Channel 4 Ponders Hughes To Take Over Chairmanship

Channel 4 is understood to have shortlisted former Coca-Cola executive, Penny Hughes, for the role of chairman following the departure of Vanni Treves.

Reports suggest that Hughes, who quit her £250,000 post as the first woman president of Coca-Cola nine years ago, has been approached by Channel 4 to take up one of the most high-profile jobs in UK broadcasting.

According to the Observer, other shortlisted candidates for the £66,000 a year non-executive position include Orange founder Hans Snook, former Arcadia chief executive Stuart Rose and Guardian Media Group boss, Bob Phillis.

A number of other high-profile figures are also believed to be under consideration for the role including Liberty Media’s Miranda Curtis, MM02 chairman David Varney and former Emap chairman Sir Robin Miller.

It is understood that media super-regulator Ofcom will pass the name of the successful candidate to Culture Secretary, Tessa Jowell, who is expected to green-light the decision sometime later this week.

Channel 4 has had a rough ride recently and the latest audience figures from BARB show that the channel saw its overall share of viewing dip below the ten percent mark during 2003 for the first time in over a decade (see Channel 4 Sees Audience Share Dip During 2003).

Channel Four: 020 7396 4444 www.channel4.com

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