The Southern California chapter of The WICT Network’s 28th Annual LEA Awards luncheon, held November 3 at The Beverly Hills Hotel, marked the return of a live ceremony for the first time since prior to the pandemic. The LEA Awards honors top-level women in the content and connectivity industries for the leadership, excellence and advocacy they’ve shown throughout their careers. Honored this year were Tara Duncan, president, Onyx Collective, The Walt Disney Co.; Wendy McMahon, president and CEO, CBS News and Stations and CBS Media Ventures; Kia Painter, executive VP, chief people officer, Cox Communications; and Beatrice Springborn, president, UPC and Universal International Studios, NBCUniversal. Click through for photos from this year’s luncheon. 

The Southern California chapter of The WICT Network has named four executives as winners of the 28th Annual LEA Awards, which honors top-level women in the content and connectivity industries for the leadership, excellence and advocacy they’ve shown throughout their careers. 

This year’s honorees, to be recognized November 3 at a gala luncheon at the Beverly Hills Hotel, are: Tara Duncan, president, Onyx Collective, The Walt Disney Co.; Wendy McMahon, president, CBS News & Stations; Kia Painter, executive VP, chief people officer, Cox Communications; and Beatrice Springborn, president, UPC and Universal International Studios, NBCUniversal.

The November 3 event marks a return to a live luncheon event for the first time since 2019, prior to the pandemic. 

“Tara, Wendy, Kia and Beatrice are ideal LEA Award recipients, ambassadors really, as they truly exemplify The WICT Network’s mission statement to create bold, self-empowered leaders through advocacy and leadership training,” WICT Network Southern California president Jennifer Miles said. “We are proud to honor these extraordinary trailblazers.

“Beatrice, Wendy, Tara and Kia have proven themselves as crucial leaders, coaches and mentors to our strong community of women in entertainment,” she added. “To award these super women with a LEA is an honor and a privilege.” 

For more information on the LEA Awards, visit socalwict.org. 

The Southern California chapter of Women in Cable Telecommunications has announced the recipients of this year’s LEA Awards. They will be celebrated at a gala luncheon event on Friday, Nov. 8, at the Beverly Hills Hotel, with the red carpet beginning at 11 a.m.

Kathy Mandato, Chief HR Officer for WarnerMedia; Tina Perry, President of the Oprah Winfrey Network; Rita Ferro, President of Advertising Sales for the Walt Disney Company and Angela Courtin, Global Head of Entertainment, Media and Experiences at YouTube are the 2019 honorees.

Kathy Mandato is Chief HR Officer for WarnerMedia Entertainment which includes HBO and Cinemax, TBS, TNT, TruTV, and WarnerMedia’s direct to consumer streaming service. Prior to joining WarnerMedia Group, Mandato advised technology startups including Snap, Inc. where she served as its VP, Human Resources. Before joining Snap, Mandato was at NBCUniversal for six years, serving as Executive Vice President, Human Resources, for NBC Entertainment, Universal Television Studio, Universal Cable Productions, and HR Shared Services for NBCUniversal.

She joined NBC in 2011 from Comcast Entertainment Group, a programming division of Comcast Corporation, where she served as SVP, HR for three cable networks (E! Entertainment Television, Style, G4), Comcast International Media Group, and E! Online. (She had previously been at E! Entertainment in the late 90’s where she served as its head of executive search.) 

In 2001, Mandato became the Head of Human Resources for DreamWorks SKG and was part of the team that took the animation division public in 2004. She then served as Head of Human Resources for DreamWorks Animation for three years before joining Comcast and E! Entertainment again in 2007.

Tina Perry was named President of OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network effective January 2019, spearheading all day-to-day operations and creative areas of OWN. Perry, who reports to OWN Chairman and CEO Oprah Winfrey, also oversees the network’s growing digital division, as well as “WATCH OWN,” the network’s TV Everywhere app, and a variety of online content on Oprah.com, the network’s award-winning website.

