WarnerMedia Names Ann Sarnoff Chief Executive of Warner Bros.--Update

By Joe Flint 

AT&T Inc.'s WarnerMedia has tapped BBC Studios-Americas President Ann Sarnoff to lead Warner Bros., the iconic movie and television studio.

As chairwoman and chief executive, Ms. Sarnoff will oversee business operations for one of the entertainment industry's most prolific and powerful content producers. Both the movie studio and the television unit have strong records for hit films and movies.

Ms. Sarnoff will report to WarnerMedia Chief Executive John Stankey.

She will be the first woman to lead the storied Warner Bros. operation. Her appointment comes after some employees at WarnerMedia raised concerns internally that the top executives Mr. Stankey had tapped following AT&T's takeover of Time Warner Inc. were all men.

Ms. Sarnoff replaces Kevin Tsujihara, who resigned in March following an investigation into an extramarital relationship he had with an actress in 2013 in which he said in text messages that he would inquire about roles for her at Warner. Mr. Tsujihara apologized to employees for his conduct and said his leadership had become a distraction to the company.

Ms. Sarnoff, who is 57 years old, has held several senior positions in media and sports. Prior to the BBC, where she has worked for nearly a decade, her titles included executive vice president at Viacom Inc.'s Nickelodeon and chief operating officer of the Women's National Basketball Association. She also was a top executive at Wall Street Journal parent Dow Jones & Co.

WarnerMedia is betting her mix of experience will help it navigate in TV and movie industries increasingly dominated by streaming media.

In a statement, Mr. Stankey said Ms. Sarnoff "brings a consistent and proven track record of innovation, creativity and business results to lead an incredibly successful studio to its next chapter of growth."

Write to Joe Flint at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

June 24, 2019 13:33 ET (17:33 GMT)

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