David Friedman Named ‘Early Show’ EP

By kevin 

CBS News and Sports President Sean McManus has announced that he officially named David Friedman the new executive producer of “The Early Show” effective January 2010. He replaces Zev Shalev who left the program yesterday.

McManus is looking to take advantage of the impending “Good Morning America” switchover with the hire, saying in a statement, “The show has been making advances and we are committed to decisively moving to the next level. The change in the competitive landscape is a terrific opportunity for us to bring on an experienced and creative EP with a fresh approach and a demonstrated track record of success.”

Friedman was most recently the EP of “Last Call with Carson Daly.” He also spent six years at NBC’s “Today” show. Press release after the jump.

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DAVID FRIEDMAN NAMED EXECUTIVE PRODUCER OF CBS NEWS’ “THE EARLY SHOW”

Sean McManus, President, CBS News and Sports, announced today that David Friedman has been named Executive Producer of CBS News’ THE EARLY SHOW. The appointment will be effective January 2010. In this role, Friedman will report to McManus.

“David’s wide-ranging talents and experience in news, entertainment and primetime specials will be enormous assets to the broadcast and to CBS News,” said McManus. “THE EARLY SHOW has a great on-air team in place, the show has been making advances and we are committed to decisively moving to the next level. The change in the competitive landscape is a terrific opportunity for us to bring on an experienced and creative EP with a fresh approach and a demonstrated track record of success.”

Friedman, who spent six years at the “Today” show, has been with NBC in a number of roles since 1993, most recently as executive producer of “Last Call with Carson Daly,” where he innovatively and successfully experimented with and evolved the show’s format and content. He annually executive produces NBC’s New Year’s Eve special broadcast and recently executive produced the “2009 Macy’s 4th of July Fireworks Spectacular.” Prior to that, Friedman was a producer and development executive for NBC Studios.

During Friedman’s tenure at “Today,” he rose swiftly from researcher to producer. His responsibilities for “Today” included producing their 2000 Olympic coverage in Sydney, overseeing multi-camera shoots with on-air talent and producing high-profile interviews and performances. He began his network career as a researcher on the NBC primetime newsmagazine “Now” with Tom Brokaw and Katie Couric.

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