ABC Entertainment President to Step Down
November 16 2018 - 7:59PM
Dow Jones News
By Joe Flint
ABC Entertainment President Channing Dungey is stepping down
after less than three years overseeing the broadcast network's
prime-time programming, ABC parent Walt Disney Co. said Friday.
Ms. Dungey's departure comes in advance of new management poised
to take over the unit early next year after Walt Disney's deal to
acquire the bulk of entertainment assets from 21st Century Fox Inc.
closes.
Karey Burke, who currently is head of programming for Disney's
cable channel, Freeform, will succeed Ms. Dungey.
A 14-year veteran of ABC and the only African-American network
entertainment chief, Ms. Dungey was involved in the development of
several hit shows at the network including "Scandal," "black-ish"
and "The Good Doctor." Company insiders said her departure didn't
come as a complete surprise given the leadership transition that
ABC's TV operations will undergo after the Fox deal closes. (Fox
and Wall Street Journal parent News Corp. share common
ownership.)
Ms. Dungey's stature rose in the industry for her handling of
the Roseanne Barr debacle in which the star was fired from her hit
sitcom of the same name just hours after making racist tweets. Ms.
Dungey also is seen as a strong creative executive who is well
regarded in the production community.
She will stay through a transition period as Ms. Burke assumes
her new role, the company said.
In a statement, Ms, Dungey said, "While I've loved every moment,
and knew I could call ABC home for many years to come, I'm excited
to tackle new challenges."
Although Ms. Dungey had many successes, ABC, like other
broadcast networks, has struggled with declining ratings. So far
this season, ABC is down 10% in viewers and 18% among adults 18-49,
the key demographic for advertisers, according to Nielsen.
Disney has already said the senior leadership of Fox's TV
operations would take over running ABC's television operations,
meaning Ms. Dungey would be getting new bosses. She currently
reports to Ben Sherwood, co-president of Disney Media Networks and
president of Disney/ABC Television.
Mr. Sherwood is leaving Disney after the Fox deal closes, and
Fox TV executives Peter Rice and Dana Walden are taking leadership
positions. Mr. Rice will serve as chairman of Walt Disney
Television and co-chairman of Disney Media Networks. Meanwhile, Ms.
Walden will become chairman of Disney Television Studios and ABC
Entertainment.
Ms. Burke will report to Ms. Walden. The two have known each
other for many years. Ms. Burke first rose to prominence as a
programming executive at NBC in the 1990s and helped shepherd
several hits there including "Friends" and "Mad About You." She has
overseen Freeform's programming efforts since 2014. Freeform
primarily caters to the 18-34 demographic with programming aimed at
young adults and families.
"Karey has proven herself a gifted leader with a strong track
record of developing unique programming," said Disney Chief
Executive Robert Iger in a statement.
A successor to Ms. Burke at Freeform will be named, Disney
said.
Write to Joe Flint at joe.flint@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
November 16, 2018 19:44 ET (00:44 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2018 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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