Multichannel News has announced the 2019 class of Wonder Women, a group of leading executives in multichannel TV and media businesses who will be honored at a luncheon event in New York City on March 20, 2019.

The luncheon, at the New York Marriott Marquis, is co-sponsored by the New York chapter of Women in Cable Telecommunications. Upwards of 800 people attend this annual celebratory gathering.

Members of the 21st annual Wonder Women class will soon be joined by a class of Women to Watch. Profiles of the honorees will appear in the Jan. 28, 2019, edition of Multichannel News.

Here are the 2019 Wonder Women:

Lori Fink, Chief Legal Officer, Xandr (AT&T’s advanced advertising unit).

Michele Thornton Ghee, Senior Vice President, Media Sales, BET Her, A Viacom Company.

Madhu Goel Southworth, Senior Vice President, Legal & Business Affairs, AMC Network and Sundance TV.

Margaret Lazo, Chief Human Resources Officer, Univision Communications.

Alison Overholt, Vice President, Editor-in-Chief, ESPN The Magazine, espnW, and The ESPYS, ESPN.

Francesca Orsi, Executive Vice President and Co-Head of Drama Programming, HBO.

Laura Nathanson, Executive Vice President, Revenue & Operations, Disney Advertising Sales, The Walt Disney Co.

Jo Ann Ross, President and Chief Advertising Revenue Officer, CBS.

Melissa Tolchin, Senior Vice President, Partner Marketing, Content Distribution, NBCUniversal.

Christine Whitaker, Senior Vice President -- Keystone Region, Comcast Cable.

Michelle Wilson, Co-President, WWE.

Leigh Woisard, Senior Vice President, Public Affairs, Cox Communications.

For more information about Wonder Women and the event, please visit the mcnwonderwomen site.

This story was revised and updated.

The 20th anniversary Wonder Women luncheon takes place today in New York City, where 12 leading female executives in multichannel TV and related businesses will be celebrated, along with 12 Women to Watch and one Woman of Influence.

More than 800 are expected to attend: to track mentions from the event on Twitter, please monitor the #MCNWW2018 hashtag and follow @MultiNews and @MCNWonderWomen.

The 12 members of the 2018 class of Wonder Women are (alphabetically):

• Darcy Antonellis, CEO, Vubiquity
• Kerry Brockhage, Executive Vice President & Chief Counsel, Content Distribution, NBCUniversal
• Christa D'Alimonte, Executive Vice President, General Counsel & Secretary, Viacom
• Stephanie Druley, ESPN Senior Vice President, Event & Studio Production 
• Marianne Gambelli, President, Ad Sales, Fox News Channel and Fox Business Network
• Sarah Gitchell, Senior Vice President, Deputy General Counsel & Chief Counsel - Content Acquisition, Comcast Cable
• Beth Main, Senior Vice President, Domestic Network Distribution, HBO
• Jennifer Mirgorod, Executive Vice President of Content Distribution & Strategic Partnerships, Turner
• Debra O'Connell, Executive Vice President, Sales & Marketing, Disney|ABC Television Group
• Elaine Paul, Chief Financial Officer, Strategy & Business Development, Hulu
• Loretta Polk, Vice President & Associate General Counsel, NCTA - The Internet & Television Association
• Josie Thomas, Executive Vice President, Chief Diversity & Inclusion Officer, CBS Corp.

Read More: MCN Names 2018 Women to Watch Class

Also set to be honored is ESPN SportsCenter anchor Hannah Storm, the 2018 Woman of Influence.

Showtime Networks executive Sara Clarke is set to receive the inaugural Career Catalyst Award from WICT New York, a co-sponsor of the event. 

Watch: 12 Takeaways From MCN's Wonder Women Class of 2018

For more information on the 2018 Wonder Women class and event, including registration information, visit http://mcnwonderwomen.com. 

For comprehensive editorial coverage of Wonder Women coverage over the years, click here.

New York City TV Week is coming up, starting with the 27th annual Broadcasting & CableHall of Fame on Monday, Oct. 16. For more about NYCTVWK, click here.

Hannah Storm, the ESPN SportsCenter anchor and award-winning journalist, producer and director, has been named the 2018 “Woman of Influence” by Multichannel News. She will be honored along with the 2018 classes of Wonder Women and Women to Watch at the upcoming 20th-annual Wonder Women luncheon on Thursday, March 22, at the Ziegfeld Ballroom in New York City.

