Stephen K. Friedman is President of MTV, the world’s premier youth entertainment brand and the #1 rated, full-day, ad-supported cable network for teens and young adults. In this position, he oversees MTV and all its screens, including MTV2, mtvU, MTV.com, MTV Hits and MTV Jams.
Mr. Friedman has led the charge to transform MTV into the cultural home of the millennial generation, spearheading a reinvention of the brand and a new programming strategy. Under his leadership, MTV has more top-rated cable series for young viewers than any other network and a diverse slate of shows, including “Teen Mom,” “Awkward,” “Teen Wolf,” “Jersey Shore,” and “World of Jenks.” MTV ended 2010 with its biggest ratings gains in a decade and 19 of the top 20 cable telecasts excluding sports. In 2011, MTV continues its strong momentum with the #1 series on television for its demographic and its seventh consecutive quarter of growth. In addition, the “2011 MTV Video Music Awards” was the network’s most watched telecast in its 30-year history. Mr. Friedman has continued the network’s strong commitment to pro-social initiatives with the widely acclaimed “A Thin Line” campaign to combat digital abuse among young people.
Prior to being named to his current role in 2008, Mr. Friedman was the General Manager of mtvU, MTV’s channel dedicated to college students, which he launched in 2004. Under Mr. Friedman’s leadership, the network’s distribution grew more than 70% and advertisers quintupled. Mr. Friedman also launched mtvU’s Sudan campaign to fight the genocide in Darfur, which has been honored with two Emmy Awards, and the Peabody Award-winning Half of Us campaign, to raise awareness of mental health issues on college campuses.
Mr. Friedman joined MTV in 1998 to found the network’s department of Strategic Partnerships and Public Affairs. During his tenure, he created the Emmy Award-winning Fight For Your Rights campaigns and managed the Choose or Lose campaign.
Before joining MTV, Mr. Friedman served as a Director for the PEN American Center (the international writers’ human rights organization). Mr. Friedman was named by Mediaweek as one of its “Mediaweek 50” for 2010. He currently serves on the Advisory Board of Hollywood, Health and Society (partnering entertainment, education and the CDC). He holds a B.A. with Honors from Wesleyan University.
Kristin Frank is General Manager of Digital Media at MTV and VH1 where she creates and implements the vision and strategy for how these two culture defining brands maintain leadership in today’s hyperconnected world. She is a seasoned media executive and innovator with expertise in cross platform content creation, product development, social media, and distribution.
Since stepping into this role in April 2009, she has played a vital part in MTV’s collection of sites earning the top spot as the most visited online music destination with more than 60 million unique visitors each month. Under Kristin’s leadership, MTV and VH1 have experienced tremendous social media growth. MTV is now the 4th largest brand on Facebook with more than 87 million fans across its pages and recently surpassed 3 million followers on Twitter. MTV ranks as the #1 brand on new platforms such as Foursquare and Instagram, and the #1 TV brand on Tumblr.
She plays a vital role in the multiplatform success of MTV and VH1’s events, most recently with the 2011 Video Music Awards; the most successful VMA ever with 2 million unique visitors and more than 10 million page views. Under her leadership, MTV’s mobile site saw its best day in history with more than 2.7 million mobile views, a spike of more than 50% from the year prior. In addition, the event set the record for the most mentions on Twitter per second and now ranks as the most Tweeted about award show of all time.
Recently, Kristin spearheaded the launch of two second screen co-viewing experiences, MTV’s WatchWith and VH1’s CoStar, that provides fans with an additive and complimentary companion to the primary TV broadcast. The products, available on all iOS devices, feature real time curated commentary from cast members, superfans, as well as one’s own social graph. In addition, exclusive content relevant to the show narrative is provided in tandem with the storyline.
Kristin was most recently Senior Vice President, Multiplatform Distribution and COO for Logo She has also held multiple positions in MTV Networks Content Distribution and Marketing Group, including Regional Vice President, overseeing distribution strategy for MTV, VH1, CMT, VH1 Classic, MTV 2 and Logo. She was recently featured as one of Digital Media Wire’s 25 Digital Executives to watch in 2010. Kristin is a graduate of Northwestern University’s J.L. Kellogg Graduate School of Management and the University of Iowa and currently lives in NY with her family.