Perry is a seasoned dealmaker whose exceptional leadership and business acumen provides strong direction for the network to reach and grow OWN’s diverse audience. Perry has been leading business and legal affairs for OWN and Oprah.com since joining the network in 2009. She has been instrumental in the network’s ongoing evolution into scripted programming. Perry led negotiations for the network’s acclaimed drama Queen Sugar created by award-winning director/producer Ava DuVernay featuring an all-female slate of directors. She also negotiated the overall deal with Lionsgate which has included one of the network’s most successful series launches to date with hit megachurch drama Greenleaf from writer/producer Craig Wright.

Most recently, Perry negotiated the deals for the network’s two new series from prolific hitmaker Will Packer, and the upcoming drama “David Makes Man” from Academy Award winner Tarell Alvin McCraney (“Moonlight”). Prior to joining OWN, Perry handled business and legal affairs for VH1 and MTV at Viacom. Before her role at Viacom, she was an associate at Cravath, Swaine & Moore, LLP in New York. While there, she represented public companies in connection with public offerings, private placements and general corporate governance matters.

As President of Advertising Sales for the Walt Disney Company, Rita Ferro leads advertising sales for the Company's entertainment, news, sports and kids linear and digital TV and Radio businesses (ABC Entertainment, ABC Daytime and ABC News; Disney Channel, Disney XD, Disney Junior, Radio Disney; Freeform, FX Networks, National Geographic Networks) and the ESPN portfolio which includes ESPN’s domestic networks, ESPN on ABC, ESPN.com, ESPN3, ESPN The Magazine, ESPN Radio, ESPN International, ESPN+ and ESPN Mobile. She also leads the integrated sales team for the Disney Digital Network, the Company’s online, mobile and social offerings. Additionally, Ferro directs National TV Ad Sales for ABC’s eight owned local TV stations. She has been in this role since September 2018.

Ferro previously served as President, Disney|ABC Advertising Sales and Marketing where she oversaw all advertising sales, marketing functions and ad revenue-generation strategies for the company’s entertainment, news and kids and family linear and digital TV and radio businesses, including ABC Entertainment, ABC Daytime, ABC News, Disney Channel, Disney XD, Disney Junior, Radio Disney and Freeform. She also led the integrated sales team for the Disney Digital Network (DDN), The Walt Disney Company’s online, mobile and social offerings.

Ferro began her career with The Walt Disney Company 22 years ago with ESPN International, where she held several posts including vice president, International Ad Sales leading the ESPN International Ad Sales offices in Miami, Argentina, Mexico and Brazil. She ultimately added ad sales management for Disney Media Network’s kid-driven and family-inclusive portfolio – Disney Channel, Disney XD and the then-named Playhouse Disney – in Latin America. Additionally, she has held the positions of executive vice president, Disney Media Sales and Marketing for Disney Channels Worldwide and vice president, Advertising Sales, Disneymedia+.

Angela Courtin is the Global Head of Marketing for YouTube TV & Originals. She led the partnership with Major League Baseball where YouTube TV was the first-ever presenting sponsor of the World Series. She guided the launches of YouTube Originals Ryan Hansen Solves Crime on Television, Demi Lovato’s Simply Complicated Documentary, Impulse, Ellen DeGeneres’ Show Me More Show and more.

Prior to YouTube, Courtin was Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer for Fox Broadcasting Company (FOX). In her role, Courtin was responsible for FOX’s developing and guiding overall brand strategy and audience development, overseeing on-air and off-air promotion and advertising campaigns for over 35 television series and specials annually, national media, brand partnerships, content marketing, multi-platform & affiliate marketing, design and social media for the network. She was responsible for managing a $300 million dollar budget and a staff of 150.

Previously, Courtin served as Chief Marketing Officer of Relativity Media, where she was responsible for all film, television and sports marketing initiatives as well as all branding and advertising campaigns across the company. She also oversaw Madvine, the company’s branded entertainment and consumer products arm, and Relativity Digital. In addition, Courtin launched a new digital division to grow Relativity's audience and provide brands with a fully integrated approach to marketing.

Before joining Relativity, Courtin was President of Dentsu Aegis Network U.S. where she worked across the global agency’s twenty-three stateside businesses, including Carat, McGarryBowen, Isobar, Vizeum, Posterscope, 360i and iProspect. During her tenure at Aegis she launched the global content agency, The Story Lab, and served as Chief Content Officer guiding the content strategies and practices for Fortune 100 clients. Prior to Aegis, Courtin’s roles included co-head of Integrated Marketing at MTV; Senior Vice President of Marketing, Entertainment & Content for MySpace; and associate producer on the hit HBO series Big Love.

