W. Don Cornwell

Last updated

W. Don Cornwell (born January 17, 1948) [1] is a retired investment banker and broadcast media executive. He was the founder, CEO, and Chairman of Granite Broadcasting, which at the time was the largest television broadcast company controlled by an African American, from 1988 to his retirement in 2009. Prior to founding Granite Broadcasting, he was at Goldman Sachs for 17 years.

Contents

He currently serves on the boards of Pfizer, AIG, and Natura & Co (formerly Avon).

Early life and education

Cornwell was born in 1948 in Cushing, Oklahoma. [1] He later moved with his family to Tacoma, Washington, attending Stadium High School. [1]

He received a BA in political science from Occidental College in Los Angeles in 1969. [1] He received an MBA from Harvard University in 1971. [1] [2]

Career

Goldman Sachs

After receiving his MBA in 1971, Cornwell worked on Wall Street at Goldman Sachs. [3] [2] [4] He was a vice president of the investment banking division at Goldman Sachs from 1976 to 1988. [5] From 1980 to 1988 he was Chief Operating Officer of its corporate finance department. [5] [6]

Granite Broadcasting

In 1988 Cornwell left Goldman Sachs to found Granite Broadcasting, a broadcasting holding company, with co-founder Stuart Beck, a New York attorney. [7] [8] Cornwell became chairman and CEO of the company, and Beck became president. [9] [10] With initial capitalization from Minority Enterprise Small Business Investment Companies (MESBICs), Oprah Winfrey, and Goldman Sachs, the company's first acquisitions were television stations in Duluth and Peoria in 1988, followed by stations in Fort Wayne and San Jose in 1989 and 1990. [7]

Cornwell took the company public via an IPO in early 1992, [11] and it traded on the NASDAQ. [12] [1] Cornwell and Beck retained control of all voting stock, with Cornwell holding 55% and Beck holding 45%. [12]

Cornwell led Granite to specialize in developing and operating small to middle-market television broadcast stations. [13] Its business strategy was to provide high quality local news and sports for each market, and its goal was to become the leading provider of news, weather, and sports information in these markets. [13] Granite supported diverse programming in terms of gender, ethnicity, religion, and racial background, [7] and the company placed a heavy emphasis on local programming, particularly news programming, and on reflecting the flavor and diversity of an individual station's community. [7] Granite also gave leeway to local television station managers, who were allowed to make market-specific programming decisions. [14] [15]

Following the acquisition of more stations, buying them below market value and turning them around, by 1995 Granite's stock had surged and it was the top performing media company in the U.S. [15] [14] In 1995 Granite was Black Enterprise's Company of the Year. [15] [14]

After acquiring key stations in Detroit and San Francisco, by 1998 Granite had 10 network affiliates across the United States; [16] [17] it was the seventh-largest black-owned business in the U.S., and the largest minority-owned media company in New York. [16] Under Cornwell's leadership, by the mid-2000s, via acquisitions Granite owned and operated or provided programming, sales, and other services to 23 channels in 11 markets. [18] [19] [13] Its channel group included affiliates of NBC, CBS, ABC, The CW, and MyNetworkTV, and reached approximately 6% of all U.S. television households. [18] [13] It was the largest African American-controlled television broadcast company in the U.S. [1] [20]

In the 2000s Granite's stock plunged, attributed to three factors: the company's 2000 "reverse compensation" agreement to pay $362 million for an NBC affiliation in San Francisco, [21] [22] [23] [24] an advertising recession, [25] [22] [26] and the end of federal tax incentives for minority-owned broadcasting stations. [25] Additionally, the company sustained heavy losses from 2003 to 2005. [27] Following the demise of The WB network, [28] Granite Broadcasting filed for voluntary reorganization under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code in December 2006. [29] [30] [27] It emerged from restructuring in June 2007 under the majority ownership of private-equity firm Silver Point Capital, previously one of its creditors. [28] [31] [32]

Cornwell retooled Granite by increasing its digitalization and technological innovations, [28] and by relaunching and revitalizing station websites in partnership with Broadcast Interactive Media, including adding YouNews platforms which allowed local viewers to submit video footage for station usage. [28] He also renegotiated retransmission consent fees. [28] [33]

In August 2009, Cornwell retired as chairman and CEO of Granite, [19] [20] staying on as Vice Chairman through December 2009. [5]

As of 2020, Cornwell is on the boards of directors of Pfizer, [34] AIG, [35] and Natura & Co (formerly Avon). [36] [37] He is also on the board of trustees of Big Brothers Big Sisters of New York City. [38]

Personal life

Cornwell married New York attorney Saundra Clarke Williams in 1983. [39] Saundra Cornwell was partner at the law firm Bower & Gardner from 1984 until it dissolved in 1994. [40] They live in New York City and have two adult children. [41]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Goldman Sachs</span> American investment bank

