Cable TV
AT&T president Aaron Slator sacked for sending racially offensive messages
NEW DELHI: American AT&T, which is facing a $100 million discrimination lawsuit, has fired its president Aaron Slator, who allegedly sent racially offensive images from his phone.
AT&T said in a statement that “there is no place for demeaning behaviour within AT&T and we regret the action was not taken earlier.”
An assistant who was asked to transfer data to a new smartphone found the image on Slator’s phone, according to the lawsuit filed on Monday by Knoyme King, a 50-year-old black woman who worked for Slator.
One of the images, apparently of an African child dancing with the caption “It’s Friday…” followed by a term offensive to African Americans, had been sent in a text describing it as an “oldie but a goodie,” the lawsuit said.
The suit, filed in Los Angeles Superior Court, names as defendants Slator, AT&T, AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson, other executives and board member Joyce Roche.
Slator was president of content and advertising sales, managing its multibillion-dollar budget for content acquisition that is consumed by subscribers of Dallas-based AT&T’s U-verse TV service.
King’s lawyer Skip Miller told The Associated Press that the lawsuit will continue. He said the company failed to take action earlier, despite the issue being brought to the attention of its board of directors and human resources department. “This is an AT&T problem, it’s not just an Aaron Slator problem,” he said.
The lawsuit alleges that King was passed over for promotions and given inferior raises because of her race, that she was mistreated and that attempts were made to have her leave the company. King has worked 30 years for AT&T and is still employed there, Miller said.
Cable TV
Hathway Cable appoints Gurjeev Singh Kapoor as CEO
Leadership change comes as cable TV faces shrinking subscriber base and modest earnings pressure
MUMBAI: Hathway Cable and Datacom has tapped industry veteran Gurjeev Singh Kapoor as chief executive officer, marking a leadership pivot at a time when India’s cable television business is under mounting strain.
Kapoor will take over from Tavinderjit Singh Panesar, who is set to retire in August after a long innings with the company. Panesar, chief executive since 2023, has held multiple leadership roles at Hathway, including his latest stint beginning in 2022.
Kapoor brings more than three decades of experience in media and entertainment. He most recently led distribution at The Walt Disney Company’s Star India business, now part of JioStar. His career spans television distribution and affiliate partnerships, with stints at Sony Pictures Networks India, Discovery Communications and Zee Entertainment.
Panesar, with over three decades in the industry, has worked across strategic planning, distribution and business development in media, broadcasting and manufacturing. His past associations include ESPN Star Sports, Star India, Apollo Tyres and JK Industries.
The transition lands as the cable sector grapples with structural disruption. Traditional operators are losing ground to streaming platforms, while telecom and broadband players tighten the squeeze with bundled offerings.
An EY report estimates India’s pay-TV base could shrink by a further 30 to 40 million households by 2030, taking the total down to 71 to 81 million. The slide follows a loss of nearly 40 million homes between 2018 and 2024, a contraction that has already wiped out more than 37,000 jobs in the local cable operator ecosystem.
Hathway’s numbers reflect the strain. The company reported a consolidated net profit of Rs 93 crore for FY25, down from Rs 99 crore a year earlier. Revenue inched up to Rs 2,040 crore from Rs 1,981 crore. As of December 2025, it had about 4.7 million cable TV subscribers and roughly 1.02 million broadband users.
Kapoor steps in with a familiar brief but a shrinking playbook. In a market where viewers are cutting cords faster than companies can reinvent them, the new chief executive inherits a business fighting to stay plugged in.
