Valari Dobson Staab has been promoted to chairman, NBCUniversal Local, becoming the first chairman for the division, which includes NBC and Telemundo TV stations. She had been the president.
“Valari is an outstanding, innovative leader with a proven track record of success,” said Mark Lazarus, chairman, NBCUniversal Television and Streaming. “She has transformed our local business and is a valuable part of the NBCU management team.”
Staab joined NBCUniversal in 2011 as president of the NBC Owned Television Stations group. Two years later, she acquired oversight of the Telemundo-owned stations.
Earlier this month, NBC-owned stations announced the launch of their streaming news channels on Peacock, while Telemundo stations in some markets prepare to launch them later this year.
Last year, NBC’s regional sports networks were integrated with the owned stations. [NBCUniversal Local had said the RSNs plan to debut their own direct-to-consumer products later this year, and later said the statement was misleading. "Our DTC strategy is evolving as we assess options in each of the unique sports markets we serve. At this time, we don’t have any further details about launch plans including timing or markets," said NBCUniversal Local in a statement.]
The station group includes WNBC New York, WNJU New York, KNBC Los Angeles and WMAQ Chicago.
With Staab in the group president role, NBCLX, a streaming network for the next-generation news consumer, launched. The NBCUniversal Local division introduced advanced video advertising business NBC Spot On in early 2020.
Prior to joining NBCUniversal, Staab was president/general manager of KGO San Francisco, which is part of ABC.
She serves on the boards of the NBCUniversal Foundation, Television Bureau of Advertising (TVB) and the Broadcasters Foundation of America.
Staab was B+C’s Broadcaster of the Year in 2016. ■