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George is Executive Vice President, Business Affairs, Co-General Counsel, MTV Networks and General Counsel, Music Group & Entertainment Group. In January of 2005, he was promoted to Executive Vice President and General Counsel for MTV, MTV2, MTVu, MTV Films, VH1, CMT and LOGO. In December of 2002 he was promoted to Senior Vice President and General Counsel of MTV, MTV2, MTVu and MTV Films. In 1998, began working for MTV Networks in the Business and Legal Affairs Department for Nickelodeon.
George Cheeks began his career as an entertainment associate at Loeb & Loeb. In addition, George served as Vice-President, Business Affairs for Castle Rock Entertainment and worked as an entertainment attorney at the boutique entertainment firm of Hansen, Jacobson, et al.
George graduated from Yale University (Phi Beta Kappa) and received his J.D. from Harvard Law School (Cum Laude
Nick Shore is Senior Vice President, Strategic Insights and Research for MTV.
An innovator in audience research and brand development, Mr. Shore will be responsible for leading all aspects of MTV’s research efforts across MTV, MTV2, mtv.com, mtvU and MTV Tr3s. He will also oversee MTV’s audience insight efforts to uncover emerging macro and micro trends of young adults and keep intimately tapped-in to youth culture. As part of the senior management team, Mr. Shore will help inform and guide strategy for all areas of the network and MTV brand.
Known for his pioneering work with an array of leading global brands including J&J, PepsiCo, AMC, Motorola, McDonald’s, Nickelodeon, and FX, Mr. Shore’s joins MTV with mSre than 20 years experience helping organizations uncover their brand essence. Mr. Shore co-founded and built his own brand agency and was an early pioneer of the use of innovative approaches to target audience research such as ethnography studies and “cool hunters”. He has researched topics as diverse as studying the “brand of Princess Diana” for Coca Cola, to interviewing dominatrixes to better understand the psychology of pain and therefore better position migraine medication. His work has been featured in The New York Times, BusinessWeek, Brandweek, Adweek, Mediaweek and Fast Company (where he was voted one of the elite ‘Fast Pack’ in 1999); and he has guest-lectured on brand strategy at Columbia Business School, Wharton and NYU.
Mr. Shore a graduate of the London School of Economics and is based in MTV’s New York office.
Dermot McCormack is Executive Vice President of Digital Media for the MTV Networks Music & Logo Group, providing strategic oversight in digital for MTVN brands including MTV: Music Television, MTV 2, MTV Tr3s, VH1, VH1 Soul, VH1 Classic, CMT and LOGO. In this role McCormack is responsible for setting strategy and vision and charting the course on how the Music and Logo brands evolve in today’s digital world.
Previously, McCormack was the SVP of Interactive Product Management at Cablevision. Before his tenure at Cablevision, he was Co-Founder and Chief Technology Officer of Flooz.com, the world’s first online gift currency. And prior to that was one of the early executives at iVillage.com
McCormack is a seasoned executive and entrepreneur and has been heavily involved in the strategic implementation of technology for both new and established companies over the past 2 decades, particularly specializing in the intersection of Marketing, Technology and Digital Media. In 2000, he was named to Irish America magazine’s Business 100, a list celebrating achievements by Irish Americans in business. In 2006, McCormack was named to the Top 40 under 40 Executives in cable list by Multichannel News.
McCormack is also a published author with titles such as Web 2.0 and Ten Technologies Every Executive Needs to Know. His last book, Outsourcing, was published in October 2005 by Aspatore/Thompson Financial.
Chris Linn is Executive Vice President of MTV Production. In this role, Mr. Linn supports the strategic management and execution of production and channel wide initiatives across departments including development, talent, production and programming. He will also head the development and production of original TV Movies. Mr. Linn and his team support the creative development and physical production of pilots and series originating from the east and west coasts, including production planning, production supervision, budgeting and negotiation of production talent deals.
