Report: Bob Bakish May Be New Interim Chief At Viacom

Bob Bakish

Viacom Inc. is close to naming longtime executive Bob Bakish interim chief executive officer as the company explores a possible merger with CBS Corp., according to Bloomberg.

Bakish will have the opportunity to become permanent CEO, said one of the people, who asked not to be named discussing private deliberations. The decision to name him isn’t final, and someone else could be chosen, reports Bloomberg. Viacom’s board is scheduled to meet Monday but could sooner.

Viacom, the owner of cable channels including MTV and Nickelodeon, will look to Bakish to provide stability and leadership as the board weighs a potential recombination with CBS, a process that could take weeks or months. A graduate of Columbia Business School, he has worked at Viacom since 1997 and has run the company’s international networks since 2011.

The appointment would make him Viacom’s third CEO in as many months. Bakish would succeed Tom Dooley, Viacom’s interim chief since August. Dooley took over after billionaire Sumner Redstone and his daughter Shari, who control both companies, ousted longtime CEO Philippe Dauman following a power struggle and court fight.

Dauman had been a close ally of Sumner Redstone, but the company faltered under his leadership and he resisted Shari Redstone’s efforts to replace him by going to court. He stepped down in August. Dooley, previously Viacom’s chief operating officer, has been interim CEO since then. He plans to leave by mid-November.

The Redstone family holds a roughly 80 percent voting stake in both Viacom and CBS. The two media companies were split a decade ago and the Redstones are now pressing them to recombine. The boards of CBS and Viacom are exploring the possibility.

The controlling shareholders want CBS CEO Leslie Moonves to run the combined business, people with knowledge of the matter have said. Yet Viacom needs a leader in the interim.