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Away with the Aireys

Posted in Media, Branwell Johnson, Latest reporters' blogs April 30th, 2008 by Branwell Johnson

Dawn Airey has jumped ship from ITV in a return to Five after a mere eight months and the conspiracy theorists are even suggesting this was part of her master plan all along. The boat has been rocked indeed, but does it mean an opportunity for ad-lands’s own Rupert Howell?

Consumer operator that she is, it’s still unlikely that Airey had fixed up with the paymasters at RTL, Five’s owner, to deliberately destabilise and upset ITV executive chairman Michael Grade’s plans. But the shock move certainly leaves problems for Grade, not least that of succession grooming and working with a fledgling management team now long time director of television Simon Shaps is leaving.

Airey was thought be in line for the chief executive job Grade’s position – which coincidentally had its contract extended by a year recently – is only meant to be finite. Other contenders are chief operating officer John Cresswell and Howell, formerly the big cheese of HHCL and McCann Erickson and now managing director of brand and commercial.

Howell’s job is to look after the brands and in an increasingly fragmenting viewing world where schedules begin to mean less and less, it’s the strength of brands – either corporate or individual programmes – that are becoming increasingly important. Hence Howell should be a contender. And it’s not the first time someone with a brand and marketing background has risen through the ranks of a broadcaster – ask Andy Duncan, now chief executive at Channel 4. Anyone fancy going down the bookies yet?

To read the related news story click here.