“We are thrilled to recognize these four distinguished women for their significant accomplishments and contributions to the industry. Their drive, personal resilience, and commitment to excellence is an inspiration for all women,” said Jennifer Miles, 2019 LEA Awards Chair.

“WICT is proud to honor these inspiring women who represent the best of our industry," said WICT SoCal President Ellen Schned. "They truly exemplify the theme of the LEA Awards. and we look forward to celebrating their achievements."

The LEA Awards (honoring leadership, excellence, advocacy) event will be hosted by Emmy winning broadcast journalists Mark Steines and Erica Olson. More information can be found at socalwict.org.

The 26th Annual LEA Awards — honoring leadership, excellence, advocacy — will be celebrated Thursday, Nov. 29, at a gala luncheon at the Beverly Hills Hotel. Women in Cable Telecommunications of Southern California will honor six leading female media executives (cited here) and welcome two special guests, former FCC commissioner Mignon L. Clyburn and former WICT national board member and past Style Network president Salaam Coleman Smith. Hosting the event are Emmy-winning entertainment journalists and producers Erica Olsen, with CBS Los Angeles, and Mark Steines. For more about the awards and event, visit socalwict.org.

Sarah Aubrey is executive vice president of original programming for TNT. She joined the network in February 2015 as a key member of the new executive team under Kevin Reilly, president of TBS and TNT, chief creative officer for Turner Entertainment. She is responsible for overseeing all development and production of original series and miniseries for the network’s rapidly expanding programming slate. Since joining TNT, Aubrey has green-lighted several series including the network’s highest-rated summer hit, Claws. She also helped to develop the TNT series Animal Kingdom, Good Behavior and The Alienist. Prior to joining TNT, Aubrey was partnered with Peter Berg in their production company, Film 44. Together with Berg, she produced such projects as the acclaimed film and television series Friday Night Lights.

Jamia Bigalow is senior vice president, distribution marketing for Fox Networks Group, overseeing strategies to support linear and nonlinear distribution and generating greater brand awareness for Fox’s portfolio of networks. She directs the development of partnership campaigns that align business objectives for the company’s network brands, which include Fox, FX, National Geographic, Fox Sports and Fox News Channel. She also oversees marketing efforts surrounding retransmission consent and channel carriage agreements. Before joining Fox, she was among the first employees of NFL Network.

Rhonda Crichlow is senior vice president and chief diversity officer of Charter Communications, responsible for the overall strategic development and implementation of Charter’s diversity and inclusion strategy. She joined Charter after 10 years with Novartis Pharmaceuticals, where she most recently served as VP and head, U.S. diversity and inclusion, president of the Novartis U.S. Foundation and a member of the Innovative Medicines Executive Committee. She joined NPC as the executive director of philanthropy and community development in 2006.

Sarah Harden is the CEO of Hello Sunshine, a media brand anchored in storytelling, creating content that changes the narrative for women. Harden partnered with founder Reese Witherspoon to form Hello Sunshine, leading the first investment into the company on behalf of Otter Media where she served as president. Harden earlier led Otter Media, a privately held joint venture between AT&T and The Chernin Group which she helped form in April 2014 to acquire, invest in and launch global over-the-top video services, with companies including Fullscreen, Roosterteeth, Ellation, Crunchyroll, Gunpowder and Sky. Otter was sold to AT&T in 2018.

Amy Introcaso-Davis is executive vice president, development and production for E!. She oversees all unscripted development and production for the global pop-culture brand, including popular series Keeping Up With the Kardashians, Total Divas, Hollywood Medium With Tyler Henry and Botched. Prior to joining E!, Introcaso-Davis served as executive vice president, programming and development at GSN, where she was responsible for the program strategy that led to five years of consecutive growth. Before GSN, Introcaso-Davis served as a production executive at Oxygen, Bravo, Lifetime and Fox.

