Paramount companywide layoffs have reached the top of its podcasting business. Executive VP of Podcasting and Audio Steve Raizes has exited the company after working at Paramount and its predecessor Viacom since 2013, including leading the podcast division since 2019.
“I spent the majority of my working life being able to play with some of the most iconic brands in the world. From Chappelle, South Park and The Daily Show at the start of my career to 48 Hours, 60 Minutes, Survivor, The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, and Star Trek at the end,” Raizes said in a post on LinkedIn. “It has truly been my dream job and I am deeply grateful and appreciative of the opportunity to have had that experience with that caliber of talent and shows.”
Raizes’ exit comes as Paramount rides a wave of podcast success. Its last four launches, including Agent of Betrayal, The Weekly Show with Jon Stewart, 48 Hours: Blood is Thicker and 60 Minutes: A Second Look, have each reached No. 1 on the Apple Podcast charts.
Overall, average monthly downloads of “48 Hours” franchise podcasts increased 116% from 2022 to 2023, while all CBS News podcasts — which includes the 48 Hours podcast — increased 59%.
“I will be rooting for the company as you transition to the next chapter for Paramount,” Raizes writes in the post, adding that he is “having some talks” about his next role, but there is nothing firm yet.
Raizes was named Executive VP of Podcasting and Audio for Paramount in March 2022. But he had been with Viacom since 2000 in a variety of roles. He started in digital marketing and then in 2007 shifted to Comedy Central, where he was part of the team that helped negotiate and ultimately create the Comedy Central Radio Channel on SiriusXM. Then in 2015, Raizes was named Senior VP of Podcasts as it shifted from a business unit centered on radio to one tied to Viacom’s wider portfolio of brands. From 2019 to 2022 he served as Senior VP of Podcasts for ViacomCBS.
No successor was named. Domenic DiMeglio remains Executive VP and Chief Marketing Officer of Paramount Streaming.
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