 Vincent Sadusky |
Univision Communications has named Vincent Sadusky CEO. Sadusky is on the board of Hemisphere Media Group, a broadcast and media company targeting Latin American and U.S. Hispanic audiences. Until last year, he was CEO at Media General. Sandusky also served as CFO at Telemundo, the NBC Universal unit that is one of Univision’s main competitors. In March, Univision scuttled plans for an initial public offering that had been seen as a way to provide an exit route for the company’s private-equity owners. In the wake of the IPO’s collapse, the company replaced CFO Francisco Lopez-Balboa with Peter Lori, and CEO Randy Falco announced plans to retire. Univision is currently in the midst of a business review that is expected to lead to cost-cutting and job losses.
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Rather than comply with the European Union’s new General Data Protection Regulation, which is meant to protect the privacy of people visiting websites, such publications as the New York Times, Los Angeles Times and Chicago Tribune are opting to cut off access to users in EU countries. A&E Television Networks has blocked several of its websites, including those for its History and Lifetime channels. According to a study conducted by information security solutions firm Alert Logic, there is still a considerable amount of confusion as regards the specifics of GDPR. The main GDPR compliance hurdles cited in the study are lack of expert staff (43 percent), lack of budget (40 percent), and a limited understanding of GDPR regulations (31 percent). But blocking users does not automatically get companies off the hook as regards GDPR violations. Julian Saunders, CEO of software startup Port, told Bloomberg that companies “still hold data on EU citizens and therefore they are required to comply and respond to subject access requests like everyone else.”
 Debra Lee |
BET CEO Debra Lee is stepping down. Lee has been credited with reshaping the company by acquiring more original programming and emphasizing family entertainment. Hired as the company’s first VP and general counsel in 1986, she was promoted to president and COO in 1996 and has also been chairman and CEO since 2005. Scott Mills replaced her as the Viacom unit’s president in December, but Lee stayed on as chairman/CEO. Lee will continue her role on corporate and non-profit boards, and her work with Time's Up and The Recording Academy Diversity & Inclusion Task Force.
Boston Globe Media acquires InstaTrac, a company that provides subscription-based services aimed at making government information easier to find, track, and understand... AARP names former New Republic CEO and publisher Michael Caruso as its SVP and chief content officer, unifying the organization's portfolio of media, live events and digital platforms... The Fund for American Studies, an educational nonprofit, awards its inaugural Journalism Excellence Fellowships.
Trump Media and Technology Group Corp. has replaced CEO and former California Congressman Devin Nunes with Kevin McGurn, a seasoned media sales executive.
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette is being bought by the Venetoulis Institute for Local Journalism, a nonprofit that is the parent organization of the Baltimore Banner... The British Broadcasting Corporation is axing approximately 2,000 jobs, about 10 percent of its work force... Snap, the company behind Snapchat, is also succumbing to layoff fever, announcing plans to lay off 16 percent of its employees, about 1,000 people.
CBS News Radio will go off the air on May 22, part of the axe-swinging managerial plan put into play by CBS editor-in-chief Bari Weiss... The Economist, which was first published in 1843, is changing hands. Canadian billionaire Stephen Smith has agreed to acquire a 26.9 percent stake in the publication from Lady Lynn Forester de Rothschild, her family and family foundation... Nexstar Media Group says it has closed its acquisition of TEGNA, the broadcast, digital media and marketing services company that was formed in 2015, when the Gannett Company split into two publicly traded companies.
USA TODAY brings on Jamie Stockwell as VP of news, effective March 30. Stockwell was most recently deputy managing editor of news for the Washington Post... YouTube expands its likeness detection capabilities to a pilot group of government officials, journalists and political candidates... The AP Fund for Journalism adds 50 news organizations to its local news program, bringing the total number of participating newsrooms to 100. 