The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. is an American multinational investment bank and financial services company. Founded in 1869, Goldman Sachs is headquartered in Lower Manhattan in New York City, with regional headquarters in many international financial centers. Goldman Sachs is the second-largest investment bank in the world by revenue and is ranked 55th on the Fortune 500 list of the largest United States corporations by total revenue. In the Forbes Global 2000 of 2024, Goldman Sachs ranked 23rd. It is considered a systemically important financial institution by the Financial Stability Board.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Canwest</span> Former Canadian media company

Canwest Global Communications Corporation, which operated under the corporate name Canwest, was a major Canadian media conglomerate based in Winnipeg, Manitoba, with its head offices at Canwest Place. It held radio, television broadcasting, and publishing assets in several countries, primarily in Canada.

In North American broadcasting, a local marketing agreement (LMA), or local management agreement, is a contract in which one company agrees to operate a radio or television station owned by another party. In essence, it is a sort of lease or time-buy.

WRBU is a television station licensed to East St. Louis, Illinois, United States, broadcasting the Ion Television network to the St. Louis, Missouri area. Owned and operated by the Ion Media subsidiary of the E. W. Scripps Company, the station has offices on Richardson Road in Arnold, Missouri, and its transmitter is located near Missouri Route 21 and East Four Ridge Road in House Springs.

Hearst Television, Inc. is a broadcasting company in the United States owned by Hearst Communications, made up of a group of television and radio stations, and Hearst Media Production Group, a distributor of programming in broadcast syndication.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Granite Broadcasting</span> American television broadcast company

Granite Broadcasting LLC is a broadcasting holding company in New York City which owns one television station in the United States, in Syracuse, New York. Granite was founded by W. Don Cornwell and Stuart Beck in 1988, and was the first African-American station group in the United States considered to be a "major" station operator.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WMYD</span> Independent TV station in Detroit

WMYD is an independent television station in Detroit, Michigan, United States. It is owned by the E. W. Scripps Company alongside ABC affiliate WXYZ-TV. The two stations share studios at Broadcast House on 10 Mile Road in Southfield; WMYD's transmitter is located on Eight Mile Road in Oak Park.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">E. W. Scripps Company</span> American media company

The E. W. Scripps Company, also known as Scripps, is an American broadcasting company founded in 1878 as a chain of daily newspapers by Edward Willis "E. W." Scripps and his sister, Ellen Browning Scripps. It was also formerly a media conglomerate. The company is headquartered at the Scripps Center in Cincinnati, Ohio. Its corporate motto is "Give light and the people will find their own way", which is symbolized by the media empire's longtime lighthouse logo. In terms of market reach, Scripps is the second largest operator of ABC affiliates, behind the Sinclair Broadcast Group, and ahead of Hearst Television and Tegna. Scripps also owns a number of free-to-air multi-genre digital subchannel multicast networks through its Scripps Networks division, including the Ion Television network and Scripps News.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">YES Network</span> American regional sports network

The Yankee Entertainment and Sports Network (YES) is an American pay television regional sports network owned by Yankee Global Enterprises, Diamond Sports Group, Amazon, and The Blackstone Group, RedBird Capital and Mubadala Investment Company, which each own 13%. Primarily serving New York City, New York and the surrounding metropolitan area, it broadcasts a variety of sports events, as well as magazine, documentary and discussion programs; however, its main emphasis is focused on games and team-related programs involving the New York Yankees of Major League Baseball, and the NBA's Brooklyn Nets.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mediacom</span> American cable TV company

Mediacom Communications Corporation is the United States' fifth-largest cable television provider based on the number of video subscribers, and among the leading cable operators focused on serving smaller cities and towns. The company has a significant concentration of customers in the Midwest and Southeast, and is the largest broadband provider in Iowa. Founded in 1995 by Rocco B. Commisso, the current owner of the New York Cosmos and ACF Fiorentina. Mediacom is headquartered in New York and incorporated in Delaware, United States. Formerly a publicly traded firm, it went private in a $600 million transaction in March 2011 and is owned solely by Commisso as of 2011.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nexstar Media Group</span> American media company

Nexstar Media Group, Inc. is an American publicly traded media company with headquarters in Irving, Texas, Midtown Manhattan, and Chicago. The company is the largest television station owner in the United States, owning 197 television stations across the U.S., most of which are affiliated with the four "major" U.S. television networks and MyNetworkTV in markets as large as New York City and as small as San Angelo, Texas. It also operates all of the stations owned by affiliated companies, such as Mission Broadcasting and Vaughan Media, under local marketing agreements to satisfy existing regulations set in place by the Federal Communications Commission. In addition, Nexstar owns one radio station, WGN in Chicago, and operates major TV network the CW through a 75-percent majority stake where all CW affiliates are directly owned-and-operated stations (O&O), two terrestrial television networks airing classic shows, Antenna TV and Rewind TV, one FAST streaming channel airing sports programming, SportsGrid, and has full or partial ownership stakes in three pay television networks.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">KASY-TV</span> MyNetworkTV affiliate in Albuquerque, New Mexico

