Cable Program Director Job Questions & Answers

I would love to work at a Radio Station the whole idea just appeals to me. Of course I would love to be an On-Air personality at some point but my ultimate goal would to be a Program Director. I was thinking about majoring in some form of Business/Management with a Minor in Radio Broadcasting? Anyone have any extra insight on what degree is best for this type of position?

1 answer - Asked By: Stubbs979 - 5/2/2011

Just looking for a career for the rest of my life i have been interested with being a camera operator for a while know, and one more question is what are some jobs that travel.

1 answer - Asked By: Rob - 3/3/2011

I've tried researching a lot of places on the internet and the only place I've found that teaches TV/Film camera operators are in England. Does anyone know where in the US that they may have a school for camera operator? The kind of work I'm talking about is a camera man for a TV show or Film. Is this something you have to go to film school for or is there a place that just teaches how to be a camera operator? Thanks for your answers!!!

1 answer - Asked By: tak3032 - 1/8/2008

I was looking at a list of tips for people who want to survive boot camp and one of the tips said to uncover as much of thier language as possible. Please any jargon definitions are appreciated. thanks, but I need to know what "straighten or fix your snake means" and the like

4 answers - Asked By: I AM THE RIGHT WING CONSPIRACY - 2/11/2007

My son is a high school senior. Next year he wants to go to community college and live at home (at least that is reasonably affordable) instead of going away to school. He wants to take an expensive major however. Video production. We have been able to save about $5,000 towards his education. We are not wealthy people. The rest will have to come from loans and maybe a grant or scholarship. We are looking at some "entry level" pro cameras in the $1500-1800 range. That's about 1/3 of our savings for his education. Models include these: http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/518555-REG/Sony_HVRHD1000U_HVR_HD1000U_Digital_High_Definition.htmlhttp://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/745707-REG/Sony_HXR_MC2000U_HXR_MC2000U_Shoulder_Mount_AVCHD.htmlhttp://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/878341-REG/Panasonic_hmc40kit_AG_HMC40_AVCCAM_HD_Camcorder.html and http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/749467-REG/Canon_4922B002_XA10_HD_Professional_Camcorder.html My concern is he starts September 2013 so these products may not even be available by then or others will be available. We hope he graduates May 2015. He tells us when he graduates he will maybe find a freelance job or shoot local cable news, build up some experience, maybe after 2 years go for a B.A. at least part time. Is anything we buy him in 2013 (summer) going to be any use to him as a working professional in 2015 (summer)? So let's say you are a class of 2012 graduate with an AAS in video production. The camera you purchased in the summer of 2010 when you first started, do you still use it professionally? Can you make anything doing freelance news videos, PR videos or local account commercials with this equipment? We're going to do everything we can to help him. No doubt he will still be living at home in the summer of 2015. By then he's going to have a student loan to pay off. We have a 2005 Hyundai Accent that we are going to give him for college. I hope that thing still runs when it is 10 years old and he isn't making car payments on top of that. The thing has 120,000 miles on it but runs really well. I just fear when he graduates he's going to be in deep debt and have limited employment. I may be wrong. What do you think? Thanks.

3 answers - Asked By: upwardly_mobile_home - 1/18/2013

I am going to be 16 in less than 3 months and I want to look into an interesting summer job. When I am in college, I hope to study film and screenwriting. I'd love to be a film director. I've heard that some highly selective colleges are looking for you to have had experience in jobs that are relevant to the major you are thinking of. I live in MN and I'm not sure what types of jobs are available to me that would help me prepare for being a director. Any ideas? Input= Appreciated!

0 - Asked By: pinkobsession123 - 1/22/2009

OK, heres the deal. I'm 16 years old, and my ambition is to be a movie director. I know its a long shot, but its really what I want to do. I have made movies, with stories, with my friends, but I had to do it with a pathetic camera. I have money, but nowhere near what I would need to get a significantly better camera. Basically, I need about $1300 to get a Sony HD camcorder to make my movies. It hard to impress people with movies shot w/ a $300 camera. $1300 is nothing to a major movie studio, but they wont just give money away. Does anyone know of any places (movies studios, companies, programs, etc.) that would sponsor me with a little cash and in return put their names in the film? As you can see, I dont need that much money, but its more than I could ever get my hands on. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks

2 answers - Asked By: sportsfreak - 3/22/2007

After watching a number of programs on History and History International and several of the Military Channels, I got to wondering. I remember during the Vietnam conflict having the war brought into our living rooms nightly, the vivid details and the horrors of it. I know that during WWII news was censored because many of the programs we see today have footage never seen before because it was classified. Can someone give me some ideas on where to find out how much was censored and what a typical radio news report of the WWII era was like. I'm interested in anything. Please give me some suggestions of where to look. Thank you.

