Congrats to Deadline’s Nellie Andreeva who scooped every facet of this story:
UNIVERSAL CITY, Calif. — July 13, 2011 — Jennifer Salke has been named President of NBC Entertainment, effective immediately, it was announced by Robert Greenblatt, Chairman, NBC Entertainment.
“There is no one in the television business more perfect for this job than Jennifer Salke,” said Greenblatt. “I’ve known and worked with her for many years and have the utmost respect for her creative instincts, her relationships with talent of all kinds, and probably most of all, her taste. Her incredible tenure at Twentieth Century Fox Television (TCFTV), where she was instrumental in developing two of network television’s biggest hits, ‘Glee’ and ‘Modern Family,’ is unmatched. This is truly a significant moment for NBC as we continue to rebuild the network from top to bottom and put together the best possible team.”
Salke will report to Greenblatt and will be responsible for Primetime and Daytime programming, with Drama Development, Comedy Development, Current Programming, and the Casting department of NBC Entertainment reporting to her.
“I can’t express how excited I am to be joining Bob at NBC and to be joining a company with the breadth and vision of Comcast,” said Salke. “I’ve known Bob well for many years and have admired him both professionally and personally. I believe together, we will foster a creative and successful environment at NBC. This is an incredible opportunity and one I look forward to with great passion and excitement.
“I’m leaving a company, in TCFTV, where I have extremely deep ties. (Chairmen) Dana (Walden) and Gary (Newman) have been incredible bosses, mentors, and friends for nearly 10 years. I’m grateful for the time I spent working and learning under them. It has been that rare experience where I’ve been fulfilled both in my work there and in my relationships with people who will be lifetime friends.”
The relationship between NBC and TCFTV took a significant step forward this year with TCFTV supplying two of NBC’s most high-profile, new one-hour series for the 2011-12 season: “The Playboy Club,” which premieres September 19, and “Awake,” which will premiere in mid-season. Both series were also developed by Salke and were accelerated when Greenblatt came to NBC in late January. Dana Walden and Gary Newman, Chairmen of TCFTV, have always advocated strong ties with NBC and that will continue to grow with Salke now becoming the buyer.
Salke’s incredible run at TCFTV is highlighted by her development and championing of “Glee” and “Modern Family” in one season. Both shows are rare hits that connect with critics and audiences, winning multiple Emmys and Golden Globes as well as winning their time periods in the coveted adult 18-49 demo by large margins. “Raising Hope” for FBC is another recent success during Salke’s tenure as Executive Vice President of Creative Affairs, a post she’s held since 2006.
Salke leaves TCFTV at a very prolific time in which it sold highly anticipated new shows to several networks, including comedies such as “The New Girl” for FBC and both “Apartment 23″ and Tim Allen’s “Last Man Standing” for ABC, as well as the long-awaited “Terra Nova” for Fox. She was also involved in the development of “Glee” creator Ryan Murphy’s next big project, “American Horror Story,” for FX.
Salke began at TCFTV as Senior Vice President of Drama Development in 2002 and was instrumental in the creation of several hits, including the long-running “Bones” and “Prison Break.” She began her career at the venerable Aaron Spelling Productions in the early 1990s, when she first worked with Greenblatt (who was then at FBC) on such seminal series as the original “Beverly Hills, 90210″ and “Melrose Place,” among the many other series Spelling produced at that time. After nearly a decade at Spelling, she was named head of Drama Development at Sony Pictures Television in 2001, a short-lived stint that ended prematurely when Sony temporarily shut down the studio and re-configured operations. She began her successful career at 20th Century Fox Television shortly thereafter.
Editor-in-Chief Nikki Finke - tip her here.



She is SO hot. I’m just sayin’. Don’t get all politically correct and shit, cuz she’s smart and insightful, too. I know. I’ve worked with her.
But she’s hot.
I wonder if Joss Whedon would have been treated differently if Bob Greenblatt were running Fox at the time that Firefly aired? Maybe the outcome would have been different and Firefly would have become a huge hit.
Greenblatt’s next bold but necessary move? Marketing & P.R–and not a moment too soon.
