Hit any picket line in Hollywood these days, and there’s a good chance you’ll see signs slamming the lavish paydays for entertainment chiefs like Disney’s Bob Iger and Warner Bros. Discovery’s David Zaslav. For the striking actors and writers who are holding out for a better deal from the major studios, these bloated compensation packages have become a very effective cudgel. It’s particularly notable when someone like Iger, who is set to earn up to $27 million this year, gripes on CNBC that the two unions aren’t being “realistic” about the struggles the business is facing.
“It’s sort of like someone’s just tossing you an easy layup,” says Adam Conover, a member of the Writers Guild of America negotiating committee. “Well, you’re gonna take it when they do that.”
Conover and the writers and actors who are on strike argue that they...
“It’s sort of like someone’s just tossing you an easy layup,” says Adam Conover, a member of the Writers Guild of America negotiating committee. “Well, you’re gonna take it when they do that.”
Conover and the writers and actors who are on strike argue that they...
- 8/9/2023
- by Brent Lang
- Variety Film + TV
As CBS Corp. nears a formal acquisition offer for Viacom, the actions of two key players — controlling shareholder Shari Redstone and acting CBS CEO Joe Ianniello — will be closely watched in the coming weeks.
Redstone’s moves are under scrutiny because of the potential for litigation surrounding a deal that some have criticized as CBS coming to the rescue of Viacom, at the expense of CBS’ independent shareholders. Ianniello, meanwhile, is likely to face a decision soon about whether to extend his contract again on a short-term basis to help steer CBS through a possible merger. And there is increasing talk about the reunification of CBS-Viacom being the first step in a larger campaign to buy or sell in order for Redstone to better position CBS and Viacom for the future in a rapidly changing media marketplace.
Redstone, who is vice chair of CBS and Viacom, has to tread carefully...
Redstone’s moves are under scrutiny because of the potential for litigation surrounding a deal that some have criticized as CBS coming to the rescue of Viacom, at the expense of CBS’ independent shareholders. Ianniello, meanwhile, is likely to face a decision soon about whether to extend his contract again on a short-term basis to help steer CBS through a possible merger. And there is increasing talk about the reunification of CBS-Viacom being the first step in a larger campaign to buy or sell in order for Redstone to better position CBS and Viacom for the future in a rapidly changing media marketplace.
Redstone, who is vice chair of CBS and Viacom, has to tread carefully...
- 6/19/2019
- by Cynthia Littleton
- Variety Film + TV
The bosses and directors of the world’s largest media companies aren’t going to win many popularity contests. They anger a lot of people, including investors, when they approve out-of-whack pay packages for their CEOs. Their lavish salaries and generous awarding of stock options to key leaders enrage politicians on the left and threaten to become a political issue in the upcoming presidential election. And they appear to have been oblivious to women’s concerns as disclosures of sexual harassment and bullying at the companies they oversee piled up over the past year or so.
With the pressure of accountability rising, will things change? Not if you look at the latest annual proxy reports from the nine companies on our watch list.
By any empirical standard, 2018 was a very good year to call the shots at major entertainment or technology conglomerates. The chiefs on our list collectively made $393.8 million,...
With the pressure of accountability rising, will things change? Not if you look at the latest annual proxy reports from the nine companies on our watch list.
By any empirical standard, 2018 was a very good year to call the shots at major entertainment or technology conglomerates. The chiefs on our list collectively made $393.8 million,...
- 4/30/2019
- by David Lieberman and Brent Lang
- Variety Film + TV
Julie Chen remains an integral part of two CBS Corp. TV programs, even as her husband, former chairman-ceo Leslie Moonves, has left the company under a cloud. That awkward situation has given rise to speculation about whether she can continue her work.
Viewers of “The Talk,” one of two CBS series on which Chen serves as a host, have not heard directly from her this week in the wake of Moonves’ forced resignation on Sunday. Moonves was ousted just hours after the CBS Corp. board of directors announced Moonves would be leaving the company amid multiple accusations of sexual misconduct leveled at him. He has denied many of the allegations.
“I am taking a few days off from ‘The Talk’ to be with my family. I will be back soon and will see you Thursday night on ‘Big Brother,’” Chen said in a statement issued just before Monday’s edition of “The Talk” aired.
Viewers of “The Talk,” one of two CBS series on which Chen serves as a host, have not heard directly from her this week in the wake of Moonves’ forced resignation on Sunday. Moonves was ousted just hours after the CBS Corp. board of directors announced Moonves would be leaving the company amid multiple accusations of sexual misconduct leveled at him. He has denied many of the allegations.
“I am taking a few days off from ‘The Talk’ to be with my family. I will be back soon and will see you Thursday night on ‘Big Brother,’” Chen said in a statement issued just before Monday’s edition of “The Talk” aired.
- 9/11/2018
- by Brian Steinberg
- Variety Film + TV
CBS Corp. has entertained Americans for decades with dramas like “Gunsmoke,” “The Good Wife” and “Dallas.” Now this national institution faces a cliffhanger of its own.
Leslie Moonves, who has been CEO of the company since 2006 and an architect of its growth and success for more than two decades, stands on a precipice from which he could well fall: Six women allege in an article in The New Yorker that Moonves made unwanted sexual advances on them between the 1980s and the early 2000s. Among them is the actress Illeana Douglas and the producer Christine Peters. Independent directors from CBS Corp. on Friday said the company would investigate the claims, “promptly review the findings and take appropriate action.” The article also raises allegations about a culture of harassment at CBS News, and CBS said in a statement to the magazine that it had retained an attorney to “conduct an independent...
