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Two Senior CW Execs Depart In Wake Of Nexstar Takeover

Dade Hayes
·2 min read

Two senior executives at the CW — Rick Haskins, president of streaming and chief branding officer, and finance chief Mitch Nedick — are departing the network as Nexstar assumes control.

The exits were confirmed Monday by sources at the network, whose longtime CEO, Mark Pedowitz, announced this morning he is stepping down amid the ownership transition after 11 years in the top job. Dennis Miller, a media veteran who worked in venture capital and the TV business before joining the Nexstar board, has been installed as president of the network. Nexstar has taken a 75% stake, with Warner Bros Discovery and Paramount Global retaining 12.5% apiece.

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The Hollywood Reporter had the first report of Haskins and Nedick leaving the company.

The owners of the CW had no immediate comment on personnel moves beyond a formal salute to Pedowitz. While Haskins and Nedick are unlikely to be the last departures, there have been no clear indications of other changes as of the moment. The timing of everything is an ironic footnote for Haskins, given his brand expertise and the fact that the CW’s fall lineup is in the process of premiering this week and next. No new shows were added to the slate for 2022-23, given the ownership transition, and the current roster is likely to be the high-water mark for scripted originals given Nexstar’s stated intention to diversify the slate with unscripted, news and sports in the interest of steering the network to profitability.

Haskins was one of the first execs to join the CW as it opened its doors in 2006, and he has often remarked on the arrival of the venture at roughly the same time as YouTube, Facebook, Twitter and other digital platforms, a fortuitous turn that helped many shows gain traction. Haskins worked at Lifetime and Disney and ran his own marketing firm before joining the CW.

Nedick also came aboard the CW at its inception in 2006. He had previously been a finance exec at the WB, Tribune Broadcasting and KTLA-TV.

Nellie Andreeva contributed to this report.

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