Who Will be Made?
As Time Warner’s Jeff Bewkes searches for a replacement for HBO chief Chris Albrecht, former Viacom head Tom Freston’s phone remains silent. Freston, appearing on CNBC’s “The Big Idea” Mon Night, said he had “not had any conversations with Home Box Office.” And who’s to say he would take the call? The guy’s got $84mln in the bank and has been busy traveling the world—even sleeping in the desert of Essakane, Mali (read about it in the upcoming article he’s penning for Vanity Fair). Popular thought is that TW will hire from within, with HBO COO Bill Nelson, evp Richard Plepler, sales & marketing pres Eric Kessler and evp, gen counsel Harold Akselrad among the most mentioned candidates. Nelson has temporarily assumed the CEO duties after TW forced Albrecht to resign following his arrest for allegedly assaulting his girlfriend in Las Vegas.