Linda Kavanaugh is vice president of human resources for Cox Communications’ California operations. She provides leadership and strategic direction for employee relations, leadership development, training, performance management, benefits administration and safety and security for the company’s employees in Orange County, Palos Verdes, San Diego and Santa Barbara. She also leads the company’s Diversity Council of employees in California. She joined the Cox Human Resources team in San Diego in 1996, rising through the ranks to her current role in 2017.

Mignon L. Clyburn served on the Federal Communications Commission from 2009 to 2018, and as acting chair from May to November of 2013. During her nearly nine years at the FCC, she was committed to closing persistent digital and opportunities divides that continue to challenge rural, Native and low wealth communities. Previously, she served 11 years on the South Carolina Public Service Commission. Before that, she was the publisher and general manager of the Coastal Times, the Charleston-based weekly newspaper focusing on issues affecting African-Americans. She is currently a fellow at the Open Society Foundation, continuing to champion efforts to eliminate predatory rates for prison telephone services.

BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. — The Women in Cable Telecommunications Southern California Chapter is honoring a network P.R. ace, a kids’ content and strategy expert, a content acquisition maven and an actress twice nominated for an Oscar.

The 2017 LEA Awards, their 25th anniversary edition, will be presented at a luncheon on Thursday, Nov. 9, at The Beverly Hills Hotel, kicking off with a networking reception at 11:30 a.m. followed by the awards luncheon at 12:30-3 p.m. (For more, visit LEAAwards.com.)

The program includes a panel discussion on leadership with the honorees, moderated by KCBS on-air host Erica Olsen. The four honorees, listed alphabetically, are being recognized for their contributions to the industry and their commitment to developing women leaders in entertainment.

The honorees are (alphabetically):

• Terri Hines, executive vice president, communications, Fox Sports;
• Nancy Kanter, executive vice president, content and creative strategy, Disney Channel Worldwide, and general manager, Disney Junior Worldwide;
• Mary McDonnell, actress and star of TNT’s Major Crimes;
• and Kathy Payne, head, content acquisition management, Amazon Channels.

Terri Hines joined Fox Sports as executive vice president of communications last December. She serves as Fox Sports’ chief spokesperson and is responsible for leading the development and execution of communication strategies for the sports programmer’s multiplatform portfolio. She reports to Fox Sports president and COO Eric Shanks.

Hines previously spent 10 successful years at Nike, most recently as VP of global communications for the Converse brand. Hines also was director of communications for Nike’s Jordan Brand of premium athletic footwear, apparel and accessories. Working directly with NBA legend Michael Jordan and his team, Hines was a driving force behind a number of brand firsts, notably the campaign launch for the Air Jordan XX3, at the time the biggest in Nike history. She also was responsible for rebranding and launching Jordan Brand’s philanthropic platform, Wings for the Future.

Prior to Nike, Hines spent 10 years at Nissan North America in a variety of roles in media relations, communications, public affairs and multicultural marketing, and created Nissan’s first lifestyle and entertainment practice. She started her career at Volkswagen of America.

Nancy Kanter was promoted to executive vice president, content and creative strategy, Disney Channels Worldwide, and general manager, Disney Junior Worldwide, this year. She is responsible for content creation strategy that guides the development of original live-action and animated programming for kids age 6-14 on Disney Channel and Disney XD, and all creative content for kids age 2-7 on Disney Junior. She also oversees strategy for acquired content that supports the overarching creative vision and, working with the live action and animation development and programming teams, continues attracting, developing and retaining creative talent to Disney’s portfolio of entertainment platforms for kids and families.

Under Kanter, the 24-hour Disney Junior channel has reigned as the top preschooler-dedicated TV network in total viewers, kids 2-5, girls 2-5, boys 2-5 and women 18-49. In 2016, the channel presented the top eight series among kids 2-5 and total viewers, including The Lion Guard, Elena of Avalor and Miles from Tomorrowland. Kanter also brought the Peabody-winning Doc McStuffins, the Emmy-winning Sofia the First, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Mickey and the Roadster Racers and Puppy Dog Pals to Disney Junior.

