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Al Jazeera America, the coming international news channel financed by the emir of Qatar, on Monday named an ABC News senior vice president, Kate O’Brian, to be its president.
Al Jazeera America, the coming international news channel financed by the emir of Qatar, on Monday named an ABC News senior vice president, Kate O’Brian, to be its president.
Ms. O’Brian, a 30-year veteran of ABC, has overseen all news gathering for the network news division since 2007. A spokesman for Al Jazeera said Ms. O’Brian would have full responsibility for the new channel’s strategy and operations.
Ms. O’Brian, a 30-year veteran of ABC, has overseen all news gathering for the network news division since 2007. A spokesman for Al Jazeera said Ms. O’Brian would have full responsibility for the new channel’s strategy and editorial operations.
Ms. O’Brian will report to Ehab Al Shihabi, Al Jazeera’s executive director for international operations, who has been overseeing the creation of the American channel in the absence of a president or senior leadership team. On Monday, he was named the interim chief executive, meaning that he will be responsible for everything but the editorial decisions, including all business functions. A news release said his appointment was effective “till further notice.”
Ms. O’Brian will report to Ehab Al Shihabi, Al Jazeera’s executive director for international operations, who has been overseeing the creation of the American channel in the absence of a president or senior leadership team. On Monday, he was named the interim chief executive, making him responsible for everything but the editorial decisions.
The continued involvement of Mr. Al Shihabi, who is based in Doha, Qatar, was expected, but the appointment of Ms. O'Brian is a surprise; her name was not mentioned in any of the speculation about who Al Jazeera might pick to run the American channel.
The continued involvement of Mr. Al Shihabi was expected, but the appointment of Ms. O’Brian is a surprise; her name was not mentioned in any of the speculation about who Al Jazeera might pick to run the American channel.
“Kate’s arrival speaks volumes about what we intend to do and how we intend to do it,” said Mostefa Souag, the acting director general of Al Jazeera, in a statement. “She is a highly experienced and award-winning journalist who fully understands what Americans want to see and hear when they watch the news.”
“Kate’s arrival speaks volumes about what we intend to do and how we intend to do it,” said Mostefa Souag, the acting director general of Al Jazeera, in a statement. “She is a highly experienced and award-winning journalist who fully understands what Americans want to see and hear when they watch the news.”
The announcement of Ms. O’Brian’s appointment follows a personnel search that began shortly after Al Jazeera acquired Current TV — the low-rated channel co-founded by the former Vice President Al Gore — at an estimated cost of $500 million. That acquisition, announced in January, provided Al Jazeera with something it had been seeking for years: access to tens of millions of American viewers.
The announcement of Ms. O’Brian’s appointment follows a personnel search that began shortly after Al Jazeera acquired Current TV — the low-rated channel co-founded by former Vice President Al Gore. That acquisition, announced in January, provided Al Jazeera with something it had been seeking for years: access to tens of millions of American viewers.
Now Al Jazeera has to persuade them to tune in.
Ms. O’Brian will inherit a mostly formed news organization, with hundreds of new employees in New York, Washington and elsewhere. Those employees have been producing practice newscasts and preparing stories that will be shown after the channel has its debut on Aug. 20.
Ms. O’Brian, whose start date has not been determined, will inherit a mostly-formed news organization, with hundreds of new employees in New York, Washington and elsewhere. Those employees have been producing practice newscasts and preparing news stories and documentaries that will be shown after the channel has its debut on Aug. 20.
The channel also has a partly formed programming schedule, centered on “America Tonight,” a nightly broadcast that Al Jazeera says will distinguish it from other news channels.
The channel also has a partly-formed programming schedule, centered around “America Tonight,” a nightly broadcast that Al Jazeera says will distinguish it from other news channels.
Ms. O’Brian said in a statement, “As I bring everything I learned to this new role, I’m looking forward to showing the Al Jazeera viewers that there is a strong demand for the type of in-depth reporting for which Al Jazeera is so well known.”
No “America Tonight” anchors have been named, but the former CNN anchor Soledad O’Brien will be an occasional correspondent. She will also produce documentaries for the channel. Al Jazeera's other on-camera employees include Ali Velshi, formerly of CNN; Richelle Carey, formerly of CNN and HLN; and David Shuster, formerly of MSNBC and Current TV.
The channel also appointed three other TV news veterans to top posts on Monday. David Doss, a CNN veteran known for his work on Anderson Cooper’s prime-time program, was named senior vice president for news programming; Marcy McGinnis was named senior vice president of news gathering, a role similar to the one she held at CBS News for years; and Shannon High-Bassalik, formerly of CNN and MSNBC, was named senior vice president for documentaries and programs.
The channel also appointed three other television news veterans to top posts on Monday. David Doss, a CNN veteran known for his work on Anderson Cooper's prime-time program, was named senior vice president for news programming; Marcy McGinnis was named senior vice president of news gathering, a role similar to the one she held at CBS News for years; and Shannon High-Bassalik, formerly of CNN and MSNBC, was named senior vice president for documentaries and programs.
The three executives will be based in New York alongside Ms. O’Brian. Mr. Al Shihabi will also spend most of his time in New York, according to a spokesman.
When Al Jazeera acquired Current, it estimated that about 60 percent of its programming would emanate from the United States, with the remainder from Al Jazeera English, the international channel based in Doha. But since then the broadcaster has decided to focus more on the United States, and its promotional material now describes it as “a U.S. news channel that will provide both domestic and international news for American audiences.”
Perhaps foreshadowing what the American channel will look like, anchors and producers at Al Jazeera English repeatedly pointed out on Monday that they were electing to cover royal baby news much less than their competitors.
“As I bring everything I learned to this new role, I’m looking forward to showing the Al Jazeera viewers that there is a strong demand for the type of in-depth reporting for which Al Jazeera is so well known," Ms. O’Brian said in a statement.
Ben Sherwood, the president of ABC News, praised Ms. O’Brian in an internal memorandum on Monday afternoon, calling her both a mentor and a role model for the news division. “While we will miss Kate’s insights, judgment and humor, we know that she is stepping into an important role and we wish her very best with this new challenge,” he wrote.