Chris Linn began his career with MTV Networks in 1990 at Nickelodeon Studios Florida, where he worked as a Production Manager on over 250 episodes of television, including “All That,” “Clarissa Explains It All” and “Allegra’s Window.” In 1995, he moved with Nickelodeon to New York City where he supervised the launch and served as General Manager for the Nick Digital Animation Studio which produced the Emmy Award winning series “Little Bill” and “Blue’s Clues.” In addition to animation, Chris oversaw physical production on Nickelodeon’s live action series and served as Executive in Charge of Production for the theatrical release of “Hey Arnold!” The Movie. In 2003, Chris was named Vice President of Production for Spike TV, where he supported the launch of the new network and supervised physical production of their pilots, series and specials. In February of 2005, Chris joined MTV as Vice President, Executive in Charge of Production, Development & Animation. In 2006, he was promoted to Senior Vice President of Production, Series Development & Animation, supervising production on series such as “The Hills,” “How’s Your News,” “16 & Pregnant” and “Jersey Shore.” In 2009, Chris took on the additional responsibility of overseeing the development and production of TV Movies for MTV. Chris was an Executive Producer on “My Super Psycho Sweet 16” as well as the upcoming movie “Turn the Beat Around.”
Linn graduated from the University of Florida with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Theater Directing & Performance.
As Head of MTV Programming, David Janollari oversees scripted drama, comedy, animation and reality programming for the world’s premier youth entertainment brand, and the #1 rated, full-day, ad-supported cable network for teens and young adults.
Mr. Janollari joined MTV in 2010 as Executive Vice President of MTV Scripted Development. In this role, he was responsible for overseeing the network’s push into scripted programming, a key component of MTV’s transformation into the cultural home of the millennial generation.
Since joining MTV, Mr. Janollari has worked closely on development of the hit series “Teen Wolf,” which was recently picked up for a second season; the new critically acclaimed comedy “Awkward,” an irreverent look at conflict, chaos and humor seen through the eyes of a 15 year old girl; the Doug Liman-directed comedy series “I Just Want My Pants Back;” and the adaptation of the UK hit series, “The InBetweeners,” which was recently picked up to series. Mr. Janollari is based in MTV’s Santa Monica office.
Prior to joining MTV, Mr. Janollari served as President of Entertainment for The WB Network, during which he was responsible for developing hit shows such as “Beauty and the Geek” and “Supernatural,” among others.
Prior to joining The WB, Mr. Janollari was an Award-winning producer as co-founder of The Greenblatt Janollari Studio, an independent television production company, with producing partner Robert Greenblatt. He produced several successful series, including the multiple Emmy and Golden Globe Award -winning “Six Feet Under;” “The Hughley’s” starring comedian D.L. Hughley; “American Family” starring Edward James Olmos; and “Elvis” starring Jonathan Rhys Myers.
Mr. Janollari has also been credited with developing long-running hits as “Friends,” “The Drew Carey Show,” “Living Single,” “Suddenly Susan,” “The Jamie Foxx Show” and “The Wayans Bros.” while serving as comedy development chief at Warner Bros. Television.
Mr. Janollari graduated from New York University where he majored in film and television.
Sarah Tomassi Lindman is Executive Vice President, Program Strategy for MTV. Ms. Lindman is responsible for all aspects of the programming business, including oversight of the linear television schedule and all cross platform digital video distribution. Her role includes strategizing and directing the programming calendar during all points of its creation and transformation, from the daily to annual planning. As a key member of MTV’s senior programming team, Ms. Lindman works closely with the creative teams to help set goals for development and current series that best support MTV’s overarching programming strategy. Ms. Lindman also supervises any future acquisitions for the network.
Prior to becoming Executive Vice President, Ms. Lindman was the Senior Vice President and General Manager of TeenNick, the network for tweens that is a part of MTV Networks’ Kids and Family Group (formerly The N.) where she was responsible for setting the network’s strategy, as well as running its day-to-day operations, including programming, scheduling, acquisitions, promotions, marketing and working with MTV Networks’ Affiliate Sales organization on the channel’s distribution rollout. Ms. Lindman also managed The N’s successful split from NOGGIN in 2007, evolving from a day part on a shared channel to an independent 24-hour network. Under her leadership, The N grew to be a top-ten network among teens with such popular original series as Degrassi: The Next Generation, South of Nowhere and Beyond the Break. Prior to being named General Manger, she served as Vice President of Production and Programming for NOGGIN and The N, overseeing all aspects of production, programming and scheduling for the networks. She joined the company as Director of Programming in September 1998 from Kids’ WB! where she was Director of Programming. Prior to her work at the Kids’ WB! she was with Warner Bros. Animation where she worked on copyright protection of Warner Bros. animated properties.
