Zinc Media Group has created the new role of Chief Content Officer, introducing a unified creative leadership across all its production labels, with ITN’s Ian Rumsey hired to take on the role. He will start later this year.
Rumsey will have creative oversight of all Zinc’s content, spanning television, content for brands, digital and events, “unifying the Group’s creative vision and driving a fully integrated and platform-agnostic approach.”
The launch of this new role coincides with Tanya Shaw’s decision to step down. Shaw has led a significant transformation of the Group’s television business, “bringing together a previously fragmented portfolio of labels into a more cohesive and commercially focused division.”
Over the past five years, Shaw has overseen high-profile productions including Top Guns: The Next Generation, Live Aid: When Rock ‘n’ Roll Took On The World and Deborah James: Bowelbabe in Her Own Words. Shawwas recently recognised at the WFTV Awards, where she received The Mercury Studios Business Award for outstanding business achievement.
Rumsey is currently Chief Content Officer at ITN. He will lead an integrated creative strategy, with a particular focus on international expansion, including the US and Middle East, where Zinc continues to scale its presence and diversify its genres.
Rumsey’s recent slate includes 5’s daytime schedule including The Jeremy Vine Show, high-profile titles such as The Investigation of Lucy Letby – which ranked in Netflix’s Top 10 in 60 countries this year, The Confession for Amazon, Harry: The Interview for ITV, alongside expansion into the US, original formats, scripted content and digital for the likes of Netflix, Lifetime, TNT and Warner Brothers Discovery.
Tanya Shaw said: “I am enormously proud of the five years I have spent as Managing Director of Television at Zinc. Having achieved what I was brought in to do, the time has come for me to hand the reins to someone else. I leave behind a very different business to the one I joined – Zinc Television now operates with distinct production labels, each with their own areas of expertise, all of them led by an exceptional creative leader and supported by best-in-class production management. It has been immensely rewarding to see the business grow under my tenure to achieve record levels of revenue and I will miss the team I leave behind enormously, but with every confidence they will continue to thrive.”
Ian Rumsey said: “This is a challenge I simply couldn’t resist. I’m both delighted and excited to be joining Zinc. They’ve outperformed the market for many years, and this is an opportunity to be part of the next phase of their growth story across all forms of content, and to join a great and talented team. I’ve had the most incredible time at ITN, alongside the most amazing people, with the most positive attitude. I’m so grateful to all of them, and I wish ITN nothing but success.”
Mark Browning, CEO of Zinc Media Group, said: “As we move into this next phase, I’d like to thank Tanya for the significant contribution she has made to Zinc. She has been instrumental in centralising our TV business, expanding our creative ambition, and diversifying our production genres, and we wish her every success in what comes next.
“This is the natural next stage in our evolution. Ian brings all 12 of our businesses under one creative leadership. Operating as One Zinc allows us to address the market more holistically and move faster. Ian has an outstanding track record across UK and international production, deep experience working with global platforms including Netflix, and a clear vision for where the content economy is heading.”
Jon Creamer
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