2 answers - Asked By: torase - 2/25/2010

After watching a number of programs on History and History International and several of the Military Channels, I got to wondering. I remember during the Vietnam conflict having the war brought into our living rooms nightly, the vivid details and the horrors of it. I know that during WWII news was censored because many of the programs we see today have footage never seen before because it was classified. Can someone give me some ideas on where to find out how much was censored and what a typical radio news report of the WWII era was like. I'm interested in anything. Please give me some suggestions of where to look. Thank you.

1 answer - Asked By: delouse - 5/17/2010

Ok so i just moved in to the middle east and i want to be a celebrity spotter i am 15 years old and i have been introduction for 3 years and all of the people who heard me on stage they were like you are amazing .. i can ask celebrities question i love this job but am still young do you have any jobs or anything this would be like a dream coming true i just wanna be like raya from scoop with raya any ideas please help ?

1 answer - Asked By: Rolla_22 - 10/3/2012

What job allows you to create videos for live bands? For example the, lately when the band Muse performs live they have large hexagonal shaped video screens that display edited videos and pictures for each song. Who does it all?

1 answer - Asked By: B - 12/17/2011

Hello. I recently posted a question before about computer programming directors but realize it may take many years to become one to make six figure money. So, if after college (which i will get my bachelors), would it be good to become a web developer and start out entry level..then after a while will i be able to make close to six figures or more? I'm just really confused in which job to choose because i want to make very good money as well. please help. also...my counselor told me branching out in the field would make me more money..how would i do that?

1 answer - Asked By: olaf j - 1/30/2008

I'm just curious, this is a list of organizations, companies, television programming and other things owned by Jews. MORTIMER ZUCKERMAN, owner of NY Daily News, US News & World Report and chair of the Conference of Presidents of Major Jewish American Organizations, one of the largest pro-Israel lobbying groups. LESLIE MOONVES, president of CBS television, great-nephew of David Ben-Gurion, and co-chair with Norman Ornstein of the Advisory Committee on Public Interest Obligation of Digital TV Producers, appointed by Clinton. JONATHAN MILLER, chair and CEO of AOL division of AOL-Time-Warner NEIL SHAPIRO, president of NBC News JEFF GASPIN, Executive Vice-President, Programming, NBC DAVIDWESTIN, president of ABC News SUMNER REDSTONE, CEO of Viacom, “world’s biggest media giant” (Economist, 11/23/2) owns Viacom cable, CBS and MTVs all over the world, Blockbuster video rentals and Black Entertainment TV. MICHAEL EISNER, major owner of Walt Disney, Capitol Cities, ABC. RUPERT MURDOCH, Owner Fox TV, New York Post, London Times, News of the World (Jewish mother) MEL KARMAZIN, president of CBS DON HEWITT, Exec. Director, 60 Minutes, CBS JEFF FAGER, Exec. Director, 60 Minutes II. CBS DAVID POLTRACK, Executive Vice-President, Research and Planning, CBS SANDY KRUSHOW, Chair, Fox Entertainment LLOYD BRAUN, Chair, ABC Entertainment BARRY MEYER, chair, Warner Bros. SHERRY LANSING. President of Paramount Communications and Chairman of Paramount Pictures’ Motion Picture Group. HARVEY WEINSTEIN, CEO. Miramax Films. BRAD SIEGEL., President, Turner Entertainment. ARTHUR O. SULZBERGER, JR., publisher of the NY Times, the Boston Globe and other publications. STEPHEN EMERSON, every media outlet’s first choice as an expert on domestic terrorism. DAVID SCHNEIDERMAN, owner of the Village Voice and the New Times network of “alternative weeklies.” DENNIS LEIBOWITZ, head of Act II Partners, a media hedge fund KENNETH POLLACK, for CIA analysts, director of Saban Center for Middle East Policy, writes op-eds in NY Times, New Yorker BARRY DILLER, chair of USA Interactive, former owner of Universal Entertainment KENNETH ROTH, Executive Director of Human Rights Watch TERRY SEMEL, CEO, Yahoo, former chair, Warner Bros. MARK GOLIN, VP and Creative Director, AOL WARREN LIEBERFORD, Pres., Warner Bros. Home Video Div. of AOL- TimeWarner JEFFREY ZUCKER, President of NBC Entertainment JACK MYERS, NBC, chief.NYT 5.14.2 SANDY GRUSHOW, chair of Fox Entertainment GAIL BERMAN, president of Fox Entertainment STEPHEN SPIELBERG, co-owner of Dreamworks JEFFREY KATZENBERG, co-owner of Dreamworks DAVID GEFFEN, co-owner of Dreamworks LLYOD BRAUN, chair of ABC Entertainment JORDAN LEVIN, president of Warner Bros. Entertainment HOWARD STRINGER, chief of Sony Corp. of America AMY PASCAL, chair of Columbia Pictures JOEL KLEIN, chair and CEO of Bertelsmann’s American operations ROBERT SILLERMAN, founder of Clear Channel Communications BRIAN GRADEN, president of MTV entertainment IVAN SEIDENBERG, CEO of Verizon Communications WOLF BLITZER, host of CNN’s Late Edition LARRY KING, host of Larry King Live MIKE WALLACE, Host of CBS, 60 Minutes BARBARA WALTERS, Host, The View DONALD GRAHAM, Chair and CEO of Newsweek and Washington Post MICHAEL SAVAGE, Talk Show Host, KFSO (ABC-Capitol Cities, San Francisco) Syndicated in 100 markets MICHAEL MEDVED, Talk Show Host, on 124 AM stations ANDREW LACK, president of NBC DAVID REZNIK, Editor, The New Yorker SAMUEL NEWHOUSE JR, and DONALD NEWHOUSE own Newhouse Publications, includes 26 newspapers in 22 cities; the Conde Nast magazine group, includes The New Yorker; Parade, the Sunday newspaper supplement; American City Business Journals, business newspapers published in more than 30 major cities in America; and interests in cable television programming and cable systems serving 1 million homes. DONALD NEWHOUSE, chairman of the board of directors, Associated Press. PETER R KANN, CEO, Wall Street Journal, Barron’s RALPH J. & BRIAN ROBERTS, Owners, Comcast-ATT Cable TV. LAWRENCE KIRSHBAUM, CEO, AOL-Time Warner Book Group

