Michael Riley
takes over at ABC Family
It's a surprising pick: He comes from Radio Disney
By Louisa Ada Seltzer
Aug 31, 2010
Within hours of Steve McPherson's surprise resignation, ABC had his replacement at the ready: Paul Lee, president of ABC Family.
But it took parent company Disney a few more weeks to find Lee's replacement at ABC Family, and the pick is a surprising one. It's Michael Riley, who moves to the hot cable network from his most recent stint in radio.
In fact, Riley has little experience with original TV programming, which has become the bread and butter at ABC Family during its recent ratings rise with original shows like "The Secret Life of An American Teenager," "Huge" and "Pretty Little Liars."
Riley did work for Turner Broadcasting System in Europe before joining Disney, but for the past two years he's headed up Radio Disney. But that lack of experience may be by design.
The 40-year-old Riley seems to be part of a new trend in television to bring in fresh eyes to an industry that's often been accused of recycling the same ideas.
Last year News Corp. shocked the broadcast industry by putting Peter Rice, late of Fox Searchlight, a movie production company, in charge of Fox Broadcasting entertainment division.
The move hasn't resulted in any major shakeups, but Fox has retained its first-place crown among adults 18-49.
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