Jamie Kellner

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Jamie Kellner is an American television executive. He was chairman and chief executive officer of Turner Broadcasting System, Inc., a division of Time Warner which includes TBS, TNT, and Cartoon Network. Kellner took over the post in 2001 and handed over the company to Philip Kent in 2003. He is currently the Chairman and CEO of ACME Communications, a post held since 1997.

Contents

[edit] Career

[edit] Fox Broadcasting Company

Kellner was present at the creation of the Fox Broadcasting Company, which was then considered a radical idea, as it was taking on the three networks that had dominated American television since the 1950s, ABC, CBS and NBC (CBS and NBC were really the "big two" until ABC emerged in the late 1960s).

Despite incredible skepticism, Kellner was part of the team that gave the network the "attitude" that has marked the network ever since. Among the shows that emerged during Kellner's seven years at FOX were The Simpsons, Married... with Children, and In Living Color. Those shows held the fledgling "web" together until FOX shocked the TV world by winning partial rights to the National Football League in 1994 from CBS; that, as well as channel upgrades in many markets due to Fox's alliance and merger with New World Communications, made FOX a legitimate fourth network.

[edit] WB Television Network

Kellner then spent seven years at the helm of the WB Television Network. He helped launch the new broadcast network in 1994. During his tenure, Kellner began by championing urban sitcoms, but eventually steered the network in the direction of family-oriented dramas. 7th Heaven, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Gilmore Girls, Dawson's Creek, and Charmed (perhaps the most popular shows in the WB's history) all premiered during Kellner's presidency.

[edit] Criticism

Kellner has often been a target of criticism and contempt from the Warner Bros. Animation fanbase; he has frequently been blamed for the cancellation of such shows as Animaniacs, Freakazoid!, Road Rovers, Histeria!, and The Legend of Calamity Jane, plus the retooling and subsequent cancellation of Pinky and the Brain. He has been maligned for allegedly ignoring such shows' popularity among older demographics, among whom the programs often got higher ratings than in the 2-11 demographic at which Kids' WB! was primarily aimed.

In response to an April 29, 2002 interview [1][2] question on why digital video recorders were bad for the industry, Mr. Kellner responded:

“ Because of the ad skips.... It's theft. Your contract with the network when you get the show is you're going to watch the spots. Otherwise you couldn't get the show on an ad-supported basis. Any time you skip a commercial or watch the button you're actually stealing the programming. ”

These accusations that DVRs promote copyright infringement fueled[3] the copyfight debate.

[edit] World Championship Wrestling

A 2005 book about World Championship Wrestling alleged that Kellner was the one who really "killed" the former powerhouse promotion. Despite a downturn in ratings (WCW's ratings were still higher than most programming on TNT and TBS at the time) and a financial crisis, former WCW president Eric Bischoff (through Fusient Media Ventures) was still interested in buying it and turning it around. However, Kellner thought that, even if WCW could once again attract viewers, the demographics would not be favorable enough to get the "right" advertisers to buy airtime. In early 2001, Kellner announced that TBS and TNT would no longer air wrestling shows. In March 2001, the WWF purchased WCW and its related assets. Due to what is considered the decline of the WWE product, many wrestling fans have denounced Kellner's actions in regards to WCW, blaming him for the fact that WWE owner Vince McMahon has a virtual monopoly on the professional wrestling market on the national level.

[edit] References

  1. ^ broadband-pbimedia.com
  2. ^ 2600.com
  3. ^ research.yale.edu

[edit] Sources