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chris-mccarthy
Wharton grad Chris McCarty taking leadership of Comedy Central, Paramount Network, Smithsonian Channel, and TV Land.

Chris McCarthy, 2003 Wharton MBA graduate and President of MTV, VH1, CMT, and Logo, was recently named president of four additional TV networks in the new ViacomCBS conglomerate, Billboard reported.

McCarthy will assume the role of president of entertainment and youth brands for ViacomCBS Domestic Media Networks, under which he will be taking leadership of Comedy Central, Paramount Network, Smithsonian Channel, and TV Land.

McCarthy’s promotion follows ongoing adjustments to corporate structure within the Viacom and CBS merger set to finish at the end of the year, Variety reported.

“ViacomCBS will be one of the largest premium content creators in the world, with the capacity to produce content for both our own platforms and for others,” Viacom President and CEO Bob Bakish said in a statement to Variety.

When McCarthy became president of MTV in fall 2016, he turned the declining network around to reach no. 1 among young audiences, Patch reported. The success is largely credited to the decision to revive popular unscripted reality programming such as Jersey Shore. 

“When you think about how much we’ve accomplished and how quickly, relative to the landscape and to our peers, it’s pretty extraordinary,” McCarthy told Deadline in February.

Patch reported that VH1 experienced record growth under his leadership. McCarthy began his career at Viacom in 2004 as a freelancer before moving up the ranks throughout his 15-year career.

The Levittown native earned his MBA from Wharton in 2003 after completing his Bachelor of Science at Drexel.