Storm, who joined ESPN in 2008 and previously was an anchor and correspondent at NBC Sports, CNN and CBS News, is a pioneer in the field of sports broadcasting for women, an advocate for children’s issues and a published author.

In addition to anchoring various editions of SportsCenter, she has co-hosted many of the network’s marquee events including: Wimbledon, the U.S. Open, the NBA Finals, the New York Marathon, Veteran’s Day, the Super Bowl, the NCAA College Football Playoff National Championship and the Rose Parade on ABC.

Storm also has conducted sit-down interviews with many prominent figures in the sports world from the NBA, NFL, NASCAR, MLB, college football and many other sports both in prime-time specials and on SportsCenter. In 2012 she co-anchored daredevil Nik Wallenda’s unprecedented live Niagara Falls tightrope walk for ABC News. She has also served as a correspondent for ABC’s 20/20, where she’s done pieces with Shark Tank stars Robert Herjavec and Kevin O’Leary.

Prior to ESPN, Storm handled premier events during her time at NBC Sports (2002-2007) and CNN (1989-1992), where she was the first female host of CNN Sports Tonight.

MCNWW 2018: Celebrating Media’s Influential Women

At NBC Sports, in addition to hosting four Olympics and the “NBA on NBC,” Storm became the first woman in American television history to solo host a broadcast network’s sports series when she hosted NBC’s Major League Baseball coverage, including three World Series.

Taking a break from sports broadcasting, Storm spent five years (2002-2007) at CBS News as host of The Early Show, covering numerous major news events ranging from the 2004 Presidential election to the Iraqi War and Hurricane Katrina. While at CBS News, Storm also hosted shows for the award-winning CBS newsmagazine, 48 Hours, and served as co-host for the network’s coverage of the Thanksgiving Day Parade.

Following a passion to direct and produce films, in 2008 Storm created Brainstormin’ Productions. She has produced, executive produced and directed several projects for ESPN and espnW including: Unmatched, for ESPN’s Peabody Award-winning “30 for 30” film series; Shaq & Dale, for the SEC Network/ESPN/ABC; Love & Payne, the inaugural espnW “Nine for IX” series short film; Swoopes, for ESPN’s award-winning “Nine for IX” series; and Moving the Goal, for espnW’s “HERoics” series, part of the 2011 FIFA Women’s World Cup coverage. Storm has also produced branded content for ESPN, espnW, and ESPN.com including: Journeys & Victories; Beyond Reason; Stories of Will; The Drive series; and The Journey series.

Watch MCN: 12 Takeaways From MCN's Wonder Women Class of 2018

For her work, she has received several Gracie Awards and, in 2017, The Marist College Center for Sports Communication presented Storm with its second Lifetime Excellence in Sports Communication Award.

Born with a port wine stain underneath her left eye, Storm has become an advocate for children and parents of children suffering from debilitating and disfiguring vascular birthmarks. In 2008 she founded the Hannah Storm Foundation to raise awareness, fund treatment and provide educational information for vascular malformations. To date, children from the United States, China, the Republic of Georgia and Slovenia have received surgery funding through her foundation.

Storm also has written two books: “Notre Dame Inspirations,” and “Go Girl!: Raising Healthy, Confident and Successful Daughters through Sports.” For her work as an author, Literacy Advance of Houston honored her as a Champion of Literacy. She has also contributed to a variety of other books and written extensively for several magazines, including Cosmopolitan, Nick Jr., Family Circle, Child and Notre Dame Magazine. She is a graduate of the University of Notre Dame and the mother of three daughters with her husband, Dan Hicks of NBC Sports.

Read More: Complete Coverage of MCN's Wonder Women  

Hannah Storm is the second recipient of the Woman of Influence award, given to a prominent individual in the TV industry who continues to lead by example and action, inspiring others and helping to establish the next generation of women in prominent industry roles. The first honoree, in 2017, was Lesley Stahl of CBS News, the correspondent for 60 Minutes.

The Wonder Women luncheon honors prominent executives in multichannel TV and related businesses. Co-sponsored by the New York chapter of Women in Cable Telecommunications, this year’s luncheon also includes the inaugural Career Catalyst Award, presented by WICT New York. This year’s recipient is Showtime Networks senior vice president Sara Clarke.

