MPAA chief Christopher Dodd names new executive team
Putting his stamp on the Motion Picture Assn. of America, former Sen. Christopher J. Dodd has assembled his own team of top-level executives at Hollywood’s chief lobbying organization.
Dodd, who was tapped in March to run the MPAA, announced Thursday that Lori McGrogan, his former chief of staff in the Senate, will be brought in as his senior advisor, assisting in strategic and long-term planning as well as day-to-day operations.
Laura Nichols, formerly a senior fellow for the Center for American Progress, a Washington, D.C., think tank, will head up the MPAA’s communications team. Howard Gantman will remain as vice president of corporate communications and report to Nichols.
Heading the new executive team will be Michael O’Leary, who was promoted to senior executive vice president for global policy and external affairs. O’Leary, a former Justice Department official who prosecuted intellectual property crimes, had previously been in charge of the MPAA’s domestic government policy priorities. His expanded role reflects Dodd’s desire to better integrate the organization’s international and domestic functions.
“We’ve assembled a senior team, who, together with our dedicated MPAA global staff, will set our sights on delivering a clear and simple message: When it comes to growing our economy, creating jobs, promoting trade and American innovation, movies matter,” Dodd said in a statement.
The executive appointments come nearly six months after Dodd was appointed chairman and chief executive of the MPAA. He succeeded Bob Pisano, who resigned in June and had been serving as interim chief executive after the departure of former CEO Dan Glickman.
