There was yet more news about a departure of note from Warner Ranch yesterday, where the noted unslinger Yosemite Zas allowed this news to be released. The LOS ANGELES TIMES’ veteran observer Meg James did her best to make it seem both voluntary and well thought out:
Warner Bros. Discovery’s head of U.S. networks Kathleen Finch will retire at the end of the year, with Warner Bros. Television group chairman and CEO Channing Dungey set as her replacement.
“There is no one better at developing captivating content, compelling talent, and meaningful lifestyle brands than Kathleen, who has been my partner as we built our premier entertainment networks at Discovery and created Warner Bros. Discovery as an unscripted powerhouse,” Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav said Friday. “While I understand her long-standing decision to retire, I will certainly miss her, as will the entire company, which has benefitted from her unmatched collaboration and unique understanding of what our audiences crave. Channing is an unparalleled creative executive who has shepherded countless award-winning hit shows. She has the ideal expertise and experience – as a content developer, platform programmer, and network executive – to lead the US Networks.”
Well, Zas, or at least his newly-hired spin doctor, can sure read a resume. Yes, she’s done all that, and at many stops along the way quite well. But do note the titles associated with Dungey’s direct involvement on her Wikipedia page:
Dungey joined ABC Studios in the summer of 2004[8] and worked as head of drama. Dungey was hired as president of ABC Entertainment on February 17, 2016…Dungey oversaw the development of ABC Studios shows such as Scandal, How to Get Away with Murder, Nashville, Quantico, Army Wives, and Once Upon a Time.[11]
Now here’s her new job’s purview, per BLAVITY’s Monique Jones:
The channels Dungey will oversee include, but aren’t limited to, Food Network, TBS, HGTV, TNT, TruTV, Discovery Channel and Investigation Discovery.
And here’s the track record that Finch leaves behind that Dungey’s background will be asked to continue, per James:
Finch has spent 25 years at Scripps Networks and Discovery, helping guide the company’s lifestyle cable channels…She guided the networks to prominence and high ratings, turning the food-focused network into a force with dynamic chefs, including Bobby Flay and Guy Fieri. She also helped steer HGTV into the mainstream with shows, including “Fixer Upper” and “Property Brothers.”
THE WRAP’s Lucas Manfredi additionally notes: Notable projects under her tenure leading the U.S. Networks division include ID’s “Quiet on Set” and TLC’s “90 Day Fiance” franchise, which is available in 216 territories and 44 languages.
None of those are scripted shows, nor are the networks they aired on.
So maybe Dungey was hired because of her track record of successfully programming a network? Well, I tend to go more by results than bravado. In the two full years which Dungey oversaw ABC, the network finished dead last and then in a distant three-way tie behind relative juggernaut NBC in the target 18-49 demo. And I saw first hand her strategic chops when not only was my team able to sell her a marginally testing drama, we were actually shocked that we sold her a bill of goods on giving it a showcase time slot.
The show was NOTORIOUS, an all-but-forgotten legal drama starring Piper Perabo and Daniel Sunjata that was loosely based on the real-life experiences of celebrity-obsessed criminal defense attorney Mark Geragos. As part of what was then a more collaborative effort between network and studio, my Sony team requested we work up some recommendations on where we thought the show would best fit on ABC’s schedule. Like any sales pitch, you grasp at straws and, in this case, somewhat specious qualitative data in the hopes you might strike a nerve. At the time, ABC’s most successful and buzziest prime time block was called “T.G.I.T”, led by the ratings juggernaut of GREY’S ANATOMY and its surging lead-out, SCANDAL. SCANDAL was unquestionably Dungey’s baby; not only did she have a large role in its development but it helped foster a relationship with its creator, Shonda Rhimes, that eventually paid off in Rhimes throwing her a life raft with a tenure at Netflix when her ABC star ran out. And I dare say it was Dungey’s belief that our Hail Mary recommendation that NOTORIOUS would pair up as well with GREY’S that may have contributed in large part to that failure. She was determined to schedule SCANDAL for 22 consecutive weeks so as not to break up the week-to-week flow of habitual viewing and arc build that reflected her own viewing habits. This opened up a fall slot adjacency to GREY’s. She told our executives that our research confirmed her “gut instinct” and she happily signed off on NOTORIOUS being slotted into this prime real eatate.
Like I said, I tend to go more by results than bravado. The show debuted at a 1.1 demo and ended, three episodes earlier than originally contracted, at a 0.5. And Wikipedia reminds that her “gut instinct” may have been just a notch tone-deaf:
Notorious received generally negative reviews from television critics. Rotten Tomatoes gave the show a 25% “rotten” rating with the site’s critical consensus read, “Implausible and populated with unlikeable characters, Notorious forsakes dramatic credibility in favor of flash and fluff.”[18] By comparison, Metacritic gave the show a score of 32 out of 100, indicating “generally unfavorable reviews”.[19]
So nope, I’m not buying her network president track record either.
And yes, on paper she has had responsibility for unscripted series such as THE BACHELOR (both at ABC and at WB) and the juggernaut of game show revivals that lifted up ABC’s fortunes and profit margins during her tenure. But almost anyone directly involved with these projects knows those successes are far more related to the detail and passion of true unscripted champions like Rob Mills and Mike Darnell. Indeed, those that worked with them regularly observed both her indifference and lack of substantive input in this area.
So in a world where so many qualified leaders of cable networks specializing in unscripted content, let alone executives with the kind of track record that Finch had, are available, some newly so in the wakes of cutbacks from Paramount and A&E this week alone, is Zas indeed saying that absolutely no one else was even worth considering for the task of trying to turn around a business that he took a $9 billion write-down?
I get that he needed to make some kind of quick move, especially in the wake of other stories in this week’s news cycle, such as this from MARKETWATCH’s Emily Bary:
Shares of Warner Bros. Discovery Inc. are trading at 2009 levels, but a former bull doesn’t see much upside from here.
Bernstein’s Laurent Yoon mentioned “heightened uncertainties” as he cut his rating on the media stock to market-perform from neutral. He also reduced his price target to $8 from $10. “It sounds bad and it is,” he wrote in his downgrade. “While there are some nuances, such as comps, the market reaction is reflective of the very little patience investors have for [Warner Bros. Discovery] given the ongoing deterioration.”
So natch, instead of bringing in folks with slightly different experiences, Zas turns internally for someone who has directly contributed to those results.
Curiously, no replacement for Dungey on the WB side was named, leaving open the possibility that in the spirit of Dana Walden, she might actually wear both studio and network hat simultaneously. Certainly, that would save some executive dollars and potentially open doors to further consolidation and “efficiencies”. But I’ve seen both of these women in action, and to paraphrase Senator Lloyd Bentsen, “she’s no Dana Walden”.
Maybe that’s why she felt compelled to post this on her Instagram page, in the hopes of maybe creating the illusion that she does have more in common with Walden?
Maybe that’s what Zas paid more attention to?
Because, honestly, I’m racking my brain trying to find some other logical reason why Channing Dungey was deemed THE choice to replace Kathleen Finch. I’m left with two equally uncomforable possibilities.
One is that no other qualified executive, particularly those who haven’t worked for Zaslav, actually wanted the job. Based on results of late, that’s certainly plausible.
The other is this: You can’t spell Dungey, Channing without the three letters in bold italics.
Until next time…