KASY-TV is a television station in Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States, affiliated with MyNetworkTV. It is owned by Mission Broadcasting alongside Santa Fe–licensed CW outlet KWBQ and its Roswell-based satellite, KRWB-TV. The two stations share studios with dual CBS/Fox affiliate KRQE on Broadcast Plaza in Albuquerque; KASY-TV's transmitter is located atop Sandia Crest.

Landmark Media Enterprises, LLC is a privately held technology company headquartered in Norfolk, Virginia.

Weigel Broadcasting Co. is an American television broadcasting company based in Chicago, Illinois, alongside its flagship station WCIU-TV, at 26 North Halsted Street in the Greektown neighborhood. It currently owns 25 television stations, seven digital over-the-air television networks, and one radio station.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WBNG-TV</span> CBS/CW affiliate in Binghamton, New York

WBNG-TV is a television station in Binghamton, New York, United States, affiliated with CBS and The CW Plus. The station is owned by Gray Television, and maintains studios on Columbia Drive in Johnson City and a transmitter on Ingraham Hill Road in the town of Binghamton.

Mobile television is television watched on a small handheld or mobile device, typically developed for that purpose. It includes service delivered via mobile phone networks, received free-to-air via terrestrial television stations, or via satellite broadcast. Regular broadcast standards or special mobile TV transmission formats can be used. Additional features include downloading TV programs and podcasts from the Internet and storing programming for later viewing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2006 United States broadcast television realignment</span> Events around the launches of The CW and MyNetworkTV

In January 2006, the United States' two "second-tier" television networks, UPN and The WB, announced they would both cease operations on September 15 and 17 respectively, and their operations would be transferred to a new joint-venture "fifth" network, The CW. Meanwhile, Fox Television Stations signed up with MyNetworkTV, a new "sixth" network owned by then-parent company News Corporation's Fox Entertainment Group.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Viacom (1952–2005)</span> American media conglomerate (1952–2005)

The original phase of Viacom Inc. was an American mass media and entertainment conglomerate based in New York City. It began as CBS Television Film Sales, the broadcast syndication division of the CBS television network in 1952; it was renamed CBS Films in 1958, renamed CBS Enterprises in 1968, renamed Viacom in 1970, and spun off into its own company in 1971. Viacom was a distributor of CBS television series throughout the 1970s and 1980s, and also distributed syndicated television programs. The company went under Sumner Redstone's control in 1987 through his cinema chain company National Amusements.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cox Media Group</span> American media company

CMG Media Corporation is an American media conglomerate principally owned by Apollo Global Management in conjunction with Cox Enterprises, which maintains a 29% minority stake in the company. The company primarily owns radio and television stations—many of which are located in the South, Pacific Northwest, Eastern Midwest, and Northeast, and the regional cable news network Pittsburgh Cable News Channel (PCNC).

