As NBC News Group chairman, Cesar Conde, is already busy overseeing the network’s broadcast and digital news operations, along with CNBC, MSNBC, Telemundo and NBC-owned local affiliates. Yet the executive also has a second paid job. And a third — as a member of Walmart and PepsiCo’s corporate boards. The arrangement has raised some ethical concerns, and reveals a potential blind spot for a news business usually very serious about conflicts — real or perceived.
Cesar Conde, a leader with an MBA but a limited journalism background, is facing the toughest scrutiny of his career.
Since taking over as chief of NBCUniversal News Group last year, Cesar Conde has made it clear he wants the division to place a bigger bet on streaming. He has begun to put his stamp on the organization — which includes MSNBC, CNBC and NBC News — as he manages the news division during one of the busiest and most unpredictable periods for news in years. In addition to the streaming push, Conde has emphasized fiscal discipline, centralizing oversight of the news networks and cutting executive positions that each channel has had up to now, people familiar with the personnel changes say.
In a memo to staff, NBC News Group Chairman Cesar Conde writes that the organization aspires to achieve “two concrete goals: that 50% of our News organization employees be women and 50% of our total workforce be people of color.”
Greg Berlanti, Cesar Conde, Jane Fonda, Kevin Reilly and Tom Selleck will be honored on Jan. 17 during NATPE conference in Miami Beach.
Exclusives
Cesar Conde is resigning as president of Univision Networks to become an executive vice president at NBCUniversal. In this newly created role, he will focus on business development, strategic priorities and special business projects across the NBCUniversal portfolio. He also will oversee the International Group.
Univision President Cesar Conde didn’t swat away suggestions last week that Univision could outperform all competitors in at least one important ratings metric within five years: that it becomes the top-rated network — whether in English, Spanish, or Mandarin — among 18-to-34 viewers.
