Disney Taps Sherwood To Succeed Sweeney

The Walt Disney Co. today announced that ABC News President Ben Sherwood will assume the title of co-chairman, Disney Media Networks and president, Disney/ABC Television Group on February 1, 2015. Anne Sweeney, co-chair, Disney Media Networks and president, Disney/ABC Television Group, will remain in that capacity through January 2015.

Effective immediately, Sherwood will begin the transition as co-president, Disney/ABC Television Group. He will also continue to oversee ABC News until a successor is named.

In making the announcement, Robert A. Iger, chairman-CEO of The Walt Disney Co., said: “Ben is one of those unique executives who combine rich creative experience with great business acumen. He’s also focused, strategic, and competitive, as evidenced by the success of GMA, the Yahoo deal that delivered ABC News online dominance, and his vision behind our new cable and digital joint venture, Fusion. These reasons, and many others, make Ben the ideal candidate to oversee the future of the Disney/ABC Television Group.”

Sweeney added, “It was Ben’s intense passion and incredible insight that made us confident he’d do great things as president of ABC News. Over the years, he has moved from success to success and helped create a more vibrant, collaborative and powerful News division that embraces innovation and risk taking. Ben’s now set to bring those same attributes to bear for the larger group, and I could not be more thrilled. This announcement simply highlights the fact that our talent and succession planning process works.”

Sherwood said: “I am honored and humbled that Bob has entrusted me with this great responsibility and amazing opportunity. I’m also deeply grateful to Anne, who has built and led a powerhouse division over the last 10 years. I am looking forward to her counsel and wisdom during this transition period. I must also thank the remarkable people of ABC News who inspire me every day with their creativity, dedication and spirit.  I will keep their commitment to excellence and their fierce competitiveness firmly in mind as I move forward to meet this exciting new challenge.”

Sherwood was named president of ABC News in December 2010. He is responsible for all aspects of ABC News’ broadcasts. In addition, Sherwood oversees ABC News Radio, ABCNEWS.com, satellite service NewsOne and ABC News NOW.

Sherwood launched his journalistic career when he joined ABC News in 1989, serving as an investigative associate producer and producer for PrimeTime Live with anchors Diane Sawyer and Sam Donaldson. In 1997, he joined NBC’s Nightly News with Tom Brokaw as broadcast producer responsible for “In Depth” reports, then senior producer, and ultimately senior broadcast producer.

Sherwood returned to ABC News in April 2004 as executive producer of the network’s award-winning morning program, Good Morning America.

The author of two best-selling novels: The Man Who Ate the 747 (2000) and The Death and Life of Charlie St. Cloud (2004), Sherwood’s fiction has been published around the world in more than 15 languages.  In addition, his journalism and nonfiction essays have been published in many publications, including The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, The Washington Post, Newsweek, New Republic, Washington Monthly, Parade and O magazine.

A Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Harvard College in 1986, Sherwood earned an AB degree in American government and history. From 1986 to 1989, as a Rhodes Scholar at Magdalen College, Oxford, he earned master’s degrees in British imperial history and development economics.