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Don Cornwell". The History Makers . May 17, 2012. Retrieved July 4, 2020.
  2. 1 2 Williams, Dennis A. (October 1980). "Hot Shots on Wall Street". Black Enterprise . pp. 45–47.
  3. ↑ Bell, Gregory S. (2002). In the Black: A History of African Americans on Wall Street. John Wiley & Sons. p. 145. ISBN   9780471214854.
  4. ↑ Earl g. Graves, Ltd (August 1975). "Under 30 & Moving Up". Black Enterprise . p. 18.
  5. 1 2 3 "Cornwell, Wyllie Don". Reuters . Archived from the original on July 7, 2020. Retrieved July 7, 2020.
  6. ↑ "Schedule 14A Information". AIG.GCS-web.com. U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. March 27, 2018. Retrieved July 9, 2020.
  7. 1 2 3 4 Earl g. Graves, Ltd (June 1990). "B.E. 100s: The Freshman Class of '90". Black Enterprise . pp. 138–142.
  8. ↑ Earl g. Graves, Ltd (May 1995). "Milestones in Black Business". Black Enterprise . p. 128.
  9. ↑ "Item 10. Directors and Executive Officers of the Registrant". Edgar Online. Busse Broadcasting. December 29, 1996. Retrieved July 10, 2020.
  10. ↑ Granite Broadcasting Corp (March 31, 2006). "Form 10-K - Annual Report". U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission . Retrieved July 10, 2020.
  11. ↑ Scott, Matthew S.; Williams, Terry (May 1992). "Black Businesses Woo Hungry Investors". Black Enterprise . p. 49.
  12. 1 2 Scott, Matthew S.; Williams, Terry (May 1992). "Black Businesses Woo Hungry Investors". Black Enterprise . pp. 56–57.
  13. 1 2 3 4 Plunkett, Jack W. (2008). "Granite Broadcasting Corp". Plunkett's Entertainment & Media Industry Almanac 2008. Plunkett Research, Ltd. ISBN   9781593921033.
  14. 1 2 3 Lowery, Mark (June 1995). "B.E. 100s Company of the Year: Solid as a Rock". Black Enterprise . pp. 122–132.
  15. 1 2 3 Lowery, Mark (June 1, 1995). "Solid as a Rock". Black Enterprise . Retrieved July 11, 2020.
  16. 1 2 "W. Don Cornwell". Crain's New York Business . March 29, 1998. Retrieved July 11, 2020.
  17. ↑ Smith, Eric L.; White, Paula M. (June 1998). "Countdown to the 21st Century: Architects of the Next Millennium". Black Enterprise .
  18. 1 2 Granite Broadcasting Corporation (August 1, 2006). "Form 8-K". U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission . Retrieved July 11, 2020.
  19. 1 2 Tanklefsky, David (August 11, 2009). "Cornwell And Deushane Stepping Down At Granite Broadcasting". Broadcasting & Cable . Retrieved July 7, 2020.
  20. 1 2 Bachman, Katy (August 11, 2009). "Granite founder Cornwell steps down". The Hollywood Reporter . Retrieved July 7, 2020.
  21. ↑ McClellan, Steve (February 12, 2000). "Reversal of fortune" (PDF). Broadcasting & Cable . pp. 10–12. Retrieved July 11, 2020.
  22. 1 2 McCllellan, Steve (December 18, 2000). "Granite stock in a tailspin". Broadcasting & Cable . Retrieved July 11, 2020.
  23. ↑ Mermigas, Diane (August 11, 2009). "New World of TV: Testing Granite's Mettle: Reshaping Broadcast TV's Boundaries Has a Price". TV Week. Retrieved July 11, 2020.
  24. ↑ "Granite gets time to pay the Peacock". TV Week. March 12, 2001. Retrieved July 11, 2020.
  25. 1 2 Carnegie, Jim (May 18, 2004). "Measuring the Media Moguls - Granite Broadcasting: Don Cornwell, Chairman & CEO". Television Business Report. Retrieved July 11, 2020.
  26. ↑ Fost, Dan (January 13, 2002). "How NBC, KRON deal fell apart / Animosity, mistrust colored negotiations". San Francisco Chronicle . Retrieved July 11, 2020.
  27. 1 2 Townes, Glenn (May 1, 2007). "Granite Broadcasting Goes Bankrupt". Black Enterprise . Retrieved July 9, 2020.
  28. 1 2 3 4 5 Malone, Michael (December 15, 2007). "Granite Hopes to Rock On". Broadcasting & Cable . Retrieved July 9, 2020.
  29. ↑ Eggerton, John (December 12, 2006). "Granite Files Chapter 11". Broadcasting & Cable . Retrieved July 9, 2020.
  30. ↑ "Granite Broadcasting Voluntarily Files Petition for Reorganization". PR Newswire . December 11, 2006. Archived from the original on September 29, 2007.
  31. ↑ "Granite Broadcasting Reorg Plan Disclosed". TV Technology. June 8, 2007. Retrieved July 9, 2020.
  32. ↑ "Granite Broadcasting Files Reorganization Plan". TV Week. June 6, 2007. Retrieved July 9, 2020.
  33. ↑ Moss, Linda (December 16, 2008). "Time Warner Closes Retrans Deals With Granite, ComCorp". Multichannel News . Retrieved July 9, 2020.
  34. ↑ "Board member". Pfizer . Retrieved July 6, 2020.
  35. ↑ "Board of Directors". AIG . Retrieved July 6, 2020.
  36. ↑ "Avon Products Inc: Form 8-K". Market Screener. January 3, 2020. Retrieved July 6, 2020.
  37. ↑ "Natura & Co. Holding S.A.: W. Don Cornwell". Wall Street Journal . Retrieved July 6, 2020.
  38. ↑ "Board of Trustees". Big Brothers Big Sisters of New York City . Retrieved July 6, 2020.
  39. ↑ "Saundra Williams Marries a Banker". New York Times . May 15, 1983. Retrieved July 7, 2020.
  40. ↑ Lat, David (April 17, 2014). "Lawyerly Lairs: A $16 Million Brooklyn Brownstone". Above the Law . Retrieved July 7, 2020.
  41. ↑ "Telecommunications Development Fund: Don Cornwell". The History Makers . Retrieved July 7, 2020.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.