Previously executive VP, original programming, she joined Disney Channel in 2001. In 2011 and 2012, she led the successful rebrand of Playhouse Disney to Disney Junior, establishing the brand a total of 33 Disney Junior channels in 24 languages around the world. Prior to joining Disney Channel, Kanter was president, Bluecow.com, a children’s entertainment internet, following a distinguished run as an executive producer and producer of children’s programming.

Mary McDonnell is a distinguished American actress known for her work in theater, film, and television. She is highly regarded for her portrayals of strong, empathic and powerful women. Her ability to connect with roles in a way that reveals a conscious awareness of the world around her has resulted in a rewarding and long lasting career.

Nominated twice for Academy Awards for her work in movies (Dances With Wolves, Passion Fish), she has also been nominated twice each for Golden Globes and Emmy awards. Her many TV roles include the surgeon Dr. Virginia Dixon in Grey’s Anatomy and Noah Wyle’s alcoholic mother in ER. She played President Laura Roslin in Syfy’s Peabody Award-winning series Battlestar Galactica; Capt./Cmdr. Sharon Raydor in TNT’s franchise drama series The Closer and in Major Crimes; and the mysterious widow Ruby Goldfarb in Fargo on FX.

As an advocate, she has used her voice to support The National Lyme Disease Association (spokesperson), Autism Speaks, Sunshine Kids, Ocean Park Community Center and Everett Company Stage School in Providence, R.I. She recently aided the fundraising effort for The Water Protectors Legal Collective, devoted to finding legal representation for Americans arrested during the Dakota Access Pipeline protests at the Standing Rock Indian Reservation.

Kathy Payne joined Amazon in March to lead the content acquisition team focused on live television channels for Amazon Channels. Over the course of her career, she has been at the forefront of transforming the consumer television experience, negotiating video programming rights from virtually every major media company over 25 years.

Before she joined Amazon, Payne was chief programming officer at Suddenlink Communications (now part of Altice USA) and before that, she was VP of content acquisition and an assistant general counsel at Cox Communications.

Payne served on the board of Women in Cable & Telecommunications for seven years, chairing it for two years. She has received several industry and corporate awards for leadership, commitment to customers and cost-mitigation efforts. In her spare time, she enjoys spending time with her husband and two daughters and loves adventure travel, most recently trekking in Peru and Nepal and exploring Cuba and Argentina.

LOS ANGELES — The 2016 LEA Awards, hosted by the Women in Cable Telecommunications (WICT) Southern California chapter, is gearing up to be a night to remember.

On Thursday (Nov. 10), hundreds of media professionals will converge in Hollywood to honor the five LEA (Leadership, Education and Advocacy) Awards recipients and recognize the work they do to empower women leaders in entertainment and communications. But that’s not all that’s in store for attendees.

WICT Southern California has enlisted industry veteran and former Style Network president Salaam Coleman Smith to give the evening’s keynote address. She brings more than 25 years of experience working with some of the most powerful brands in entertainment, including The Walt Disney Co., NBCUniversal and Viacom.

Maria Brennan, current president and CEO of Women in Cable Telecommunications and former president of American Women in Radio and Television, will also be featured as a guest speaker. Actor and comedian Elon Gold will kick off the festivities and keep the crowd laughing as the evening’s master of ceremonies.

2016 LEA AWARDS RECIPIENTS

Toby Berlin

President, School of Toby

Toby Berlin is the founder and president of The School of Toby, a media consultancy that supports programmers, MVPDs, cable networks and institutional investors. She provides advice on distribution negotiations, strategic planning, business development and financial and contractual support. She also consults on regulatory compliance, content acquisition, packaging, pricing and crisis management.

Berlin was one of the first members of the Sony PlayStation Vue launch team, engaged to provide foundational cable distribution knowledge to the organization’s TV service that streams live TV, movies and sports across a variety of devices. She continues to consult with Sony on content acquisitions and strategic partnerships.

Previously, Berlin spent 15 years as VP of programming acquisitions for DirecTV. During her tenure with the satellite-TV provider, she oversaw programming acquisitions and negotiations across numerous categories including Spanish-language, international services, general entertainment, shopping, pay-per-view events, local into local, airborne and music services. She also founded and served as president of the company’s first employee resource group, the Women’s Leadership Exchange.