Ms. Lindman was honored by Crain’s New York Business with a “40 Under 40” award in 2007. She is a graduate of Yale University where she earned a B.A. degree in Philosophy. Ms. Lindman lives in New York City with her husband and daughter.
Tina Exarhos is Executive Vice President, Marketing and Multi-Platform Creative, MTV, MTV2 and mtvU. In this role, Ms. Exarhos spearheads all marketing efforts for MTV and is responsible for the creative environment that has been a fundamental driver of MTV’s ongoing success. She is responsible for all communication and messaging to the audience for the channels’ programming, music initiatives, digital properties and new businesses. Working together with an award-winning team, Ms. Exarhos oversees the development of interstitial content and packaging that lives on each of the channels and, in an expansion to her role, she and her team will now lead the company’s creative charge in developing that engaging short-form content for use across multiple platforms and the many screens under the MTV umbrella.
As Executive Vice President, Ms. Exarhos is responsible for the on- and off-channel marketing and branding of MTV, MTV2, MTV Films, mtvU and MTV.com. This includes directing the marketing efforts for such marquis events as the “MTV Video Music Awards” and “MTV Movie Awards,” as well as ground-breaking promotion for a vast array of MTV television programming such as “Laguna Beach,” “The Real World,” “The Osbournes,” “Newlyweds” and “Making The Band” Ms. Exarhos leads a team that creates and produces all short-form visual packaging, on- and off-air graphics, online marketing, movie promotion, and consumer and trade advertising, helping to take MTV and its ancillary businesses to unparalleled image highs with innovative campaigns. Ms. Exarhos’ efforts also extend into the realm of community service, where her team produces public service ad campaigns, including the 2004 “Choose or Lose/Vote for Something” campaign which encouraged youth voting and the “Fight For Your Rights/Protect Yourself” campaign which advocated safe sex. Two spots from the “Protect Yourself” campaign, “Condom Factory” and “Condom Testing”, went on to win 2004 Public Service Emmy Awards.
Ms. Exarhos has also played a key role in advancing MTV2, now found in more than 58 million homes, through inventive marketing opportunities and tour sponsorships, helping MTV2 attract the attention of the music industry and fans alike. She successfully oversaw the launch of a number of new franchises for MTV2 including the “MTV2 2$ Bill Concert Series,” “MTV2 Sic ‘Em Friday” and “MTV2 Sucker Free Sunday.” Most recently, Ms. Exarhos oversaw the rebranding and repositioning of MTV2 through a bold logo redesign, successful viral marketing campaign and innovative content and programming, allowing MTV2 to emerge with its own distinct identity as a first-choice network among viewers and tastemakers.
Additionally, Ms. Exarhos’ role extends to music marketing and on- and off-air contests and promotion, including the development of innovative ways to present music on the channels. Under her leadership, MTV Music Marketing and Promotion developed “The Leak,” where upcoming albums are streamed exclusively on mtv.com and mtv2.com, and “The10 Spot Drop,” which creatively features new music by showcasing an emerging artist in original interstitial segments that air throughout MTV’s most highly-rated programming block. In this role, she also oversees tour sponsorships, notably “MTV’s Campus Invasion Tour,” which has become one of the most recognizable and successful tours on college campuses. Another highlight came in 2005, when Tina’s team embarked on one of their most ambitious promotions to date by transforming Miami’s Doubletree Surfcomber Hotel into “Hotel MTV,” the celebrity and party headquarters for the “2005 MTV Video Music Awards.”
Finally, Ms. Exarhos and her group produce the marketing materials for an eclectic roster of MTV Films releases including the Academy Award-nominated “Tupac: Resurrection,” the underground success “Napoleon Dynamite,” the irreverent comedy “Orange County,” the critically acclaimed “Better Luck Tomorrow, ” and other blockbusters such as “Get Rich or Die Tryin,” “The Longest Yard,” “Coach Carter” and “Jackass: The Movie.”
