REPORT: Notes From… Lunch with Richard Parsons of Time Inc
[ Another in our “Notes From…” series - short notes by volunteers summarizing various events around the school, to help those of us who didn’t/couldn’t attend. Watch for several other “Notes From…” throughout the year. If you have one, send it in! Or let us know in advance that you’d like to do one; or after the event, too. ]
Below, notes from a talk in the J-school World Room by Richard Parsons, chairman and CEO of Time Warner Inc. Many thanks to volunteer notes-taker Elisha Sulai, J2007. Feel free to drop him note or post a comment below (free, one-time registration required).
Notes From… Lunch with Richard Parsons
By Elisha Sulai
E-mail: elishasulai[at]gmail.com
WORLD ROOM, J-SCHOOL, Oct. 18, 2006: Richard Parsons, the chairman and CEO of Time Warner spoke at the Columbia Journalism School today, at a Publisher’s Roundtable, which gives students a chance to meet publishers in an intimate setting. About 15 students got to have lunch with Mr. Parsons, one of the most important executives in the media world. The session was chaired by Dean Nicholas Lemann.
Mr. Parsons praised the journalism profession. But he complained that way too often, journalists sacrifice accuracy in their attempt to get a story.
“It’s more important to get it right than first,” he said. Mr. Parsons predicted that the future of journalism would be on the Internet. “More and more of news will be in online digital form,” he said.
Mr. Parsons also said that bloggers will not overtake the “legitimate media” because bloggers are not “authenticated.” Parsons added that we’re witnessing a move towards opinion journalism, as the market for news is “segmenting.”
He also suggested that consolidation in the news gathering business is inevitable, given the fact that newsgathering costs are rising.
Parson’s sounded a warning to YouTube: Unless YouTube finds a way around its copyright issues, it will be “toast” like Napster.
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BIO: Richard D. Parsons is Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of Time Warner Inc., whose businesses include filmed entertainment, interactive services, television networks, cable systems and publishing. He became CEO in May 2002 and Chairman of the Board in May 2003.
Since becoming CEO, Mr. Parsons has led Time Warner’s turnaround and set the company on a solid path toward achieving sustainable growth. In the process, he has put in place the industry’s most experienced and successful management team, strengthened the company’s balance sheet and simplified its corporate structure, and carried out a disciplined approach to realigning the company’s portfolio of assets to improve returns. In its January 2005 report on America’s Best CEOs, Institutional Investor magazine named Mr. Parsons the top CEO in the entertainment industry.
Before becoming CEO, Mr. Parsons served as the company’s Co-Chief Operating Officer, overseeing its content businesses-Warner Bros., New Line Cinema, Warner Music Group and Time Warner Book Group-as well as two key corporate functions: Legal and People Development.
Mr. Parsons joined Time Warner as its President in February 1995, and has been a member of the company’s Board of Directors since January 1991. As President, he oversaw the company’s filmed entertainment and music businesses, and all corporate staff functions, including financial activities, legal affairs, public affairs and administration.
Before joining Time Warner, Mr. Parsons was Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Dime Bancorp, Inc., one of the largest thrift institutions in the United States. Previously, he was the managing partner of the New York law firm Patterson, Belknap, Webb & Tyler. Prior to that, he held various positions in state and federal government, as counsel for Nelson Rockefeller and as a senior White House aide under President Gerald Ford. Mr. Parsons received his undergraduate education at the University of Hawaii and his legal training at Union University’s Albany Law School.
Mr. Parsons’ civic and non-profit commitments include Co-Chairman of the Mayor’s Commission on Economic Opportunity in New York; Chairman Emeritus of the Partnership for New York City; Chairman of the Apollo Theatre Foundation and service on the boards of Howard University, the Museum of Modern Art and the American Museum of Natural History. He also serves on the boards of Citigroup and Estée Lauder.
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