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Named the "Most Powerful Woman in Entertainment" by The Hollywood Reporter, one of the "50 Most Powerful Women in Business" by Fortune and one of "The World's 100 Most Powerful Women" by Forbes, Anne Sweeney serves as co-chair of Disney Media Networks and president, Disney-ABC Television Group.
In this role Ms. Sweeney is responsible for Disney's entertainment and news television properties globally. These include the ABC Television Network, which encompasses ABC Entertainment, ABC Kids, ABC Daytime and ABC News; Touchstone Television; and Disney ABC Cable Networks Group, comprising Disney Channel Worldwide -- which has grown to 24 wholly-owned international channels -- Toon Disney, SOAPnet, ABC Family and Jetix. In addition she oversees Walt Disney Television Animation, Buena Vista Worldwide Television and Walt Disney Television International, and has responsibility for managing Disney's equity interests in Lifetime Entertainment Services, A&E Television Networks and E! Entertainment Networks.
From October 2000 to April 2004, Ms. Sweeney served as president of ABC Cable Networks Group and Disney Channel Worldwide. Under her leadership, Disney Channel more than quintupled its subscriber base with its mix of original series and movies and acquired programming. It is now available on basic cable in more than 87 million homes in the United States.
Ms. Sweeney also oversaw the successful launch of the 24-hour animation channel Toon Disney in April 1998, and built it to its current reach of more than 52 million homes in the United States. Less than two years later, in January 2000, she oversaw the launch of SOAPnet, the 24-hour soap opera network now seen in more than 47 million homes.
Ms. Sweeney joined The Walt Disney Company in February 1996 as president of Disney Channel and executive vice president of Disney/ABC Cable Networks. Previously she was chairman and CEO of FX Networks, Inc., since 1993. During her tenure, she presided over the launch of two basic cable networks, FX, an entertainment network representing the most successful basic cable launch in history, and FXM: Movies from Fox, Hollywood's first studio-based movie network.
Before joining Fox, Ms. Sweeney spent 12 years at Nickelodeon/Nick at Nite in various executive positions, most recently as senior vice president of Program Enterprises. Among many accomplishments, she oversaw Nickelodeon's international expansion, including launching the channel in the United Kingdom, resulting in a joint venture with British Sky Broadcasting.
Active in organizations both within and outside the cable industry, Ms. Sweeney is a board member of Lifetime Television, the Museum of Television & Radio, the Special Olympics and an honorary chair of Cable Positive.
She was inducted into the Broadcasting & Cable "Hall of Fame" in 2005, and was a recipient of the 2004 Muse Award from New York Women in Film & Television. Ms. Sweeney has been honored repeatedly by Women in Cable & Telecommunications -- as Executive of the Year in 1994, Woman of the Year in 1997, and in 1998 as the recipient of the Advocate Leader Award from WICT's Southern California chapter. In 1995 she received the prestigious STAR Award from American Women in Radio and Television. She was inducted into the American Advertising Federation's Advertising Hall of Achievement in 1996. In 2002 she received Women in Film's esteemed Lucy Award and has been awarded the Cable Television Public Affairs Association's President's Award.
Ms. Sweeney earned a BA degree from The College of New Rochelle and an Ed. M. degree from Harvard University. She resides in Los Angeles with her husband, attorney Philip Miller, and their two children. | 