Prior to being named head of marketing, Ms. Exarhos was Senior Vice President, MTV Communications, Music Marketing and Promotions. Originally joining MTV’s press department in 1986, she has held a succession of positions culminating in her current position. Ms. Exarhos holds a B.A. from New York University.
James Montgomery is a Senior Writer for MTV News, where he covers rock and pop music, politics and popular culture. But mostly Lady Gaga. He also writes a weekly column for MTVNews.com called Bigger Than The Sound, in which he reviews records, floats half-baked theories and occasionally angers people, and edits MTV News’ year-end Best Songs and Man + Woman of the Year lists. He appeared on MTV’s FNMTV show in the summer of 2008, and can be seen on camera during the Video Music Awards and the Grammys. His work has appeared in SPIN, TV Guide, Surplus, Stop Smiling, The Journal News and several other publications. Talking about himself in the third person makes him rather uncomfortable. So, how are you?
Jim Cantiello is MTV News’ resident pop culture guru and “American Idol” expert. His long-running “American Idol in 60 Seconds” recaps are one of MTV News’ most popular features, even gaining acclaim from Season 8 winner Kris Allen who proclaimed the recap show “the funniest thing ever.”
Jim’s ascension within MTV is now legendary in-house folk-lore. Plucked from tape operator obscurity in 2005 by an executive producer at MTV News who was impressed by his pop culture know-how and offbeat writing, Jim’s been working his way up the ranks ever since. From production assistant to segment producer, from online commentator to on-air correspondent.
Now Jim brings his passion for pop to MTV’s airwaves and website, whether he’s writing and performing “Glee-caps” - original songs that recap “Glee” - or counting down his favorite weekly “Jersey Shore” moments. Ever the Twitter addict, he created and hosted a weekly webshow called “The Tweet Beat” that highlighted the best (and worst) of celebrity tweets.
In 2010, Martha Stewart began “dating” him and his MTV producer pal Brendan Kennedy in a popular segment, “Date Night” on her daytime Hallmark Channel talk show.
Jim, a graduate from NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts, is also an award-winning director. His 2004 short film, “Directing Rye,” toured festivals around the U.S. to wide acclaim. He was also *almost* cast on the ill-fated Steven Spielberg-produced reality show “On The Lot,” but is fairly certain he blew the audition when he said his favorite movie was “Mannequin.”
In his spare time, Jim likes to play with his TiVo, his record collection and his wife (not in that order). His career goal is to be famous enough to have a lengthy discussion with Nigel Lythgoe about the 1980 disco-schlock musical, “The Apple.” Or maybe move to Tokyo and open a cat café. Still deciding…
Josh Horowitz is a managing editor for MTV News and on-air personality covering the world of film. Since coming to MTV News in 2006, he has journeyed the world and scored rare exclusives with the likes of Jack Nicholson, Clint Eastwood, David Fincher, Tom Hanks, Angelina Jolie, Johnny Depp, Michael Bay, Will Ferrell, Paul Rudd, Ryan Gosling, Matt Damon and even kicked back some margaritas with Vince Vaughn in Bora Bora. Megan Fox has called Josh, “the sexiest man in glasses [she] has ever seen,” while Julia Roberts has seductively cleaned them off. On the flip-side, Charlize Theron has called him nearly every four letter word in the book but all in good fun. A red carpet regular, Josh’s coverage ranges from the Cannes Film Festival to the Oscars and Comic-Con.
Josh hosts “After Hours” on MTV.com, a show where he and some of the most recognized names in film show a completely different side in gut-busting sketches. “After Hours” has allowed Josh to horse-around with celebrities such as Jessica Alba, Johnny Depp, Angelina Jolie, Steve Carrell, Danny McBride, Jack Black and Jason Segel. One of “After Hours” most notorious sketches, ‘The Knife Show’ featuring Will Ferrell and Mark Wahlberg, culminated in Wahlberg nearly gouging Josh’s eye out.