Berlin earned her juris doctor from the Southwestern School of Law as a student in the SCALE program, an intensive two-year undertaking. She has an undergraduate business degree from the University of Miami.

Del J. Heintz

Senior Director, State Government Affairs, Western Region, Charter Communications

Del J. Heintz is highly respected as a strategic planner, problem solver and team-builder. His talent as a motivator and mentor has been honed over a 30 year career in telecommunications. Since 2007, Heintz has been the California and Wisconsin state director for government affairs for Charter Communications, covering elected officials, community-based organizations and educational leaders in hundreds of communities. Well-versed in the analysis of legislation and regulations, Heintz sets the strategic direction for his department and develops key initiatives. He has also led community outreach projects with the company’s public relations and sales departments. He is part of the executive committee and currently serves as the treasurer of the California Cable Telecommunications Association.

Before joining Charter, Heintz spent 13 years at Time Warner Cable as the director of government affairs and general manager of operations in Southern California. There, he oversaw political, community and public relations while forging relationships with elected officials. Prior to TWC, he held positions at several networks, including A&E.

Heintz has been influential in various educational businesses and nonprofit organizations. Through his interaction with elected officials, community leaders and local philanthropists, he has executed numerous fundraising events. Del earned his degree in business administration from the University of Washington in Seattle, and has an honorary degree from Orange Coast College.

Nadya Ichinomiya

Director of IT, Television Marketing, Sony Pictures Entertainment

Starting with a business degree from the University of Southern California, Nadya Ichinomiya cut her corporate teeth at IBM in sales and management. At age 27, she became vice president of Electronic Data Systems (now Hewlett Packard) in Frankfurt, Germany, shattering the glass ceiling as the highest-ranking woman in the region and youngest VP worldwide (of 117,000 employees).

From computer screens to movie screens, she changed course and rebooted her career as a Hollywood producer.

After five years working with Bonnie Hunt in movies and TV (as a producer on ABC’s Life With Bonnie) Ichinomiya returned to the corporate world, joining MGM in TV distribution.

Currently, she is director of information techonology at Sony Pictures, leading teams that create world-class mobile apps and websites to support TV shows such as The Blacklist, Outlander and Shark Tank.

Two years ago, Ichinomiya co-founded Women In Technology: Hollywood, a cross-media and entertainment initiative with 600-plus members from all the major studios, and is also co-chair of Women in Technology at Sony Pictures. Each group’s mission is to empower women to expand their professional development and build their network, as well as to encourage girls to consider a career in technology, whether in coding or code-adjacent roles in project management or business analysis.

Donna Thomas

Senior Vice President, Studio Sales, Vubiquity

Donna Thomas is a seasoned media and entertainment executive with a passion for content. A powerful business driver, she currently serves as senior vice president of sales at Vubiquity and is responsible for the company’s studio and distributor clients.

An expert in the digital media space, Thomas has worked every aspect of the content supply chain from creation through distribution. Prior to Vubiquity, she served as vice president of sales at Technicolor, as senior VP, distribution at Deluxe Entertainment Services and as senior VP of national accounts for Discovery Networks. She is also the founder of the Thomas Angel Foundation, which partners with improv comedy troupe Upright Citizens Brigade to award scholarships to women in comedy. Since the foundation’s inception, more than $150,000 has been awarded.

Thomas is a performer at heart. A lover of comedy, you can find her performing throughout Los Angeles on any given night with one of her improv teams. She recently completed a sold out run of her solo show, “From Southern Belle to Mrs. Cartel,” at the Hollywood Fringe Festival and was a finalist in the New York New Works Festival.

Erika Nolting—WICT SoCal Board Member of the Year

Enterprise Client Executive, Neudesic

Erika Nolting is an enterprise client executive in sales at Neudesic, a technology and management consulting company that helps businesses focused on digital modernization and transformation. She is responsible for cultivating and managing relationships with businesses seeking to leverage the power of technology.

Nolting has partnered with many executives on their strategic software development and change initiatives across a wide range of industries, including media and entertainment, healthcare, retail, and finance throughout California and the Western region of the U.S.

