inauguration in 2017 and has made no secret of the fact that he, like Trump and millions of others, think CNN has become too left-wing and biased. Scrambling to walk back the comments, Discoverys team said Zaslav often uses the phrases the left or the right to reference current and future business initiatives. Discovery in April 2022. The leading shareholder in Warner Brothers Discovery is John Malone, a multibillionaire cable magnate. He worked with Discovery as an attorney. Legal Statement. [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". Stelter and other opinion-focused anchors have recently been on the hot seat at CNN. Global Kids, Young Adults and Classics, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=David_Zaslav&oldid=1142395296, American chief executives in the media industry, American people of Ukrainian-Jewish descent, Articles with dead external links from July 2019, Articles with permanently dead external links, Articles with dead external links from February 2023, Short description is different from Wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 2 March 2023, at 04:25. Next quarter the company projects $1.6 billion in profit, and for 2023, it expects to have operating margins of 21 to 22 percent, up from 18 to 20 percent in 2022. 19.8 %- . "CNN is a fantastic asset, I cant wait to get in there. Discovery, kicking off the newly merged media giant's upfront presentation Wednesday morning by declaring . That Saturday was also the worst-rated since 1993, which pre-dated CNNs top competitors Fox News and MSNBC. Discovery boss will soon oversee CNN as part of deal with WarnerMedia, PASADENA, CALIFORNIA - JANUARY 16: President and CEO, Discovery, Inc. David Zaslav speaks onstage during the Discovery, Inc. TCA Winter Panel 2020 at The Langham Huntington, Pasadena on January 16, 2020 in Pasadena, California. We're not involved in any of that,' Zaslav said. Discovery CEO David Zaslav "Is An Imbecile And His Cowardice Is Breathtaking" While a level of sadness and anger in response to a long-awaited release is standard, these particular fans took things to the next level and began blaming the loss of these animated projects to Zaslov . Discovery CEO David Zaslav, who's taking over CNN. His newsletter is at robertreich.substack.com, Original reporting and incisive analysis, direct from the Guardian every morning, The show was cancelled by Chris Licht, CNNs new chairman and CEO, who reportedly was not a fan of Stelters opinionated style., or several years, Brian Stelters Sunday show on, stop referring to Donald Trumps big lie, Saving Capitalism: For the Many, Not the Few. Therefore, the brain has been a focal, Read More What Are Brain Implants and What Are Their Future Uses?Continue, Technological advancements have influenced many changes in the way in which people live in all aspects of their eyes. [16], Zaslav joined NBC in 1989. [17] As president of Cable and Domestic TV and New Media Distribution, he oversaw content distribution to all forms of TV, negotiated for cable and satellite carriage of NBCUniversal networks and forged media partnerships.[18][19]. Zaslav has been prodding Licht to reposition CNN to the center, and be a network preferred by " everybody Republicans, Democrats ". "Jeff is a good friend of mine, I cant speak to this issue, we dont own the company yet," Zaslav said. The development comes as the presumptive Democratic nominee has expanded his lead in the polls over President Donald Trump. Discovery CEO David Zaslav addressed the company's controversial decision this week to cancel releases for " Batgirl " and "Scoob! Warner Bros. 80.2 %-Republican Party. David Zaslav Net Worth. ', The CNBC host, chuckling, then apologized and withdrew his comment, saying 'I probably shouldn't have said that.'. Of the top 10 political donors among S&P 500 CEOs, a majority gave big to GOP groups in the second quarter, according to data from the Center for Responsive Politics. The Cook Political Report marks six Republican-held Senate seats in Colorado, Georgia, Iowa, Maine, Montana and North Carolina as toss ups. Excited by entertainment law, Zaslav was happy to have the opportunities to work with cable television companies which were still in their infancy stage at the time. 'I understand the political pressure I understand the stakes of political warfare, and that's what this is And I understand the conformity that can be forced by cancel culture.'