The Paley Center for Media has launched a Television Awards Planning Committee, charged with exploring opportunities to create an awards alternative to the Emmys, reportedly encompassing all dayparts and genres.
Steve Mosko, president of Sony Pictures Television, Tony Vinciquerra, chairman-CEO of the Fox Networks Group, and Dick Lippin, chairman and chief executive of the Lippin Group, have been named to co-chair the committee.
Frank A. Bennack Jr., chairman of the Paley Center’s board of trustees, announced the appointments to the newly formed committee on Wednesday.
The three co-chairmen already are involved with the Paley Center, Vinciquerra as a co-chair of the L.A. branch’s board of governors and a trustee of the Paley Center in New York, Mosko and Lippin as members of the L.A. branch’s board of governors.
“The formation of this planning committee is to explore the opportunities that we believe exist to create an awards program or franchise of programs,” Pat Mitchell, president-CEO of the Paley Center for Media, said in a statement.
“We are very fortunate that a portion of Mr. Paley’s funding of our institution envisioned awards as a way to recognize excellence and innovation in programming and to celebrate the best in the media business," she added. "We are also fortunate to have among our trustees and serving on the board of governors in Los Angeles, the top executives from broadcast, cable, advertising and digital media companies, and with their enthusiastic support, we are in an excellent position to create a new and exciting awards program.”
Mosko said the committee will be made up of industry professionals with experience "in virtually all of the areas associated with developing and producing television awards programming.”
In just the first few hours after the committee’s formation was announced, Mosko told TheWrap, the response from the industry had been "phenomenal."
Vinciquerra said, “The economics of television and our industry have changed radically in the last few years. So, too, have the tastes of the television viewing audience. Our goal will be to marry the benefits that can accrue to our business by showcasing its content in the best ways possible while making our awards programming highly entertaining and appealing television.”
