Fox News Channel Unveils Programming Leadership Changes

FOX News Channel (FNC) has named a new programming leadership team, announced Suzanne Scott, President of Programming for the network. The newly promoted executives will focus on talent, production and show development, reporting directly to Scott.

In making the announcement, Scott said, “We’re excited to announce a new programming leadership team that will provide a more efficient and cohesive partnership across all aspects of programming and production. These executives are responsible for many of the network’s innovations and achievements over the years, and under their guidance, we’re ensuring FNC’s continued success as the leader in cable news.”

The new team will be comprised of six executives, who are being promoted to oversee all aspects of programming, production, and operations, effective immediately:

• Meade Cooper who will now serve as Senior Vice President, Programming and oversee Monday through Sunday primetime and opinion shows. Previously, Cooper held the title of Vice President of Primetime Live/Programming, to which she was promoted following her role as Executive Producer of On the Record with Greta Van Susteren.
• John Finley becomes the Senior Vice President of Development and Production. During his tenure, Finley has helped develop some of the network’s core primetime and special programming, including Hannity, The Five, The Man Who Killed Usama Bin Laden and The Next Revolution with Steve Hilton. He was also instrumental in the development and planning of all the network’s presidential debates during the 2016 election cycle. He will replace Jeff Hark, who recently retired after 21 years at the network overseeing the production unit.
• Ron Mitchell, former senior producer of The O’Reilly Factor, has been named Vice President of Story Development, Primetime Programming. In this role, he will manage story advancement across the network’s top rated primetime shows. He joined the network in 1997 as a producer on Hannity & Colmes, and was with The O’Reilly Factor for the past 14 years.
• Lauren Petterson will take on the role of Senior Vice President, Morning Programming and Talent Development. Formerly the Vice President of Morning Programming, Petterson managed FOX & Friends FIRST and FOX & Friends programs. Her new title brings the added responsibility of cultivating on-air contributors and talent for the network.
• Amy Sohnen has been promoted to Vice President of Talent Development in charge of managing and developing on-air talent and contributors. Prior to being named to this role, Sohnen was the Executive Producer of The O’Reilly Factor, which was the number one program in cable news for 16 consecutive years under her watch.
• Jill Van Why will serve as Vice President of Programming Operations, overseeing all aspects of production and programming operations. Previously, she was Senior Director of Programming and Production at FNC.