Chris McCarthy Elevated To President of VH1 & Logo TV
Less than a year after Chris McCarthy was named General Manager of VH1, he is getting another promotion, to president of VH1 and Logo TV .
McCarthy served as GM of MTV’s digital networks, leading Logo and MTV2 to a ratings upswing before he took over VH1 last August in addition to his GM duties at Logo. At VH1, he has spearheaded the channel’s ratings turnaround. VH1 has logged four consecutive quarters of growth, making it the fastest growing entertainment network in the Top 25. The network is currently up +48% quarter to date.
“Within a remarkably short time, Chris has driven record growth across all screens and done an incredible job of reinventing the VH1 brand, bringing the focus back to its rich pop culture heritage,” said Doug Herzog, President of the Viacom Music & Entertainment Group, to whom McCarthy will continue to report. “Chris is a smart and strategic leader who thinks from an ‘audience first’ perspective, leading to highly impressive results.”
Under McCarthy, VH1 has been mounting a return to its pop culture roots with such series as the upcoming reboot of America’s 
Next Top Model, the topical series The Amber Rose Show, and the ’90’s hip hop piece The Breaks. McCarthy also has spearheaded the return of such VH1 events as Big in 2015, which was VH1’s most watched tentpole in nearly a decade, and the recently announced reboot of Hip Hop Honors. Additionally, McCarthy created Dear Mama, a Mother’s Day event which included Hillary Clinton, Queen Latifah, Alicia Keys and Rita Ora along with Will Smith and the Smith family, who honored Jada Pinkett Smith. After a strong showing, Dear Mama has been made into an annual special.
Under McCarthy, Logo TV was the only network in all of cable to record 10 consecutive quarters of year over year growth. McCarthy established the network’s documentary division, and shepherded ratings and pop culture juggernaut RuPaul’s Drag Race. Logo TV recently became the first U.S. network to air the international phenomenon Eurovision Song Contest.
Previously, McCarthy served as EVP for MTV, overseeing strategy, planning, and tentpole events. He began his career at Viacom in marketing at mtvU before rising to be named General Manager for the college network.