Kathleen Finch, the chairman and chief executive officer of U.S. Networks at Warner Bros. Discovery, is retiring at the end of the year. Finch, who has worked in the company for the last 25 years, will be succeeded by Channing Dungey, the current chairman and chief executive officer of Warner Bros. Television Group. Finch first joined Scripps Networks in 1999 where she served as the chief programming, content and brand officer for its linear and digital media brands. Upon Discovery, Inc. acquiring Scripps Networks in 2018, she was the chief lifestyle brands officer for the company and assumed her current role following the merger of Discovery, Inc. and WarnerMedia four years later.
In the second quarter of 2024, U.S. Networks amassed more than 147 million total viewers on average per month, with five of the networks ranking among the top 10 in cable television. Some of the networks under her purview include HGTV, Discovery, Food Network, TNT and TBS, the latter of which broadcast games across the TNT Sports portfolio. TNT served as the broadcast home of NBA and Stanley Cup Playoff games last quarter, while TBS presented most of its first-half slate of Tuesday night MLB games.
“There is no one better at developing captivating content, compelling talent, and meaningful lifestyle brands than Kathleen, who has been my partner as we built our premier entertainment networks at Discovery and created Warner Bros. Discovery as an unscripted powerhouse,” David Zaslav, president and chief executive officer of Warner Bros. Discovery, said in a statement. “While I understand her long-standing decision to retire, I will certainly miss her, as will the entire company, which has benefitted from her unmatched collaboration and unique understanding of what our audiences crave.”
Finch was on hand for the Warner Bros. Discovery Upfront event this past May where she revealed new programming premiering across the company’s U.S. Networks and Max. In the second fiscal quarter, the company reported that 35% of adults watched networks under her oversight in prime time television hours. Warner Bros. Discovery divulged a decline in total revenue in Q2, dropping 6% year-over-year to $9.71 billion with an adjusted EBITDA of $1.8 billion. Furthermore, the media conglomerate has $37.8 billion in debt with a market capitalization of approximately $18 billion.
“The greatest joy, and the part I will miss the most, is the incredible people with whom I get to work every day. Starting with David and throughout the organization and of course all the amazing on-air talent, this is one of the smartest and most creative groups imaginable,” Finch said in a statement. “I am so proud of what the US Networks group has accomplished together, and I know under Channing’s leadership there are many successes to come.”
Finch retires from the company after it recently took a $9.1 billion write down of its network segments within its second quarter earnings. This impairment charge was enacted due to growing disparity between the market capitalization of Warner Bros. Discovery and the book value of the networks segment, the latter of which has decreased because of a diminished U.S. linear advertising market and uncertainty pertaining to affiliate and sports rights renewals. Warner Bros. Discovery is not slated to broadcast National Basketball Association games after next season upon the league announcing new 11-year media rights deals with The Walt Disney Company (ESPN/ABC), NBCUniversal (NBC/Peacock) and Amazon (Prime Video) reportedly worth a collective $77 billion.
The company has sued the league for breach of contract after it rejected the exercise of its matching rights provision to attempt and garner media rights that were awarded to Amazon. Answering papers must be filed by the NBA by Aug. 23 pertaining to the case, in which Warner Bros. Discovery is seeking preliminary and permanent injunctive relief. On top of that, Warner Bros. Discovery is involved in litigation as a defendant pertaining to the FuboTV antitrust lawsuit of Venu Sports. Plaintiffs in the case argue that the forthcoming joint streaming venture is representative of anti-competitive practice and are seeking a preliminary injunction to prevent its launch.