For more about the luncheon and Wonder Women, please visit mcnwonderwomen.com.

Sara Clarke, a Showtime executive and active member of the New York chapter of Women in Cable Telecommunications, is the first named recipient of the WICT New York Career Catalyst Award. She will receive the award at the upcoming 20th anniversary Wonder Women luncheon in New York, the annual Multichannel News event that WICT New York co-sponsors. For more about the 2018 class of Wonder Women and the celebratory event on March 22 at the Ziegfeld Ballroom, visit mcnwonderwomen.com.

WICT New York created the award to salute a chapter member who has demonstrated exemplary mentorship in the industry and in the New York metro area. The honoree must have a history of mentoring individuals, participating in or leading organized mentoring programs and being a champion for mentorship. Clarke, who is senior vice president, corporate strategy, analysis and collaboration at Showtime Networks, has mentored more than a dozen women in WICT and she more than fulfills that criteria, according to chapter president Monica Bloom. 

READ MORE: Celebrating Media's Influential Women

"Sara Clarke, one of our most dedicated members, has demonstrated outstanding devotion to helping women recognize their potential and positioning them for success," Bloom told Multichannel News. "She has held leadership roles within our organization and has developed partnerships that allow us to pay it forward into the community as well. She is a true role model of effective mentoring and we are excited to honor her this year.”

Clarke, the chapter said, led its Prime Access Mentoring program from 2011 to 2014, created a new mentoring program for entry level members called Mentoring Circle in 2013, has been actively involved in the Young Women’s Leadership Network for 12 years and has coached eight women at the Grace Institute. Her philosophy on mentorship aligns with the WICT mission to empower others to reach their potential, the chapter said. Clarke describes her approach as being a "mentoring multiplier," directly assisting mentees and encouraging others to lend their expertise and time.

As part of the award, a donation will be made to Grace Institute on the honoree's behalf, WICT New York said. Grace Institute is an employment center that "empowers low-income women in the New York area to achieve employment and economic self-sufficiency by providing job-skills training, counseling, placement services and continuous learning opportunities that lead to upwardly mobile employment," according to its website.

The editors of Multichannel News have announced the 2018 class of Wonder Women — the 20th anniversary class — ahead of a celebratory luncheon event on Thursday, March 22. The luncheon, co-sponsored by the New York chapter of Women in Cable Telecommunications, will be at the new Ziegfeld Ballroom in New York City.

Since 1999, MCN's Wonder Women has celebrated the accomplishments of industry decision-makers who have helped pave the way for younger generations of women in the evolving worlds of multichannel TV and related media businesses.

The 12 members of the 2018 class of Wonder Women are (alphabetically):

• Darcy Antonellis, CEO, Vubiquity
• Kerry Brockhage, Executive Vice President & Chief Counsel, Content Distribution, NBCUniversal
• Christa D'Alimonte, Executive Vice President, General Counsel & Secretary, Viacom
• Stephanie Druley, ESPN Senior Vice President, Event & Studio Production 
• Marianne Gambelli, President, Ad Sales, Fox News Channel and Fox Business Network
• Sarah Gitchell, Senior Vice President, Deputy General Counsel & Chief Counsel - Content Acquisition, Comcast Cable
• Beth Main, Senior Vice President, Domestic Network Distribution, HBO
• Jennifer Mirgorod, Executive Vice President of Content Distribution & Strategic Partnerships, Turner
• Debra O'Connell, Executive Vice President, Sales & Marketing, Disney|ABC Television Group
• Elaine Paul, Chief Financial Officer, Strategy & Business Development, Hulu
• Loretta Polk, Vice President & Associate General Counsel, NCTA - The Internet & Television Association
• Josie Thomas, Executive Vice President, Chief Diversity & Inclusion Officer, CBS Corp.

The 2018 Class of Women to Watch will be announced separately.

For more information on the 2018 Wonder Women class and event, including registration information, visit http://mcnwonderwomen.com. 

For comprehensive editorial coverage of Wonder Women coverage over the years, click here.

New York City TV Week is coming up, starting with the 27th annual Broadcasting & CableHall of Fame on Monday, Oct. 16. For more about NYCTVWK, click here. 

