Discovery CEO David Zaslav’s total compensation for 2020 was $37.7 million, down 18% from $45.8 million in 2019, according to a proxy statement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission Friday.
The big change in Zaslav’s pay was that he received no option award for 2020. Last year, he received nearly $7 million in options.
“Zaslav provided extraordinary leadership during a time of unprecedented challenge and delivered against our strategic priorities,” according to a report by the Discovery’s board’s compensation committee. “ In addition, Mr. Zaslav provided exceptional leadership with respect to the expansion of our direct-to-consumer business and the successful launch of Discovery Plus in several international markets during 2020 and the preparation for the January 2021 U.S. launch of the product.”
The ratio of the CEO’s compensation to the media employee’s total compensation at Discovery was 565 to 1.
Also Read: Discovery Saw $400 Million NextGen Loss Building Discovery Plus
CFO Gunnar Wiedenfels' total compensation was $6.9 million, down from $7.4 million.
Bruce Campbell, chief development, distribution and legal officer, saw his competition hold steady at $9.1 million.
JB Perrette, president and CEO of Discovery International, got $10.4 million, down from $14.5 million.
Peter Faricy, who joined the company in 2018 as head of Discovery’s direct to consumer business and left in 2020, got $5.3 million for 2020.
