Howard T. Owens Named President, National Geographic Channels US

Courteney Monroe Appointed Chief Marketing Officer for the U.S. Channels;

Michael Cascio Elevated to Executive Vice President, Programming for National Geographic Channel US;

WASHINGTON, Nov. 7, 2011  /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Howard T. Owens has been named President of the National Geographic Channels US, succeeding Steve Schiffman, it was announced today by David Lyle, Chief Executive Officer, National Geographic Channels US and Global Programming.  

Lyle also named Courteney Monroe to the newly created position of Chief Marketing Officer for the U.S. Channels.  Michael Cascio has been elevated to Executive Vice President, Programming for National Geographic Channel US.  Owens and Monroe will report to Lyle; Cascio to Owens.

"I am delighted to have superb executives like Howard, Courteney and Michael in these critical roles for our networks as we build on the success of our highest-rated summer in NGC's history," Lyle said in making the announcement.  "I have known Howard for more than a decade, and I am confident he is the right person at the right time to take our network into our next era.  His leadership, creativity, passion and vision are unmatched in this business, and is just what we need to drive our networks forward."  

Since launching in January 2001, the National Geographic Channel has been an unqualified success across all metrics.  The network has been widely recognized as an industry leader in terms of quality, and for the last four years, NGC has earned the most Emmy® nominations for excellence of any ad-supported cable network in the News & Documentary competition.  NatGeo WILD launched in spring 2010, and recently saw its most viewed total day in the network's young history.

Owens will work closely with CEO Lyle on the overall supervision of the domestic channels — which include the National Geographic Channel, Nat Geo WILD and Nat Geo Mundo — owned jointly by the Fox Networks Group and the National Geographic Society.  Owens will oversee the programming, development, communications, research and business affairs units at the U.S. networks as well as working closely on the strategic business efforts of the networks' ad sales and affiliate teams.  Schiffman plans to stay at the network through a transition period.

Owens was most recently with Reveille LLC, where he was a founding partner and a lead managing director, with responsibility for reality and scripted television, digital and branding, production, legal and finance.  During his tenure at Reville, Owens guided groundbreaking series such as 30 Days, The Biggest Loser, The Restaurant and Nashville Star, as well as spearheaded Reville's early digital success, producing more than 30 digital series with leading brands.  Prior to Reveille, he was an agent with the William Morris Agency, where he worked in the corporate consulting and television packaging divisions representing leading television producers, intellectual property and top brands such as Anheuser Busch, Maxim, InStyle, eBay and Miramax Films.  

Joining the U.S. networks in January, Monroe will oversee the channel's marketing efforts, including brand development, consumer campaigns, trade marketing, digital marketing, media strategy, ad sales and partnership marketing, as well as creative for NGC and Nat Geo WILD.    

"Courteney is an award-winning, world-class talent, with a wealth of experience and demonstrated successes that will help us build on the considerable momentum the National Geographic Channels enjoy," added Lyle.  

Monroe comes to NGC US from HBO, where she was EVP, Consumer Marketing and Digital Platforms, responsible for HBO's brand and marketing across all platforms.  In that capacity she oversaw consumer advertising; all digital platforms including HBO.com, HBO GO and HBO On Demand; all social media efforts; Home Entertainment marketing; and the Licensing/Consumer Products division.  During her tenure at HBO, Monroe oversaw award-winning marketing campaigns for many of HBO's highest-profile properties, such as The Sopranos, Sex and the City, Entourage, True Blood, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Boardwalk Empire, Game of Thrones, The Alzheimer's Project and the HBO miniseries The Pacific, among many others.

Prior to joining HBO, Monroe held marketing positions at American Express and Salomon Brothers and also worked in account management at BBDO New York.  

Cascio assumes the position of Executive Vice President, Programming for the National Geographic Channel US, overseeing all aspects of the network's programming strategy and content, including development, production and scheduling.  Geoff Daniels remains Senior Vice President for Nat Geo WILD.

"Michael has been serving in this role for the past few months, and this announcement recognizes the leadership and talent he is already bringing to our network," said Lyle.

Cascio joined NGC as SVP, Production, in 2004, and has a noteworthy background in the creation of franchise TV programming, as well as three Emmys and an Oscar nomination.  At NGC, he was Executive Producer of Inside 9/11, the network's highest-rated program, and supervised a wide range of series and specials, including the Peabody Award-winning Iran and the West and Galapagos, as well as Dog Whisperer, In the Womb, Witness Katrina and Human Footprint.  Under his leadership, NGC won the prestigious Governor's Award at the Emmys in 2008.

Before NGC, Cascio headed Animal Planet following a stint at NBC News, where he started a major prime-time programming initiative at MSNBC, overseeing long-form programs.  He is perhaps most recognized for his work at A&E, where he launched Biography as a daily series and was part of the team that launched the History Channel.  Cascio was cited in Entertainment Weekly's "It List" as one of the most creative people in the entertainment industry and was named "Producer of the Year" by the Producer's Guild in 1997.  

SOURCE National Geographic Channel