The highest paid chief executives in the US media industry are in the cable sector, according to Advertising Age magazine's latest annual salary survey. Comcast Corp President-CEO Brian L Roberts’ total compensation for 2004 was $33.5 million, making him the highest paid CEO in that country.
Roberts and rival James O Robbins, president-CEO of Cox Communications, who was paid $29.4 million, emerged ahead of Sumner Redstone, chairman-CEO of Viacom, ($28.3 million) and Rupert Murdoch, the chairman-CEO of News Corp ($23.6 million). Walt Disney Co President-CEO Robert Iger earned $11.9 million. Mel Karmazin, with his move to Sirius Satellite Radio, was paid $14.3 million in 2004.
Advertising Age surveys the 2004 salaries of 221 executives who lead public companies ranked in Ad Age’s 100 Leading National Advertisers, 100 Leading Media Companies, Agency Report and a set of not-for-profits that serve the marketing industry.
The magazine, on its website AdAge.com said, "Given all the upheaval in the TV delivery market in 2005 and the challenges cable companies are under to beat back competitors from telecom companies and satellite players, it will be an interesting exercise to see if cable salaries will stay at the top of the media heap through next year."
Among the publicly traded magazine companies, the highest paid executive was Harold McGraw III, chairman-CEO of McGraw-Hill, with $16.7 million. Meredith Corp Chairman-CEO William Kerr took home $4.41 million, while newcomer Susan Lyne, Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia president-CEO, made $4.29 million. Thomas O Ryder, who announced recently that he would be stepping down from his post as chairman-CEO of Reader’s Digest Association next year, made $4.22 million in 2004.
It seems odd that Knight Ridder has been the subject of shareholder ire given that Chairman-CEO P. Anthony Ridder is on the low end of the salary scale among his fellow newspaper company leaders. His $1.7 million was dwarfed by smaller newspaper chain CEOs like EW Scripps President-CEO Kenneth Lowe’s $6.23 million; Gannett Co’s former President-CEO Douglas H McCorkindale’s $5.84 million; and Lee Enterprises Chairman-President Mary Junck’s $5.24 million. Tribune Co’s former Chairman-CEO Dennis J FitzSimons took home $4.72 million. All of those smaller players beat out New York Times Co former President-CEO Russell T. Lewis’ $2.35 million, and Dow Jones & Co Chairman-CEO Peter Kann’s $2.9 million.
The highest paid head of a media trade group was National Cable and Telecommunications Association 2004 President-CEO Robert Sachs whose total compensation was $1.49 million. Sachs left last March and was replaced by Kyle McSlarrow. The nearest to Sachs was Jack Valenti, the now-retired chairman of the Motion Pictures Association of America, with $1.47 million.
National Association of Broadcasters former president-CEO Edward O Fritts, made $1.2 million. (David K Rehr replaces Fritts this month.) Steve Largent, president-CEO of the Cellular Telecom & Internet Association, was paid $1.13 million. Christopher J Rohrs, president of the Television Bureau of Advertising, was paid $743,000, while Magazine Publishers of America CEO Nina B Link made $661,000.
The total compensation for 2004 included salary, bonus and a category called other, which includes realised gains from the sale of stock options, long-term incentive payouts and proxy columns in annual reports listed as �other.’ The full listing, including leaders of marketing and advertising companies, will be available December 5 on AdAge.com.