The editors of Multichannel News have announced the 2017 class of Wonder Women, ahead of a celebratory luncheon event on March 23. The luncheon, co-sponsored by the New York chapter of Women in Cable Telecommunications, will be at the New York Hilton Midtown. Read more about Wonder Women, including profiles of previous honorees, at this news page and learn more about the luncheon at this link. Watch a video recap of the 2016 luncheon here.

The 12 members of the 2017 class of Wonder Women will be profiled in the Jan. 30 edition of Multichannel News; they are (in alphabetical order):

Jana Bennett, president and general manager, History.

Sandra Dewey, president, TNT and TBS production and business affairs, head of Studio T, Turner Broadcasting System Inc.

Laura Gentile, senior vice president, espnW and women’s initiatives, ESPN.

Jessica Herrera-Flanigan, executive vice president of government and corporate affairs, Univision Communications Inc.

Colleen Langner, senior vice president, marketing operations, Cox Communications Inc.

Susanne McAvoy, executive vice president, marketing, creative, and communications, Crown Media Family Networks

Jamie Power, managing partner, Modi Media.

Linda Schupack, executive vice president of marketing, AMC and SundanceTV.

Myrna Soto, senior vice president and global chief information security officer, Comcast Corp.

Christina Spade, executive vice president and chief financial officer, Showtime Networks Inc.

Sandra Stern, president, Lionsgate Television Group.

Lisa Williams-Fauntroy, senior vice president for business and legal affairs, Discovery Communications.

The 2017 class of Women to Watch will be announced separately.

Editor's note: this story was updated on Dec. 9 to reflect a change in the class members, including the addition of Jamie Power. 

Linda Brodsky Cooper, whose long cable TV career included speechwriting for prominent industry executives and leadership of the Women in Cable TV& Telecommunications (WICT) organization, died on July 26 in Philadelphia. She was 76 and had battled cancer for several years.

Known professionally as Linda Brodsky, she is survived by her husband, Frank Cooper; both were inducted into the Cable TV Pioneers.

Brodsky's cable career began at the University of Pennsylvania, where she wrote a paper about the nascent "pay TV" industry in the 1960s. That led to a public relations and marketing job at Jerrold Electronics (later General Instruments and Motorola), from which she jumped to the operations side of the industry.

She was VP public relations for Warner Cable Corp. and speechwriter for Alfred Stern, its chairman/president in the early 1970s. She then moved to BroadBand Communications Inc., holding a similar role for nearly 15 years. 

Among her tasks at BroadBand was writing speeches for the legendary Irving B. Kahn, chairman of the company. When Kahn returned to the industry after serving a prison term in connection with earlier cable franchise activities, Brodsky drafted the speech he delivered to a state cable TV association meeting, starting, "As I was saying before I was so rudely interrupted..." The line brought down the house and eased Kahn's reentry to the cable business.

When that company was sold, Brodsky moved to Bresnan Communications, remaining there from 1991 to 2010, serveing as a consultant to chairman William J. Bresnan and providing speechwriting and PR strategy for the public affairs department.

Brodsky was a founding board member of WICT (national) and founding president of the New York chapter. She served as chairman of the National Cable and Telecommunications Association's public affairs committee in the late 1970s and early '80s, and was active in many other industry groups.

Brodsky's quick wit and passionate activism came through as executive producer and writer of "The Cable Follies," WICT’s annual satirical musical fundraiser for the cable industry from 1982 to 1985.

A video of Brodsky's oral history about her top-level cable recollections is in the Cable Center.

Brodsky also was active in Volunteers for Israel, where she provided non-military support services for the Israel Defense Forces for three weeks annually from 1991 to 1998, handling repair and maintenance of military vehicles.

Memorial arrangements have not yet been confirmed.

NEW YORK — “Stick with the people, always go with the people,” AMC Networks president of national advertising sales Arlene Manos said when it was her turn to share life lessons, career advice and a funny story or two as a Multichannel News Wonder Woman.

Manos, one of 13 executives in the current class of Wonder Women (as chosen by the editors of this magazine), followed her own advice 25 years ago in accepting a job officer as an account executive at A&E Network. She turned down a higher-paying position at a magazine she discreetly didn’t identify during her remarks at the celebratory luncheon last Thursday (March 10).

Manos got a promotion to management a year later. And she didn’t need to threaten violence, as fellow Wonder Woman Karen Grinthal, the Scripps Networks Interactive senior vice president of national ad sales, said she did in the late 1980s.