Nolting evolved into the technology industry after seven years at Disney and ESPN. While serving as an account executive on major U.S. cable content distribution licensing negotiations and marketing partnerships, she also was a member of task forces that helped develop and launch new digital distribution user experiences, including the Watch ESPN, Watch Disney and Watch ABC Family Web and mobile applications. During her tenure with the company, she also helped develop ESPN’s syndication business and worked on ESPN’s ad sales team in account management and operations of over 25 brands advertising on ESPN’s cable networks.

She holds a bachelor of arts in communications from Cornell University, where she graduated summa cum laude with distinction in research. She currently resides in Redondo Beach, Calif.

The Women in Cable Telecommunications (WICT) Southern California Chapter has announced its 2016 LEA Awardwinners, who will be honored at an awards gala on Nov. 10 at the Taglyan Complex in Hollywood.

Recipients of the prestigious 2016 LEA Awards include:

• Toby Berlin, president, School of Toby
• Del J. Heintz, senior director, state government affairs, Charter Communications Western Region
• Nadya Ichinomiya, director of IT, Television Marketing, Sony Pictures Entertainment
• Donna Thomas, senior vice president, studio sales, Vubiquity
• Erika Nolting, enterprise client executive, Neudesic, and Board Member of the Year

"WICT SoCal is thrilled to continue the tradition of honoring five outstanding individuals who lead by example and inspire us all,” said LEA Awards co-chair Rachel Richman. "This award is all that much more special because WICT SoCal relies on peers in the industry to submit nominations, and the winners are chosen by a committee comprised of past recipients.  It’s truly peer-driven recognition.”

The WICT SoCal LEA Awards are recognized as one of the most well-respected and prestigious events in the Southern California entertainment industry. The event will feature a celebrity Master of Ceremonies, keynote remarks from an industry leader and speeches by each award recipient. WICT SoCal said it expects to draw several hundred cable, programming and technology innovators who will converge to celebrate the recipients for what they have accomplished in their careers and the work they do to support, advocate and develop women leaders in media.

"In the often challenging and ever-changing entertainment industry, WICT is very proud to continue to recognize individuals that stand out and make us all proud to be in this business," said Helene Juceam,president of WICT SoCal.

Fox Networks, Charter Communications and Discovery are the event sponsors. Additional information, including sponsorship availability, can be found at www.socalwict.org. To buy tickets for the 2016 LEA Awards, visit http://leaawards2016rsvp.com.

With 10,000 members nationally, WICT is the oldest and largest professional association serving women in the cable and telecommunications industry.

Comedian and actress Kira Soltanovich will be the emcee and veteran industry executive Bridget Baker, formerly of NBCUniversal and now president of Baker Media, will provide the keynote address at the 2015 LEA Awards, set for Thursday evening (Nov. 12) at the Taglyan Complex in Los Angeles.

The 23rd annual awards gala, presented by the Southern California chapter of Women in Cable & Telecommunications, will honor five industry veterans for their outstanding contributions to the cable telecommunications industry.

A LEA Award is one of the most prestigious honors one can receive in the Southern California entertainment business.

The five honorees are:

Sherry Brennan, Senior Vice President, Distribution, Fox Networks;

Dale Hopkins, Executive Vice President, Distribution, Game Show Network;

Gail Kodama, Senior Sales Director, Charter Communications;

Suzanne Schlundt, Vice President of Marketing — West Region, Cox Communications; and 

Board Member of the Year:Emilio Rangel, Creative Supervisor, Time Warner Cable Media.

Born in the Soviet Union and raised in San Francisco, emcee Kira Soltanovich has hosted her own Showtime comedy special (Here Comes Trouble); was a series regular in Oxygen’s Girls Behaving Badly; and was the recurring voice of “The Photo Booth” on The Tonight Show With Jay Leno. She’s also written for series on TV Land and Disney Channel and appears in comedy festivals around the world.

For more information about the event, visit www.socalwict.org.

SHERRY BRENNAN

Senior Vice President, Distribution,Fox Networks

Sherry Brennan is responsible for developing multiplatform growth strategies for FN’s video products, exploring potential new business models with alternative platform distributors, and contributing to FN’s long range digital strategy. She also oversees analysis of video-consumption trends and the changing value equation in the new multiplatform landscape, works closely with FN’s business development team on new channel ideas and acquisitions, and helps manage the strategy behind Fox’s investment in Hulu.

