News Broadcasting
Viacom realigns music and ent ad sales for a new convergent structure
MUMBAI: Viacom recently announced a realignment of its Viacom Media Networks Music and Entertainment ad sales group to merge its television, digital and mobile teams into a single convergent sales organisation.
The convergent team will handle all sales and integrated marketing for linear and digital assets across CMT, Comedy Central, MTV, Logo, Spike TV, TV Land and VH1.
“The lines among television, online and mobile aren’t just blurring – they’ve been erased in terms of how our audiences consume and experience content,” said Music and Entertainment head of sales Jeff Lucas. “For a client-centric organisation like ours, a convergent structure will keep us on the leading edge of marketing innovation and ensure that we continue to create value for advertisers and audiences alike.”
Under the new structure, the music and entertainment team’s former senior VPs of digital ad sales will take on new leadership roles. Melanie Dimemmo will serve as senior VP of digital video sales, focusing on video deals across the music and entertainment portfolio. She will report dually to Neil Holt and Sean Moran, executive VPs of Ad Sales.
Sarah Iooss will serve as senior VP of partnerships and client strategy, a role in which she’ll be responsible for identifying partnerships with content and platform technology companies. Sarah will report to Elizabeth Herbst-Brady, executive VP of ad sales strategy.
Sharon Silverstein will serve as senior VP of Multiplatform Studio ad sales leading the convergent team focused on the company’s studio clients out of Los Angeles. Silverstein will continue to report to Steve Agase, senior VP of ad sales, West Coast.
Additionally, under the new convergent structure, all sales team senior vice presidents and vice presidents will assume responsibility for linear and digital business. Both linear and digital account executives will report into the same convergent leadership.
News Broadcasting
Times Network to air JVC Exit Poll across 5 regions on April 29
Four-hour broadcast spans states and Puducherry with data-led analysis
MUMBAI: Times Network is set to roll out what it calls one of its most expansive election programming efforts yet, culminating in the JVC Exit Poll on 29 April, with a multi-hour broadcast spanning key poll-bound regions.
The exit poll will air across Times Now and Times Now Navbharat, beginning at 5pm and 4pm respectively. Co-powered by Vedanta and Jindal Stainless, the programming aims to combine on-ground reportage with data-driven projections across West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Assam and Puducherry.
The network has deployed over 50 journalists across these regions, gathering voter sentiment and local insights in the run-up to polling. The effort builds on its ongoing election formats such as Election Yatra and Election Premier League, which have tracked campaign narratives and community-level issues.
In parallel, Times Now Navbharat has focused on constituency-level reporting in West Bengal through its Jan Gan ka Mann series, capturing voter opinions across diverse segments.
The coverage has also featured interviews with prominent political leaders. Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan and Congress leaders Ramesh Chennithala and V D Satheesan have appeared on the network’s election specials. From Tamil Nadu, voices including deputy chief minister Udhayanidhi Stalin, DMK MP Dayanidhi Maran, BJP leader K Annamalai and NTK’s Seeman have also featured in discussions.
On the day of the exit poll, the network’s primetime anchors, including Navika Kumar, Zakka Jacob and Sumit Awasthi, will lead the coverage. They will be joined by a panel of political analysts, psephologists and senior journalists offering real-time insights and interpretation of trends.
The programming will integrate grassroots reportage with analytics from the JVC Exit Poll, aiming to give viewers an early sense of electoral outcomes ahead of the official results on 4 May.
With its combined English and Hindi broadcast reach, Times Network is positioning this effort as a comprehensive look at voter sentiment, blending field reporting, data and debate to decode what could lie ahead when the final mandate is revealed.
