February 13, 2007

MTV Axe Starts Swinging

By Shirley Brady

In the wake of MTVN chairman and CEO Judy McGrath's Monday morning memo that 250 U.S. staffers would be let go starting this week, the pink slips have started flying at 1515 Broadway and beyond.

Among the MTV Networks departments that got whacked: VH1 Classic, including channel GM Eric Sherman; MTV2, with GM David Cohen hoping to stay on-board (both networks will continue on-air); and affiliate sales and marketing, including EVP Jessica Heacock, who insiders say jumped before she was pushed.

Heacock, MTVN's "beloved" (according to an anonymous tipster on Jossip) former EVP of affiliate sales and marketing (whose most recent title was EVP of partner marketing and finance) was passed over for the top affiliate sales and marketing post that went to Denise Dahldorf, now EVP of affiliate sales for MTVN and BET Networks.

Both women were contenders to run MTVN's cross-networks distribution team, formerly led by ASM president Nicole Browning and EVP Peter Low, who exited last month.

Others who were shown the door this week: EVP of multiplatform programming, content strategy and scheduling Paul DeBenedittis [update: DeBenedittis was named VP-operations, MTV Digital, on 6/5/07]; Salli Frattini, SVP of production, and her team; Kathy Flynn, SVP for production events (such as the MTV Movie Awards) and her staff; New York-based affiliate sales and marketing SVPs Susan Keith and Sandy Ashendorf plus most of their ASM colleagues in Santa Monica and Chicago; VH1's SVP of communications Laura Nelson; and staffers within ad sales, MTV News and MTV World's three ethnic nets—MTV Chi, MTV Desi and MTV K—although MTV World GM/SVP Nusrat Durrani is hoping for another position.

Also rumored to be cut at MTV this week, but still around according to a spokesperson: Tina Exarhos, EVP of marketing and multiplatform creative. Comedy Central's casualties included VP of on-air design Kendrick Reid.

While staffers and so-called "permalancers" were axed in the dozens, MTVN posted 100+ job openings, primarily in the digital media and online space that the company has been embracing with zeal since the shock ouster in September of another "beloved" MTVN exec, former president and CEO Tom Freston.