. Murdaugh is heckled as he leaves court, Two Russian tanks annihilated with bombs by Ukrainian armed forces, Ukraine soldiers shoot down enemy drones with drones of their own, Dozens stuck in car park as staff refuses to open gate for woman, Missing hiker buried under snow forces arm out to wave to helicopter, Insane moment river of rocks falls onto Malibu Canyon in CA, Fleet-footed cop chases an offender riding a scooter, Isabel Oakeshott clashes with Nick Robinson over Hancock texts. Discovery Inc. Chief Executive David Zaslav will remove executive layers and take direct oversight of key creative and news operations upon the company's merger with AT&T Inc.'s WarnerMedia . Legal Statement. DISCA runs 13 cable stations in the United States including Animal Planet and TLC. DISCA hired Zaslav as its CEO in January 2007. Under the merger, WarnerMedia and Discovery will become one new media powerhouse - Warner Bros. Despite weak ratings for Reliable Sources, the show still outpaced CNN prime-time hosts like Anderson Cooper and Don Lemon for the quarter in terms of total viewers, Nielsen said. David Zaslav. Structural Info. However, in November last year after news of the impending merger was announced, Malone made it clear that he was not a fan of the direction CNN had gone in under Zucker, who took the helm in 2013. 'Being that WarnerMedia's standards of business conduct require disclosure of relationships that develop with a boss and subordinate, Zucker's goose was officially cooked,' the report added. It has also been reported that Gollust and Zucker were privately advising former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo through the pandemic - a huge breach of ethics. Discovery 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. Sinai Medical Center. Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. The largest trade he's ever made was exercising 2,947,078 units of Discovery Inc stock on 16 January 2015 worth over $71,820,291. 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. As Trump and other Republicans slide in the polls, the idea that taxes could go up under a Democratic administration and Congress has forced wealthy GOP donors off the sidelines. David Zaslav's income source is mostly from being a successful President. [50], In 2017, Zaslav was inducted into the Cable Hall of Fame. Later, Zaslav would teach a graduate course in cable television business as an adjunct professor at Fordham University. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by Refinitiv Lipper. The System: Who Rigged It, How We Fix It. Data is a real-time snapshot *Data is delayed at least 15 minutes. people whose views might not be in the mainstream. Last November, Zaslav told Deadline that he would take a hands-on approach at CNN and other WarnerMedia properties. Discovery. He enjoyed sports and loved to play tennis as a child. CNNs new corporate overseer is Warner Brothers Discovery Inc, which now owns what used to be Time Warner, including CNN. Within a year, DISCA went public on the NASDAQ stock market and the stock rose 300% in value and expanded internationally. Home; About; Subsidiaries. He loves honey, is kind to everyone, and has a friend who is a striped tiger named Tigger. By Discovery in his first global town hall with the new company's employees on Thursday. Domestically, HBO Max and HBO have a combined 45.2 million subscribers. 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. (Photo by Amanda Edwards/Getty Images for Discovery, Inc.). The largest donation made to a political party by a Discovery employee was by David Zaslav. David Milton Zaslav was born on January 15, 1960 in Brooklyn, New York City, U.S. happened. And when asked about the future of cable, the former protector of the cable bundle acknowledged that the medium is declining, but believes it will still stick around a lot longer than people think.. 2023 NYP Holdings, Inc. All Rights Reserved, CNN analyst gives birth in bathroom after 13-minute sudden labor, US government-funded research tagged Americans for Twitter ban: report, Bill Maher says woke community wants to shut down debate on trans issues, New York Times, MSNBC, CNN slammed for claiming COVID lab leak theory was debunked, dialed back usingthe breaking news banner, Reliable Sources hosted by Brian Stelter, evaluating whether CNNs staffers can adjust. It was cancelled by Chris Licht, CNNs new chairman and CEO, who reportedly was not a fan of Stelters opinionated style. Discovery WBD -3.1% CEO David Zaslav says he wasn't sending a message with his decision to quickly kill off CNN's short-lived streaming channel, CNN+. Malone is a supporter of Zucker's most emboldened enemy, Donald Trump. Use the unsubscribe link in those emails to opt out at any time. But he also contributed $100,000 to the Nancy Pelosi Victory Fund, and $124,000 to the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. CNBC posted a clip of the exchange on Twitter, but later deleted it. [2] Zaslav spearheaded the transaction between AT&T and Discovery to combine with WarnerMedia and create the combined Warner Bros. The CEO, whose company owns CNN, Warner Bros., HBO, Animal Planet and TLC, told reporters at Allen & Co.s summer camp for billionaires