ViacomCBS Sets Lineup for Ad Sales Team

ViacomCBS reorganized its ad sales team a month after Viacom and CBS combined and top sales executives from units including Pluto TV, Pop and Smithsonian Channel will be leaving the network.

Jo Ann Ross, who had been with CBS before the merger and was given the top job at the combined company over Viacom’s Sean Moran, will continue to have former CBS executives David Lawenda, John Bogusz, Linda Rene, Dave Morris and Chris Simon reporting to her.

She will also have former Viacom executives Steve Ellis, Karen Phillips, John Halley and Louis Carr reporting to her.

Related: ViacomCBS Shuffles Execs Running International Units

Several senior executives will be leaving the company. They include Valerie Bischak, executive VP of ad solutions at Viacom; Mary Ellen Bottone, senior VP, ad sales, Smithsonian Channel; Rich Calacci, chief revenue officer, Pluto TV; Michael DuPont, executive VP, ad sales, Pop TV; Bryson Gordon, executive VP of advanced advertising at Viacom; and David Paschkes, executive VP and managing director, CBS Experiences.

Reporting to Halley, who was previously named chief operating officer, advertising revenue and executive VP, advanced marketing solutions for ViacomCBS, are Russ Behrman, executive VP, sales strategy, planning and administration; Mike Dean, senior VP, advanced advertising and automation; and Dario Spina, executive VP and chief marketing officer, Viacom Velocity. 

Jon Lafayette

Jon has been business editor of Broadcasting+Cable since 2010. He focuses on revenue-generating activities, including advertising and distribution, as well as executive intrigue and merger and acquisition activity. Just about any story is fair game, if a dollar sign can make its way into the article. Before B+C, Jon covered the industry for TVWeek, Cable World, Electronic Media, Advertising Age and The New York Post. A native New Yorker, Jon is hiding in plain sight in the suburbs of Chicago.