Leslie Moonves, who has been CEO of the company since 2006 and an architect of its growth and success for more than two decades, stands on a precipice from which he could well fall: Six women allege in an article in The New Yorker that Moonves made unwanted sexual advances on them between the 1980s and the early 2000s. Among them is the actress Illeana Douglas and the producer Christine Peters. Independent directors from CBS Corp. on Friday said the company would investigate the claims, “promptly review the findings and take appropriate action.” The article also raises allegations about a culture of harassment at CBS News, and CBS said in a statement to the magazine that it had retained an attorney to “conduct an independent...
- 7/28/2018
- by Brian Steinberg
- Variety Film + TV
Allegations being made about longtime CBS CEO Leslie Moonves have raised eyebrows across the media and entertainment industries. On Wall Street, they have lowered the price of the company’s shares of stock.
That’s because many analysts expect Moonves to be distracted by an investigation into accusations of sexual misconduct by six women detailed in a report in The New Yorker. “All allegations of personal misconduct are to be taken seriously,” CBS’ independent board members said in a statement Friday. The board of directors also voiced “full support” for the CEO and his current management team. CBS shares on Friday fell more than 6%, or more than $3.50 per share.
Analysts are prepared for the issue to linger for some time. “This definitely can not be good news for CBS,” says Tuna Amobi, a media analyst with Cfra Research in New York. “This is going to create some kind of cloud,...
That’s because many analysts expect Moonves to be distracted by an investigation into accusations of sexual misconduct by six women detailed in a report in The New Yorker. “All allegations of personal misconduct are to be taken seriously,” CBS’ independent board members said in a statement Friday. The board of directors also voiced “full support” for the CEO and his current management team. CBS shares on Friday fell more than 6%, or more than $3.50 per share.
Analysts are prepared for the issue to linger for some time. “This definitely can not be good news for CBS,” says Tuna Amobi, a media analyst with Cfra Research in New York. “This is going to create some kind of cloud,...
- 7/27/2018
- by Brian Steinberg
- Variety Film + TV
Facebook wields more power and influence than many of the world’s governments. And yet every decision about running the company rests in the hands of one individual: chairman and CEO Mark Zuckerberg.
And Facebook isn’t alone. Other tech companies, including Alphabet (Google’s parent) and Snap, have similar multiclass-stock structures that give their founders
full control over their businesses. Meanwhile, at Netflix, the company’s bylaws require supermajority votes by owners of all outstanding shares to make any changes in corporate governance. That ensures that CEO Reed Hastings and his allies can handpick the board and ignore shareholder proposals they don’t like.
There’s not much fuss over all of this when the sun is shining. Facebook and Google continue to make money hand over fist. Netflix continues to pack on millions of streaming subscribers across the globe. When a storm hits, though, investors are quick to...
And Facebook isn’t alone. Other tech companies, including Alphabet (Google’s parent) and Snap, have similar multiclass-stock structures that give their founders
full control over their businesses. Meanwhile, at Netflix, the company’s bylaws require supermajority votes by owners of all outstanding shares to make any changes in corporate governance. That ensures that CEO Reed Hastings and his allies can handpick the board and ignore shareholder proposals they don’t like.
There’s not much fuss over all of this when the sun is shining. Facebook and Google continue to make money hand over fist. Netflix continues to pack on millions of streaming subscribers across the globe. When a storm hits, though, investors are quick to...
- 7/11/2018
- by Todd Spangler
- Variety Film + TV
A Florida police pension fund is suing Sirius Xm Radio Inc’s board of directors for allowing John Malone’s Liberty Media Corp take over the satcaster without a fight and without paying a premium. Reuters reports the City of Miami Police Relief and Pension Fund filed suit in Delaware Chancery Court following Liberty informing the FCC on Friday that Liberty planned to take full control of Sirius Xm by increasing its stake to more than 50%. Provisions under which Liberty invested in Sirius Xm in 2009 prohibit the company from fighting off a Liberty takeover, and the police pension fund says this constituts a breach of the board’s fiduciary duties. As part of its investment, Liberty loaned Sirius Xm $530 million to help the satcaster avoid bankruptcy. Terms of the loan stipulated that Sirius’ board agreed not to adopt a poison pill or any defense measures against a Liberty takeover after a three-year standstill,...
- 8/22/2012
- by The Deadline Team
- Deadline Film + TV
As Apple announces blowout earnings, its secretive CEO is once again demanding privacy to deal with his illness. Do shareholders deserve full disclosure? Casey Schwartz asks business experts. Plus, Dan Lyons and Brian Ries on Apple's record earnings.
Once again, Steve Jobs has us reading tea leaves, trying to squeeze out every last implication from the terse memo he sent out over the weekend to Apple employees, announcing that he is taking another leave of absence from the company. Jobs offered no explanation, leaving outside observers-in other words, almost everyone-to puzzle over the possibilities.
Related story on The Daily Beast: Apple Stock Gyrates
So the innuendo brigade took off, extrapolating from what is known-his diagnosis of a rare form of pancreatic cancer in 2004, his liver transplant in 2009, his dramatic weight loss in recent months-to what isn't. Is his cancer back? ABC News wondered. Has it spread? Could it be the...
Once again, Steve Jobs has us reading tea leaves, trying to squeeze out every last implication from the terse memo he sent out over the weekend to Apple employees, announcing that he is taking another leave of absence from the company. Jobs offered no explanation, leaving outside observers-in other words, almost everyone-to puzzle over the possibilities.
Related story on The Daily Beast: Apple Stock Gyrates
So the innuendo brigade took off, extrapolating from what is known-his diagnosis of a rare form of pancreatic cancer in 2004, his liver transplant in 2009, his dramatic weight loss in recent months-to what isn't. Is his cancer back? ABC News wondered. Has it spread? Could it be the...
- 1/19/2011
- by Casey Schwartz
- The Daily Beast
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