Brennan joined FN in 2005 as vice president of sales strategy and development. In that role, Brennan created strategic sales initiatives with the division’s top video distributors and worked closely with FN’s business-development team on new channel ideas.

Earlier Brennan spent seven years with Cablevision Systems in Bethpage, N.Y., as vice president, PPV and enhanced video products, and as programming consultant for the HDTV satellite service, Voom. Prior to Cablevision, she served as director of operations for Los Angeles’s Falcon Cable TV.

DALE HOPKINS

Executive Vice President, Distribution,GSN

Dale Hopkins has more than 20 years of deep C-level experience — including positions as CEO, chief operating officer and chief marketing officer — with digital and traditional high-growth media conglomerates such as Comcast, BSkyB, Star TV, Liberty Media, DirecTV, Sony and NBC. She has built and managed successful multimillion-dollar digital and traditional media companies with total invested and realized capital of more than $2 billion. These include E!, Style, G4, g4tv.com, eonline.com, GSN, CNBC and iwin.com.

She joined multimedia content provider GSN, owned by Sony and DirecTV, in 2009. As head of distribution, she works closely with the key decision-makers at top satellite and cable companies. Previously, she was executive VP and chief marketing officer for GSN. Prior to GSN, Hopkins served as interim CEO of CGS (Championship Gaming Series), a co-venture of DirecTV, BSkyB and Star TV. She spent seven years (including as COO) at the G4 network. She has also held executive positions at E! Entertainment Television, CNBC and CBS.

GAIL KODAMA

Senior Sales Director,Charter Communications

Gail Kodama serves in the Spectrum Business organization, the business-services unit of cable provider Charter Communications. In her current role, she is responsible for support of sales, operations, and process initiatives for the SMB organization nationally for the SMB space under Charter executive vice president Jon Hargis.

She has been with Charter for more than 10 years, starting out as a sales manager in Southern California in 2005 and then promoted to director for California and then a senior director for the West Region at the cable provider.

She has carried out key roles within the Charter organization, such as supporting the launch of All Digital, launching the Channel Partner Programs and migration of the SMB organization in 2015.

Kodama has been in the telecommunications industry for more than 18 years, starting out by “carrying a bag” as an account manager for a regional CLEC, and advancing to manager and then to regional director.

She continues to mentor and coach key sales people within the Charter organization.

SUZANNE SCHLUNDT

Vice President of Marketing — West,Cox Communications

Suzanne Schlundt’s territory includes San Diego, Orange County, Palos Verdes, Santa Barbara, Arizona and Las Vegas. She is responsible for the field execution of the cable company’s national marketing strategy, as well as the launch of new products and product enhancements.

Schlundt, who joined Cox in December 2012, has more than 20 years of marketing experience in fast-paced, highly competitive consumer industries including the restaurant, consumer product goods and entertainment sectors. Her background includes research, brand strategy, product development and integrated marketing communications.

Earlier, she was vice president of client services for Blueocean Market Intelligence, a global-market research and consulting company. She has also held leadership positions with Disney Consumer Products, Jack-in-the-Box and Mattel. She has a bachelor of arts degree from Occidental College and an MBA from the University of Southern California. She lives in San Diego with her husband, Dave, and two daughters.

EMILIO RANGEL

Creative Supervisor,Time Warner Cable Media

Emilio Rangel never saw the inside of a traditional classroom until he attended college. With his siblings, he was homeschooled by his mother where, at a young age, he discovered his passion in the creative arts. Educated with a bachelor’s degree in liberal arts from Thomas Aquinas College, he went on to graduate from California State University, Fullerton with a graduate degree in graphic design.

Throughout his nine years at Time Warner Cable Media, Rangel has proven to be an integral member of the corporate marketing team as creative supervisor. He spends his days working with his team on the TWC Media brand within projects that span from print, on-air, digital, social media, and events. He manages the brand in 46 markets.

His experience expands beyond the media and marketing world; he also wored a professional wedding cake decorator while in his early 20s. He resides in Belmont Shore, Calif., where he can be found enjoying a run along the beach, freeing space on his DVR, or traveling to an adventurous place.