CEO and president of NBC parent NBC Universal, Stephen Burke, says the move is aimed to have Bell 'take all his time to keep [Olympic] coverage on the cutting edge.'
- Nov 14, 2012
AceShowbiz - NBC has confirmed Jim Bell's impending departure from "Today". In a statement released on Tuesday, November 13, the network explained that Bell would leave his position as the morning show's executive producer to serve as the full-time executive producer of NBCUniversal's coverage of the Olympic Games.
"There is no doubt that Jim is the right person to be our Olympic production leader into the future," said NBC Sports Group Chairman Mark Lazarus, whom Bell will report to in the future.
Lazarus continued praising Bell, "His professionalism was unmatched in leading the London Olympics to record levels. Jim has worked with the best in the Olympic television world, and we���re excited to have him join us as the full-time executive producer."
President of NBC Olympics Unit, Gary Zenkel, chimed in, "The Olympic legacy at NBCUniversal is long and rich, and Jim has had a role with this unit going all the way back to Barcelona in 1992. It will be great to have Jim back full time as part of our incredibly talented and experienced production team."
Meanwhile, Stephen Burke, CEO and president of NBC parent NBC Universal, claimed the reshuffle was intended to have Bell "take all his time to keep [Olympic] coverage on the cutting edge." He additionally gushed, "We're going to experiment."
NBC hasn't announced Bell's replacement, but rumor has it, Alexandra Wallace is expected to be named as the new executive producer of "Today". The 46-year-old is currently serving as the executive producer for "Rock Center with Brian Williams".