Interesting. Really interesting. I worked on Modern Family from the beginning (no longer there) and I believe Jennifer’s net contribution was sitting in a room silently during exactly one meeting. If that’s being instrumental then maybe she was playing a harmonica to amuse herself while the producers pitched their idea, then left the room.
It’s a Hollywood practice to take credit where it’s manifestly undeserved, but this one may be a new low water mark.
“I believe Jennifer’s net contribution was sitting in a room silently during exactly one meeting. If that’s being instrumental then maybe she was playing a harmonica to amuse herself while the producers pitched their idea, then left the room.
It’s a Hollywood practice to take credit where it’s manifestly undeserved, but this one may be a new low water mark.”
That’s Hollywood 101. Sit in meetings, don’t stick your neck out except to take credit for other’s work, fail upwards and then jump ship with your golden parachute!
“Salke will report to Greenblatt and will be responsible for Primetime and Daytime programming, with Drama Development, Comedy Development, Current Programming, and the Casting department of NBC Entertainment reporting to her.” Okay and then what does Bob do?
Hes the ultimate authority over her.
I was just wondering the same myself…
I’m sure Jen didn’t get the job on brains alone. Sex appeal had something to do with it. It also doesn’t hurt having friends at the top. If it doesn’t work out, she could always work for Fox News: Home of the Power Blondes!
Considering Greenblatt likes dudes and he hired her, I’m not sure what to make of your comment. How does a straight woman use her sex appeal on a gay man?
WOW. I guess someone’s stuck in 1962. It’s going to be really enjoyable to watch people with such retrograde, sexist thinking get phased out over the next few decades. Also, to the folks complaining about her not chiming in while Modern Family was developed … isn’t that the best thing an office exec can do? Hire talented creatives and let them actually do their work?
Good luck trying to clean up that mess, years ago NBC thought Fred Silverman would save them.
um…Ben Silverman.
Jen is a good executive. But really, are we buying that she “developed” these shows? Everyone knows the truth. Fox was smart enough to hire talented writers to create shows and then smarter still by getting out of their way. That’s exactly how those shows got developed. There wasn’t a single contribution made to MF at all — not a scintilla — and I know because I’m close friends with one of the creators, who is too humble to point this out. We all know executives get braggy when they’re changing jobs, but let’s be real. Say the shows were developed while she was there, or say they came under her aegis — or any number of other euphemisms. But don’t think you can say she was instrumental in their development when she wasn’t, by any stretch of the imagination. She sat in an office while, on the other side of the lot, the show was conceived, written, cast, and executed. Now let’s see if she’s classy enough to thank those producers whose coattails she’s used to sling herself over to NBC.
The real workers in this biz know who actually creates good TV shows: line producers, writers, directors, and actors. Nobody tunes in the see executives stroking each other in meetings!
“and I know because I’m close friends with one of the creators, who is too humble to point this out.”
Well, that rules out Levitan.
Says Bob Greenblatt: “…Her incredible tenure at Twentieth Century Fox Television (TCFTV), where she was instrumental in developing two of network television’s biggest hits, ‘Glee’ and ‘Modern Family,’ is unmatched….”
Her tenure is unmatched? Who writes this shit? Are things really so bad that helping to develop a couple of pretty good hits gets you hosannas like this? Prediction: She’s no Grant Tinker. On the other hand, apparently no one remembers him anymore either. Certainly not Greenblatt.
Who was Jennifer Salke’s mentor, on her way up the corporate ladder?
she is so G’dam smoking hot! I’m sure she’s super smart and great at her job, but it just can’t be denied… wowza!!!
No one in town is better suited to rejuvenate this network than Jen Salke. Her taste, experience, and talent relationships are without equal. Greenblatt’s track record will only improve with Jen at his side.
Dear Bob,
This is your first bad move.
Don’t be a coward.
Run your own network and leave the pretty scapegoat behind.
Will Jen bring “The Event” back?????? Please!!!!
the continued broadcast of Donald Trump’s “show” and his appearance in Macy’s advertising, all the while he is “speaking” at the Conservative Council this weekend is a clear violation of the Fairness doctrine.
If a left-leaning person were to do the same thing Fox news would be screaching to the heavens.
who will put an end to this farce?