CBS shakes up its divisions
Wendy McMahon, Neeraj Khemlani rejoin network; Susan Zirinsky to shift role.
The news division and TV stations group are combined and outside leaders brought in.
In a sweeping shift, CBS on Thursday combined its legendary news division and TV stations group, which provides local news to millions of Americans.
The company tapped Hearst newspaper and cable executive Neeraj Khemlani and former ABC Owned Television Stations President Wendy McMahon as presidents and co-heads of the newly formed division.
Now under one roof will be CBS News, its digital streaming service CBSN, 10 local news platforms and the 28 CBS-owned stations in 17 major U.S. markets.
CBS Chief Executive George Cheeks announced the reorganization Thursday. He opted for two outsiders to shake up the divisions, including the CBS stations group, following the ouster of its longtime boss, Peter Dunn, in the wake of a Los Angeles Times investigation.
Khemlani served as a producer on “60 Minutes” and “60 Minutes II” for eight years, while McMahon spent seven years at WBZ Boston and WCCO Minneapolis before joining Walt Disney Co.
Khemlani is an awardwinning former news correspondent. For more than a decade he has been an executive at Hearst, most recently as executive vice president and deputy group head at Hearst Newspapers, overseeing 3,000 employees at 24 daily newspapers and 52 weekly publications. Before that, he helped lead business, product and newsgathering efforts at Yahoo!.
While CBS News is known for its solid journalism, including "60 Minutes" and the most-watched weekend morning program, "CBS Sunday Morning," the network's weekday morning and evening newscasts have long trailed ABC News and NBC News in the ratings.
The new management team was named one day after former ranking CBS News executive Kim Godwin left to run ABC News.
A rising star within the Walt Disney Co., McMahon has been in charge of the eight ABC-owned TV stations since December 2017. Before that, she was senior vice president responsible for digital content and product technology for the stations, where she embraced data-driven initiatives and a shift to deliver local news to viewers on mobile platforms. She previously was a vice president for programming and creative services at KABC-TV Channel 7, the top-ranked station in L.A.
At CBS, McMahon will have a much larger job — leading 28 TV stations, including KCBS-TV Channel 2 and KCAL-TV Channel 9 in L.A. — and overseeing CBS News and the digital news platforms with Khemlani.
“This is an opportunity to create a news and information structure that positions CBS for the future,” Cheeks said in a statement. “It speaks to our ability to scale newsgathering, production, technical and operational resources to serve both national and local, linear and digital, with the agility to deliver trusted information to every platform.”
Cheeks retooled his organization after the 2,800employee CBS TV Stations group was rocked by allegations that Dunn and his lieutenant, David Friend, had cultivated an environment that included bullying female managers and blocking efforts to hire and retain Black journalists. The men have denied wrongdoing.
Last week, CBS ousted Dunn, 61, and Friend, 64, following The Times’ series, which revealed problems in an often overlooked corner of the corporation that lacks the prestige of the CBS television network but remains a vital source of local news for millions of Americans — and a key source of revenue.
The CBS investigation into Dunn’s and Friend’s alleged conduct is ongoing.
Dozens of current and former staff members in L.A., Dallas, Boston, Chicago, Miami, Philadelphia and New York have complained of a hostile work environment. Journalists in New York alleged that managers often made news coverage decisions that neglected communities of color. The flagship WCBS station in New York lacked a full-time Black male reporter until March 2020, the same month that Cheeks, who is biracial, took the reins at CBS.
In addition to running the entire TV chain, Dunn and Friend were hands-on managers at WCBS New York.
The Times’ series also raised questions about a $55million purchase of a TV station on New York’s Long Island — the only station acquisition during Dunn’s 11year tenure overseeing CBS’ station group. The 2011 deal came with privileges for Dunn and other high-level CBS executives at an exclusive Hamptons golf club.
Susan Zirinsky, who has been CBS News president for two years, will stay on until the new leadership group takes the reins in early May. A stalwart in the news division for nearly a half-century, Zirinsky made history when she became the first woman to lead CBS News in March 2019. She stepped into the leadership role when CBS was reeling from sexual harassment scandals that brought down the company's former chief, Leslie Moonves, and newsman Charlie Rose.
CBS said it was discussing with Zirinsky “a significant role” for the legendary producer to stay on at the CBS News Content Studio, which is planned for a launch later this year.