Media Moves

Ronan Farrow

Ronan Farrow has signed an exclusive three-year deal with HBO that will begin later this year. Under the agreement, Farrow will develop a series of investigative documentary specials for the network, as well as appear in them. The specials will focus on the abuse of power by individuals and institutions. Farrow is also joining the New Yorker as a contributing editor, and his television work will incorporate the reporting he does for the magazine. He will also produce and host other pieces for HBO’s various platforms, which will be announced as they are confirmed. “Ronan Farrow’s extraordinary, revelatory reporting for the New Yorker has helped to propel a string of other investigations,” said Casey Bloys, president, HBO programming. “We are excited to provide a platform for this dogged reporter.”

Paramount Pictures has promoted several executives in its publicity and marketing ranks. David Waldman, previously senior VP national publicity, is now executive VP domestic publicity. Irene Trachtenberg has been promoted from senior VP to head of worldwide marketing Partnerships. Waldman has overseen campaigns for a wide range of pictures, from such big-event titles as Transformers, Paranormal Activity and Iron Man to Oscar-winning titles that include Fences, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button and Dreamgirls. Prior to Paramount, he worked at Focus Features, MGM and the Angellotti Company. Trachtenberg will now oversee key corporate brand integration and promotional relationships for Paramount’s theatrical film releases. She joined the studio in 2014 as VP international partnerships and was promoted to SVP in 2017 to oversee global, multi-territory and domestic brand partnerships. Before coming to Paramount, Trachtenberg was director of global marketing promotions at Warner Bros.

As Rupert Murdoch prepares to unload Fox’s film, television and international businesses in a deal with Walt Disney Co., his company is also close to closing a deal to pick up about 10 TV stations from Sinclair Broadcast Group. One of the biggest lures in the deal is football. The stations that Sinclair plans to sell to Fox include several in such major NFL markets as Seattle and Denver. Fox, which has shelled out big money to air NFL games, stands to bring in more football-related revenues if it owns more stations. Sinclair, which is attempting to purchase Tribune Media, needs to lose stations in some markets to facilitate governmental approval of that purchase.

Discovery Communications is moving its global headquarters from Silver Spring, MD, to New York City next year. A company statement says that the move is intended to let Discovery take advantage of the proximity to business, investment and production partners in New York. “The media industry is rapidly evolving, increasingly global, more consumer focused and more multi-platform and Discovery must evolve with it,” said Discovery president and CEO David Zaslav. “The decision to move our global headquarters from its founding home is one we do not make lightly.” Contingent on the closing of the company’s purchase of Scripps Networks Interactive, the company will also establish a national operations headquarters at Scripps’ current campus in Knoxville, TN.