NBC PROMOTES DOUG VAUGHAN TO SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT, SPECIAL PROGRAMS AND ALTERNATIVE DEVELOPMENT, NBC ENTERTAINMENT WHILE MEREDITH AHR ADVANCES TO VICE PRESIDENT, ALTERNATIVE PROGRAMMING, DEVELOPMENT AND SPECIALS, NBC ENTERTAINMENT
BURBANK, Calif. � November 30, 2007 � NBC has promoted two key alternative and specials program executives as Doug Vaughan was named as Senior Vice President, Special Programs and Alternative Development, NBC Entertainment, while Meredith Ahr has been advanced to Vice President, Alternative Programming, Development and Specials, NBC Entertainment. The announcements were made today by Craig Plestis, Executive Vice President, Alternative Programming, Development and Specials, NBC Entertainment, to whom both report.
"This multi-faceted department is truly bi-coastal, and Doug is the �go-to' guy for reality and specials pitches in New York," said Plestis. "Doug is a consummate professional with a keen eye for shows that draw tremendous attention, awards and ratings."
"Meredith has demonstrated great creative instincts and the ability to spot buzz-worthy ideas," said Plestis. "Her understanding of international formats and passion for pushing the alternative genre to new heights has proven to be a winning formula."
Based in New York, Vaughan will be responsible for the majority of NBC's specials as well as several reality series. He also will be assigned to evaluate the network's reality program pitches and ideas originating from the East Coast. Most recently, Vaughan served as Vice President, Special Programs, News and Entertainment, since October 2005.
Vaughan will continue to oversee such East Coast-based specials as the "Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade," "Macy's 4th of July Fireworks Spectacular" and "Christmas in Rockefeller Center." He also oversaw such specials as "The Live Earth Concert," "Concert for Diana," "Concert for Diana: The Princes' Interview" (with Matt Lauer of NBC's "Today"), "Madonna: The Confessions Tour Live" and the Emmy Award-winning "Tony Bennett: An American Classic," in addition to his duties for the NBC News division.
Ahr, who previously served as Director, Alternative Programming and Development since March 2006, will continue to be responsible for developing new alternative series and overseeing her projects from launch to finale. In addition, she will be evaluating trends in the international marketplace. Some of her upcoming alternative series for NBC include the docu-series "The Baby Borrowers," "The Celebrity Apprentice," and the primetime reinvention of "American Gladiators."
Vaughan previously handled a variety of specials including the Emmy-winning "Cher: The Farewell Tour," "Princess Diana: The Secret Tapes," "Faith Hill: Firefly," "Jamie Foxx: Unpredictable," "Eagles Farewell 1 Tour," "Elton John: The Red Piano," "Tim McGraw" and "The Radio Music Awards."
From 2000-02, as Supervising Producer at "Today," Vaughan was responsible for originating story and program ideas as well as supervising all entertainment and entertainment-related segments. Vaughan was the Senior Entertainment and Arts Producer at "Today" from 1993-2000.
In her previous position as a Director, Ahr was a key player in the acquisition and development of the #1 summer hit "America's Got Talent," working alongside Simon Cowell's SyCo and Fremantlemedia. She led the charge of its successful season two re-launch, with cast and format changes, and continues oversight of season three.
Ahr also brought the live series "Grease: You're the One That I Want" to NBC with BBC Worldwide, as well as developed and managed the unscripted comedy special, "Victoria Beckham: Coming to America" with 19 Television.
Earlier, Ahr served as Manager, Alternative Programming and Development, beginning in 2005. While her primary project was overseeing the Fall 2005 reality series "Three Wishes," she also aided in the development of other series and pilots.
Prior to that, Ahr was an Entertainment Associate in Burbank. In this role, she assisted senior program executives on several alternative series, including the first season of "The Biggest Loser." She first joined NBC as a Page in New York, which allowed her to work as a Production Assistant in the WNBC Creative Services department and as an assistant in the office of Bob Wright, then Vice Chairman and Executive Officer, GE, and Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, NBC Universal.
Later, Ahr transitioned to an Assistant role in The NBC Agency in New York. There, she was promoted to Manager of Strategic Partnerships, developing and overseeing many key business and promotional partnerships for the News division, before she moved to Burbank to enter the Entertainment Associates Program.
She is a graduate of Boston College, where she received a Bachelor of Arts degree in English.
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