In 2010, “After Hours” premiered ‘American Talk’ with Josh Horowitz and the Harry Potter cast. The episode has had nearly 3 million views to date. In addition, Josh’s exclusive interviews with the casts of Avatar and Twilight are some of the most watched content on MTV.com
In 2006, Josh published his first book with Plume, “The Mind of the Modern Moviemaker.” He previously served as producer of CNBC’s short lived talk show, “McEnroe,” which also marked Josh’s on-camera debut as “the obsequious correspondent.” Josh has contributed to Entertainment Weekly, UsWeekly, and Interview, where he served as reporter and editor, respectively. After college, Josh served as producer for Charlie Rose on PBS, Maria Bartiromo on CNBC, and Pat Sajak on Fox News.
Josh received an English Degree from Hobart College, where he served as editor of the school newspaper and as an on-air radio personality. Born and bred in New York City, Josh continues to reside there with his wife and charming eccentricities. He does a disturbingly good impression of the scourge of the Star Wars universe, Jar Jar Binks.
Joe Cuello is Senior Vice President of Creative Music Integration for MTV. In this role, Mr. Cuello oversees the integration of music within MTV’s long form programming, working closely with both established and independent artists expanding the connections and opportunities between music and television. Cuello is based at MTV’s Santa Monica offices and reports to Amy Doyle, EVP of MTV Music & Talent.
In his current role Cuello has launched several key music initiatives including Hype Music: a partnership between MTV and Extreme/Sony ATV that established an innovative music library filled with a roster of emerging musical talent. Hype is a targeted music discovery and artist promotion business that continues MTV story of breaking new artists. In conjunction with the promotion of emerging artists MTV Networks is moving into music asset creation that will be utilized across all channels.
Prior to this role, Joe Cuello was music supervisor on numerous projects across MTV and VH1. Just some of the shows Cuello served as music supervisor include MTV’s “Pimp My Ride”, “Making the Band”, and “Newlyweds”, and VH1’s “Bands Reunited” working with both signed and unsigned artists and musicians.
Joe Cuello has a B.A. in the Fine Arts from the University of North Texas and a Masters in Education from Azusa Pacific University.
As Executive Vice President, News and Production for MTV: MUSIC TELEVISION, Dave Sirulnick oversees MTV’s award-winning News and Docs department, as well as studio-based programming and event productions. In addition, Mr. Sirulnick supervises the planning and execution of MTV’s year-long pro-social campaigns, as well as live events including the annual Video Music Awards.
Under Mr. Sirulnick’s leadership, the MTV News and Docs department produces MTV’s award-winning documentary series “True Life,” which he created in 1998 and which examines the lifestyles, interests, issues and concerns of young people. Included in the series were hour-long specials addressing the drug epidemics surrounding Ecstasy, Crystal Meth, Heroin, and OxyContin; as well as topics such as gay marriage, adoption, eating disorders, and depression. The News and Docs department is also home to such series as “Diary,” “MTV Cribs,” and “My Super Sweet 16,” which was the highest rated series premiere in MTV history when it hit the air in January 2005. Mr. Sirulnick also oversees MTV’s Daily News coverage, including the channel’s critically acclaimed reports following the attacks of September 11, live in-studio coverage of events in Iraq as the war unfolded, and reports on the December 2004 tsunami. In addition he supervised MTV’s Week in Rock over the course of its ten-year run.
On the production side, Mr. Sirulnick supervises the highly successful daily show, Total Request Live, which is a cornerstone of MTV programming. Additionally, in 1999 he took on the role of Executive Producer of the Video Music Awards and continues to do so annually. That year the VMA’s became the #1 rated entertainment program in cable history, and it has remained a ratings juggernaut for the channel year after year. Other event productions under Mr. Sirulnick’s helm include annual New Year’s Eve and Spring Break programming; series successes on the production side include “Laguna Beach,” television’s first “reality drama” series; and “Made,” which helps young people achieve a personal goal with the help of a “life coach.” Upcoming series under Mr. Sirulnick’s direction include “Trailer Fabulous,” a fresh new look at the home makeover genre that beautifies America one trailer at a time; “Rev’s House,” television’s first hip hop reality sitcom starring Reverend Run (Joey Simmons) of Run DMC, his wife and five children; and “Nick Cannon Presents Wild’n Out,” a new sketch comedy/improv series starring Cannon that features two teams of hot, up-and-coming comics who go head-to-head in a series of “improv battles.”