Grinthal told 700-plus attendees at the Hilton New York that she had been passed over for promotion to management three times when she started out at “male bastion” Turner Broadcasting System. When a fourth opportunity arose, she put aside the presentation she had prepared and got a baseball bat from the sports department. She held it over her boss’s head and told him, “This e_ ng job is mine — give it to me.”

“And that’s how I became a manager in the cable industry,” Grinthal said, in one of the day’s better punchlines.

Megan Clarken, president of global product leadership at Nielsen, and Cindi Hook, senior vice president, general auditor and global risk officer at Comcast, became business leaders after injuries short-circuited planned careers as, respectively, a track-and-field athlete and a dancer.

Clarken — who had left school at 16 and became “a broken-down athlete” in her late 20s — found in herself “a determination to be the very best there was at something, a resilience to never give up, a curiosity to listen, ask and learn — and an acknowledgement that you cannot do it on your own.”

Hook said that when it came time to choose a new path “shockingly, ‘general auditor’ and ‘global risk officer’ wasn’t on the menu of career choices.”

But it turns out the jobs require similar skills, she said. A mantra for ballerinas is, “If it doesn’t hurt, you’re not doing it right,” she said, adding, “When we are doing our work as auditors and risk evaluators, if getting to the right answer doesn’t sometimes hurt a bit, you’re not doing it right.”

Fox Group executive vice president of litigation Jill Ratner was a skilled soccer player whose love of sports led to a career in the law. While on the University of California at Los Angeles soccer team, she helped found a group that threatened to sue the school over failure to provide equal opportunities for men and women athletes. She learned about “teamwork, standing up for what I believe in, perseverance and the power of the law.”

Stephanie McMahon, chief brand officer of WWE and daughter of the wrestling entertainment firm’s chairman, Vince McMahon, and former, CEO Linda McMahon, told a story about learning that women shouldn’t feel they have to “do it all” all the time, and “it’s OK to let go a little bit and rely on our support systems to help care for our children.”

Her daughter, Murphy, was sad that McMahon was unable to be at school to see Murphy’s second-grade project about endangered sea turtles because of the Wonder Women luncheon. McMahon’s husband, wrestler Paul “Triple H” Levesque, filled in admirably, and father and daughter had a great bonding experience. “And now I get to go home and show them proof that Mommy really is a Wonder Woman.”

“All working women, mothers or not, are going to have to make personal sacrifices,” McMahon said. “It will never be an even balance. You do the best you can to prioritize and make it work.”

Pam Kaufman, the chief marketing officer and president of consumer products at Nickelodeon Group, recalled starting at Nick 18 years ago when she was “a young, naïve executive” who was eight months’ pregnant with her daughter, Amanda. She questioned whether or not she could handle a new job, a new company, leading a new team and still have “something left” for her family. It all worked out — and along the way she learned it’s important to always be nice to everyone, to stay curious and “don’t be afraid of what you don’t know.”

ESPN senior vice president of multimedia sales Patricia Betron said her mom, who returned to being a nurse to support her family after divorce, relied on babysitters, friends and relatives to help look after her four young kids. That was stressful on everyone, especially Betron and her siblings.

Then, in 2005, Betron served on an ESPN task force studying work-life balance issues — which, with support from key executives, led the company to build an on-site childcare center.

“I share this story with you today because, as we celebrate these Wonder Women, we celebrate how having women in high-ranking positions changes the conversation in our companies,” she said.

More of these stories — and those of fellow Wonder Women Nicole Buie, vice president of marketing at Cox Media; Holly Jacobs, EVP of U.S. reality and syndicated programming at Sony Pictures Television; Michelle Rice, EVP of content distribution and marketing at TV One; Savalle Sims, EVP and deputy general counsel at Discovery Communications; and Ellen Stone, EVP of marketing at Bravo and Oxygen Media — will be available as videos soon on mcnwonderwomen.com. Click here for photos from the luncheon. For more Wonder Women coverage, visit multichannel.com/mcnww.

The Multichannel News Wonder Women Class of 2016 will gather with the 2016 Women to Watch, their colleagues, friends and family, and the magazine's editors and publishers at the New York Hilton today to celebrate their selection as influential voices in cable.

The annual event, co-sponsored by WICT New York, begins at 11 a.m., with Shark Tank's Lori Greiner, HGTV's Egypt Sherrod (Property Virgins) and ESPN reporter Shelley Smith co-hosting the proceedings.

