Cap Cities/ABC Appoints 3 to Key Positions

Continuing a management restructuring begun after the Jan. 9 resignation of ABC President Frederick S. Pierce, Capital Cities/ABC Inc. appointed three executives Thursday to top posts at the new company formed after Cap Cities’ takeover of ABC.

Mark H. Cohen, a 28-year veteran with ABC, was named executive vice president of the ABC division and vice president of the parent company. He will report to John B. Sias, a Cap Cities executive who succeeded Pierce as head of ABC. Cohen will continue to be responsible for ABC’s business affairs and contracts, a spokesman said.

James P. Arcara, a former Cap Cities radio executive, was named president of the radio division. He succeeds Ben Hoberman, who retired as president of ABC Radio when Cap Cities’ $3.5-billion takeover of ABC was completed Jan. 3.

Don Bouloukos, vice president of ABC’s owned-and-operated radio stations before the takeover, was appointed president of the merged company’s radio stations division. He succeeds Charles De Bare, who is taking early retirement, the spokesman said.

Earlier this week, the company named Mark Mandela as president of the ABC Television network and reassigned George Newi, the previous holder of that job, to a new position as senior vice president-affiliate relations.

There has been speculation that Roone Arledge, president of both ABC News and ABC Sports, may soon step down from his news job, but a spokeswoman in New York on Thursday described those rumors as “absolutely false.”