On the pro-social front, in 1992, Mr. Sirulnick created and oversaw political news coverage on the Peabody Award-winning “Choose or Lose” political awareness campaign. In 1996, MTV took to the streets with the “Choose or Lose Bus” which toured more than 80,000 miles through 48 states. “Choose or Lose 2000” sent a street team of young political reporters across the country to register voters and talk to the candidates about the issues of concern to young people. In 2004, “Choose or Lose: 20 Million Loud” helped motivate nearly 21 million young people to vote. Collectively, the MTV “Choose or Lose” campaigns, along with its partners, have registered millions of young voters, and the initiative won the prestigious Governor’s Award from the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences in 2004. In addition to MTV’s voter registration and political awareness campaigns, Mr. Sirulnick oversaw the “Fight For Your Rights: Take A Stand Against Violence” campaign in 1999 and the “Fight For Your Rights: Take A Stand Against Discrimination” inititiative in 2001. Since 2002, he has supervised the channel’s most recent initiative, the Peabody Award-winning “Fight For Your Rights: Protect Yourself,” a comprehensive on- and off- air sexual health campaign in partnership with the Kaiser Family Foundation. “Fight For Your Rights” has also garnered 4 Emmy Awards under Sirulnick’s leadership.
Prior to this position, Mr. Sirulnick was Senior Vice President and Executive Producer, MTV News. Under his leadership, MTV News has become a highly credible voice and source of information for young people. Before the “True Life” series, MTV News produced documentaries on alcohol and drug abuse, hate music, the AIDS epidemic, gun control, and other issues of concern to young people During his tenure overseeing MTV News, Mr. Sirulnick supervised and produced most of the department’s signature programming, including MTV News’ live coverage of Woodstock ’94 and ’99; the aftermath of Kurt Cobain’s suicide in 1994; Snoop Dogg’s murder trial in 1996; the O.J. Simpson murder trial in 1995; and other pivotal music and entertainment news stories. Sirulnick also created “Decade,” which won a Peabody Award in 1990. Prior to joining MTV as News Producer in 1987, Mr. Sirulnick produced segments for CNN.
Mr. Sirulnick holds a B.F.A. from Mason Gross School of the Arts, Rutgers University.
Amy Doyle is Executive Vice President, Music & Talent, MTV: Music Television. In this position, Ms. Doyle leads MTV’s overarching music strategy as well as record label and artist relations, the first woman to hold this instrumental position in the company’s quarter-century history. Since arriving at MTV in 1999, Doyle has embraced the multi-platform strategy and has strived to find non-traditional ways to showcase music and artists. Across the screens of MTV, MTV2, mtvU, MTV.com, MTV Mobile, MTV HITS, MTVJams and more, Doyle has pioneered many of MTV’s music initiatives. Most recently Doyle was instrumental in launching the innovative new series “FNMTV Premieres” and corresponding music blocks, celebrating both new music videos and music fans in a week-long event. Doyle also played an integral role in the ratings success and pop culture buzz of the 2007 MTV Video Music Awards which showcased performances by renowned artists including Justin Timberlake, Common, Nelly Furtado, Gym Class Heroes, Timbaland, Fall Out Boy, Chris Brown, Foo Fighters, 50 Cent, and Rihanna and resulted in huge increases in their album sales, single / iTunes sales, radio airplay and engagement on Rhapsody.com.
In overseeing the music group at MTV, Ms. Doyle leads the on-going development of relationships with all artists, labels and partners. Under Doyle’s guidance, the music group has developed comprehensive multiplatform support for artists – both established and up-and-coming. Under her direction, MTV’s music has introduced and supported such stand out programs as “52/52,” “Discover & Download,” “The Leak,” “Sucker Free,” “mtvU Best Music On Campus,” “mtvU Freshman Five,” MTV’s guest music supervisor program for MTV series and specials, and more. Artists, like Paramore, who experienced 123% album sales increase, have reaped success after being launched across MTV’s platforms. Doyle and her team also work to celebrate some of the very best in music each year from the popular MTV’s Video Music Awards, to MTV2’s Dew Circuit Breakout discovering the very best unsigned band, to the mtvU’s Woodie Awards celebrating the best in emerging music.