The editors of Multichannel News last December selected 2016's 13 Wonder Women and 13 Women to Watch. The Wonder Women being honored today are (in alphabetical order): Patricia Betron, ESPN; Nicole Buie, Cox Media; Megan Clarken, Nielsen; Karen Grinthal, Scripps Networks Interactive; Cindi Hook, Comcast; Holly Jacobs, Sony Pictures Television; Pam Kaufman, Nickelodeon; Arlene Manos, AMC Networks; Stephanie McMahon, WWE; Jill Ratner, Fox Group; Michelle Rice, TV One; Savalle Sims, Discovery Communications; Ellen Stone, Oxygen and Bravo Media.

The 2016 Women to Watch are (in alphabetical order): Margarita Black, Azteca America; Mary Campbell, QVC; Nina Facini, Time Warner Cable; Julie Fitzgerald, NCC Media; Jana Henthorn, The Cable Center; Alison Hoffman, Starz; Charisse Lillie, Comcast/Comcast Foundation; Kate O’Brian, Al Jazeera America; Stephanie Plasse, A+E Networks; Kristen Roberts, Crown Media Family Networks; Kristi Salmon, Mediacom Communications; Mona Scott-Young, Monami Entertainment; Christina Spade, Showtime Networks

Browse profiles of this year's Wonder Women and Women to Watch at the #mcnWW page, which features current and archival Wonder Women coverage, including the 2015 honoree profiles, reports from past luncheons and other stories. (Bookmark the page to check for updates as newly found archival material continues to be added.)

For details about the luncheon and to register, visit the Wonder Women event site, where you can also get bios of this year's honorees and hosts, watch videos of last year's event and view the honor roll of all Wonder Women dating back to 1999. Follow the event on Twitter via the hashtag #mcnWW2016 and by following @MultiNews, @MCNWonderWomen and @WICTNY.

The editors of Multichannel News have announced the 2016 class of Wonder Women.

The 13 women, who will appear in a congratulatory announcement in the upcoming edition of Multichannel News, comprise the 18th class of cable, telecommunications and related entertainment and technology executives to be so honored. Their profiles will appear in the Jan. 25, 2016, edition of the magazine, and they will be saluted at a luncheon event at the Hilton New York on Thursday, March 10, 2016. The event, as always, is co-sponsored by the New York chapter of Women In Cable Telecommunications.

More information -- including photos and bios of the honorees, event details, a roster of past Wonder Women and videos from the 2015 luncheon -- are available now at mcnwonderwomen.com. Keep that site bookmarked for future news, including celebrity hosts and an upcoming separate class of Women to Watch. 

Here is the 2016 class of Wonder Women (in alphabetical order).

Patricia Betron, Senior Vice President, Multimedia Sales, ESPN.
Nicole Buie, Vice President, Marketing, Cox Media.
Megan Clarken, Executive Vice President, Global Product Leadership, Nielsen.
Karen Grinthal, Senior Vice President, National Ad Sales, Scripps Networks Interactive.
Cynthia Hook, Senior Vice President, General Auditor and Global Risk Officer, Comcast.
Holly Jacobs, Executive Vice President, U.S. Reality And Syndicated Programming, Sony Pictures Television.
Pam Kaufman, Chief Marketing Officer and President, Consumer Products, Nickelodeon Group.
Arlene Manos, President, National Advertising Sales, AMC Networks.
Stephanie McMahon, Chief Brand Officer, WWE.
Jill Ratner, Senior Vice President, Litigation, Fox Group.
Michelle Rice, Executive Vice President, Content Distribution and Marketing, TV One.
Savalle Sims, Executive Vice President, Deputy General Counsel, Discovery Communications.
Ellen Stone, Executive Vice President, Marketing, Bravo and Oxygen Media.

This article was revised to correct Michelle Rice's title at TV One.

New York — From lighthearted praise by Univision’s Jennifer Ball for a role model, “the wicked witch of the West,” to a warm closing toast to “great women” by NBCUniversal’s Dana Zimmer, the 10th annual “Wonder Women” luncheon last week treated 875 attendees to a generous serving of good advice — and one notable confession.

Sherry Brennan, senior vice president of distribution strategy and development at Fox Networks, said she was on the board of Women in Cable Telecommunications’ New York chapter when the idea was first raised to single out Wonder Women in the cable industry.