5 answers - Asked By: - 4/28/2011

I just read this on another forum , its from the guardian online Quote: BSkyB is to close Bravo and general entertainment station Channel One, putting more than 50 jobs at risk, as part of the integration of Living TV Group. BSkyB has decided to focus on the Living TV channel portfolio, which will see a 25?oost to its programming budget, and the gameshow and quiz channel Challenge. Living TV Group, which is home to shows including Grey's Anatomy, Britain's Next Top Model and Sons of Anarchy, currently employs 110 staff. There will be just 58 roles after integration, but it is understood that there are a significant number of positions potentially available in other parts of the BSkyB operation. BSkyB is understood to have decided to jettison Bravo, which launched as a cable channel in 1985, because it reaches a similar demographic to Sky1 but is not believed to have the same brand equity or reach. BSkyB is backing Living TV because, outside of sport, it is second only to Sky1 in popularity among its basic pay-TV channels. BSkyB has failed to target the female market as successfully as Living TV, which has a two-year deal with Katie Price. Sky closed its own attempt to target a female audience, Sky Real Lives, earlier this year. It was decided that Channel One, which was rebranded from Virgin 1 in August following BSkyB's acquisition of Living TV Group for £160m in July, was too similar to Sky3, which it sits alongside as a free-to-air channel on Freeview. BSkyB intends to "redeploy" the channels' programming, with pay-TV shows moving to other Sky channels and free-to-air fare mostly moving to Sky3. Challenge will move free-to-air in Channel One's slot, which will effectively double its audience reach, as BSkyB looks to grow its presence in quizzes and gameshows. There are longer-term possibilities of tie-ups with Sky Bet. Staff have been informed of the integration plans this afternoon with all staff, including the Living TV Group managing director, Jonathan Webb, under review. The review has been carried out by Sophie Turner Laing, the managing director of entertainment, news and broadcast operations at BSkyB. "Content is at the heart of Sky's strategy," she said. "Living is already one of the best pay-TV channels around and is obviously a great fit with our existing channels like Sky1. There is so much potential for further development and we intend to increase on-screen investment in Living by around a quarter as part of our expanded channel portfolio. This is a big part of our plans to bring customers great content from channel brands that really cut through." BSkyB moved quickly to announce the integration of Living TV Group after being given final clearance by the Office of Fair Trading only yesterday. I was wondering what sky package you need to get the channels mentioned (extreme sports?) and where you think it would be, also for any internet showings / streams etc that you watch it on. thanks! xxx (im gonna actually cry if it happens and i cant watch it!)

5 answers - Asked By: Maria S - 9/15/2010

Glenn Beck's Obamassault 'Green' