Hirschorn May Leave VH1
Exec Who Steered Net Into ‘Celebrealilty’ Rumored To Be Joining Production Firm
R. Thomas Umstead -- Multichannel News, 1/17/2008 12:21:00 AM MT
VH1 executive vice president of programming and production Michael Hirschorn, who spearheaded such breakout shows as Flavor Of Love and I Love New York, is leaving the company, according to sources inside MTV Networks.
Hirschorn departure, first reported on the New York Post’s Web site was confirmed Wednesday night by two MTV Networks executives, although his exact departure date is unclear. Also uncertain is where Hirschorn will end up: NYPost.com reported that publicly traded British company Ricochet, which owns a number of production houses, is in advanced talks with Hirschorn and is the frontrunner to land his services.
VH1 executives could not be reached for comment at press time.
Hirschorn, who joined VH1 in 2001 after stints as editor in chief of news/entertainment sites Inside.com and Spin, will depart the 96 million-subscriber network after jumpstarting ratings for the formerly music video-heavy channel in recent years through the development of original "celebreality" series such as Hogan Knows Best, Flavor Of Love and Love spinoff I Love New York.
The network finished 2007 with a 0.7 primetime household rating, 17% above the 0.6 rating generated a year prior. VH1 also increased total viewers by 19% year to year to 805,000 in 2007, from 679,000 in 2006.
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