“I was against the idea,” she said, to much laughter. “I said something like, ‘We have enough awards in this industry.’” (WICT New York cohosts the event, with Multichannel News, which selects the honorees.)

Brennan said she was outvoted. “And I just want to take this opportunity to publicly acknowledge that I was wrong. We need this award.”

Lessons learned: Two heads are better than one, and it’s important to lose gracefully.

Ball invoked the wicked witch because she played that part in a fourth-grade production of “The Wizard of Oz.”

But a teacher first cast her as a munchkin, because she was a small kid. Her mother complained and got young Jennifer the dual role of munchkin and witch. Ball said she’s also learned in her career that “you don’t have to play that role to be here.”

Suddenlink chief financial officer Mary Meduski originally wanted to be a doctor before becoming a banker and then a cable executive. That taught her “you have to love what you do and make a change if you don’t, even if that makes you the oldest Wonder Woman on the stage — just sayin’.”

Marissa Freeman, senior vice president of brand strategy and marketing communications at Time Warner Cable, observed: “There is a Wonder Woman inside all of you, even the men.”

Michelle Vicary, executive vice president of programming at Crown Media Family Networks, enthused: “I’m so lucky to be in an industry where women have some of the best jobs in the world.”

And Zimmer — who went last, alphabetically — acknowledged a shouted- out happy birthday and then ended her remarks with a toast: “Great women: may we know them, may we be them, may we hire them and may we raise them.”

Videos of all 12 Wonder Women speeches will be available on multichannel. com on Thursday (March 23).

Comcast EVP Cohen Ranks Among Top Obama ‘Bundlers’

There are some familiar media industry names in the latest list of “bundlers” for President Obama’s 2012 campaign.

Bundlers are contributors who go that extra mile, or in this case dollar, to, as OpenSecrets.org puts it, “turn to friends, associates, and, well, anyone who’s willing to give, and deliver the checks to the candidate in one big “bundle.” Though not required to report bundling by anyone but a registered lobbyist, President Obama agreed to report all bundlers who raised more than $50,000.

According to OpenSecrets, no Republican challengers have agreed to provide that data beyond the lobbyist reporting required by the Federal Elections Commission.

As of March 5, Comcast executive vice president David Cohen is high on the leader board, having bundled at least $500,000 in checks. Because of the way the bundled donations are reported, it is not clear how much above that level he went, other than it is north of a half million.

The Comcast exec — called out as a “wonder man” by Mika Brzezinski of MSNBC’s Morning Joe at last week’s Wonder Women luncheon — ranked third on the OpenSecrets list of top Obama bundlers, behind DreamWorks SKG’s Jeffrey Katzenberg and Chicagoan Fred Eychaner, on the basis of having given more than $1 million (individually and through family members) to federal candidates, parties and PACs in all election cycles since 1990.

A former chief of staff to Democratic Philadelphia Mayor Ed Rendell, Cohen hosted a fall fund-raiser for the president and the DNC at his home, and also hosted a fundraiser for Obama the first time around in 2008.

Also in the $500,000 club is Tom Wheeler, the former National Cable Television Association president and managing director of Core Capital Partners. He advised the Obama transition team and later was instrumental in advising the president to move back the DTV transition date.

Tennis Channel chief Ken Solomon also has served up the green at $500,000-plus. In 2008, he bundled in the $100,000-$200,000 range for Obama.

In the $200,000- $500,000 category you fi nd former Democratic FCC commissioner (a Clinton appointee) Susan Ness. She left the agency in 2001 and is currently a consultant. All in, folks from the TV/movie/ music spheres bundled at least $4.75 million, in fi fth place as a category behind lawyers, bankers, business services and real estate.

‘Lost Girl’ Chatter

Anna Silk: “That sex scene that Kris is talking about was almost like doing a stunt. I mean it was exhausting and I remember it was my birthday that day, do you remember that, Kris?

Kris Holden-Ried: “That’s right.”

Anna Silk: “I spent it nude covered in blood on top of you. It was a great way to spend my birthday.”

 — Overheard during a call with bloggers last week were Lost Girl’s Anna Silk and Kris Holden- Ried. The Canadian supernatural drama stars Silk as Bo, a succubus who feeds off sexual energy, and Holden-Ried as her love interest. Season 1 on Syfy ends tonight (March 19) at 10 p.m.