Before joining MTV, Ms. Doyle was Operations Manager at WXDG, The Edge in Detroit, Michigan. In this position she was responsible for overseeing all music programming, marketing and promotions for WXDG. Ms. Doyle helped launch WXDG in 1997 and in just one year, WXDG became the dominant modern rock station in Detroit, helping to break artists like Kid Rock and Eminem. Prior to this position, she was Program Director of KKZN, The Zone, in Dallas.
Based at MTV’s headquarters in New York, Ms Doyle holds a B.A. in Mass Communications and Public Relations from Boston University.
Sway Calloway is pivotal member of the MTV News team and voice to the millennial generation. From giving Eminem and Notorious B.I.G. their very first radio airplay on his local show in the mid-‘90s, to amassing an impressive list of exclusive interviews from the likes U2 front man Bono to Jennifer Lopez, Lady Gaga, Katy Perry, Lil Wayne, Tom Cruise, Tyler Perry, Nicki Minaj, Chris Brown and Kanye West, he has been a staple of the music-news arena for more than a decade and delivered some of television’s most ground breaking moments.
Already a vanguard radio personality, record producer and hip-hop artist when he joined MTV News, Sway continues to be a driving force in the world of hip-hop, securing exclusive interviews with today’s biggest and emerging hip-hop talent through MTV News specials and his weekly online show, RapFix.
Beyond music, Sway has been a key correspondent on a host of issues impacting young people from politics and young veteran’s issues, to hate-crimes, education and sexual health. He has reported from the Democratic and Republican National Conventions, and interviewed political leaders such as President Bill Clinton and President Barack Obama, as well as Senator John McCain, Secretary of State and former Senator Hillary Clinton, Governor Mike Huckabee and Governor Mitt Romney. In January 2009, he hosted “Be the Change: Live from the Inaugural Ball,” and in October 2010, co-hosted “A Conversation with President Obama,” a live youth Town Hall where the President answered questions direct from young people. Additionally, he co-moderated a panel on “Hate Crimes and How to End College Racism” at the 95th NAACP Annual Convention and took to the streets of Philadelphia with hip-hop mogul Diddy to register young voters.
On Veterans Day 2009, he emceed “Mission Serve: Forging a Continuum of Service,” where First Lady Michelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden unveiled a new initiative to unite the worlds of military and civilian service to strengthen America. Recently, Sway led the “2010 Get Schooled National Challenge & Tour” to 11 cities over 10 weeks, teaming up with the nation’s best entertainers and athletes – from Ludacris to Carmelo Anthony—to get the nation’s kids motivated to step up in school. Additionally, he served as an ambassador for MTV’s GYT (Get Yourself Tested) campaign.
Ever ready to jump in and cover breaking news, Sway has remained a touchstone for youth seeking on-the-ground insight into the biggest stories of the day. From covering the death of Michael Jackson wall-to-wall through his funeral to traveling to natural disaster sites like New Orleans in the wake of Hurricane Katrina (“MTV News Presents: After the Storm”) and the earthquake in Haiti (“Hope for Haiti Now” and “Hope for Haiti Now Donations”), Sway has connected viewers to the personal stories of people suffering the most.
In addition to his role at MTV, Sway has served as a producer to artists, including Common. In 2009, he co-founded All the Right Elements Symposium to launch a new innovative approach to learning the working mechanics of television and music industry. Sway serves on the Board of Directors for the Entertainers4Education Alliance, a non-profit organization that enlists the talents and resources of the music and entertainment community to provide support and encouraging messages to young people about education and positive decision making.
An icon of hip-hop culture in his own right, Sway first caught the public’s eye in the late ‘80s/ early ‘90s when he and his partner King Tech (Tech) staged break dancing and rap performances in and around their hometown of Oakland, California. Recognizing Sway’s instincts for great sound and promising talent, Interscope enlisted him and Tech to produce an album called This or That, which featured many of the same exciting new acts that had been introduced to the world on “The Wake Up Show,” including Eminem, KRS-One and RZA from the Wu-Tang Clan.
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