in Sun Valley, Idaho, that CNNs new approach will pay off in the long term, even as ratings sink to historic lows. Power isnt exercised that directly or clumsily in large corporate media bureaucracies. With his law degree, Zaslav took a position at the prestigious New York City firm of LeBouf, Lamb, Lieby & MacRae in 1985. Just when you think that youve negotiated a fair price, and the paperwork for financing has, Read More 20 Things You Didnt Know about TrueCarContinue, The brain plays a vital role in almost all aspects of physiology. "Well have to see, really.". Follow the money. The $43billion deal is almost done, after years of attempts by AT&T to spin the network off. McHale took a six month maternity leave which gave Zaslav the chance to work closely with Hendricks for six months. A Discovery spokesperson told the Post that Zaslav didnt finish his thought, adding that he uses the phrase to organize his conversations around Discoverys business. Market data provided by Factset. 'I will not resign. According to sources cited by Rolling Stone on Thursday, the pair breached journalism ethics to help Cuomo behind the scenes in the same way that his younger brother Chris did. The year 2020 expects the fiercest competition to come from the streaming services memo sent out Warner!, More & quot ;, he receives david zaslav political affiliation annual salary of $ 150 million for his.., generate 57 per cent profit that you choose to associate with to a party. August 1, 2022. Man you weren't kidding. The popular host's downfall came when documents revealed how heexchanged dozens of text messages with his brother Andrew's top aide, Melissa DeRosa. Discovery projects was done in service of moving the company away from producing divisive left-wing content in favor of entertaining the average viewer. However he does like to take on other topics involving some of his personal interests like automobiles, future technologies, and anything else that could change the world. The PAC and Victory fund are also Jeffries. Safra Catz, the CEO of Oracle, gave $125,000 in May to the Trump Victory committee, a joint fundraising operation between the Trump campaign and the Republican National Committee. Discovery, one of the world's largest and most diverse media and entertainment companies with market leadership across all programming genres, including premium scripted television and movies, non-fiction series, international, animation, global sports and news. Zaslav's remarks come just days after the spectacular ouster of CNN boss Zucker, who resigned under a cloud this week. Zaslav himself hasnt helped matters stating that CNN would feature more right-wing viewpoints planting a flag for the center but what can readily available data tell us about the executive. (2 minutes) Warner Bros. 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. JIM RISCH FOR U.S. SENATE COMMITTEE - Republican, NCTA - THE INTERNET AND TELEVISION ASSOCIATION POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE (NCTA PAC), Discovery Communications Llc/Discovery Communications Llc/President And Chief Executive Officer, Discovery, Inc/Discovery, Inc/President And Ceo, Discovery, Inc./Discovery, Inc./President, Discovery Communications/Discovery Communications/President & Ceo, Discovery, Inc./Discovery, Inc./President And Chief Executive Officer, Discovery Communications/Discovery Communications/Ceo. Zucker said he was leaving for violating corporate policy by not disclosing the nature of his relationship with his second-in-command, Allison Gollust. LIBERTY MEDIA CHAIRMAN CHIDES CNN TO 'ACTUALLY HAVE JOURNALISTS' FOLLOWING AT&T-DISCOVERY MERGER, "None of us had anything to do with it. 2007 and 2009 was taken into account for this list merger . The ratings are getting worse because they are taking out all the bells and whistles. Discovery and has publicly committed to keeping CNN after the merger. She also wrote a $46,100 check to the McCarthy Victory Fund in June. The boss ofCNNs new parent companysaid on Friday the network was the leader in news to the left but his communications team soon scrambled to walk back the frank admission, insisting he wasnt talking about politics. AT&T bought WarnerMedia (formerly Time Warner) in 2018 for $84billion. Deadline reported last night that it was Malone who insisted on Zucker's departure after learning of the affair. Zaslav is Jewish and describes his family life as normal. He is married to Pam and they have three children. ', 'For the long term,' Zaslav said, CNN 'is going to be a fantastic asset.'. The show was commercially successful. Given six seats on the new company's board, Zaslav and Discovery appointed a roster of all white male directors. Apart from being praised for turning Discovery into an international powerhouse, not much is known about David's private life.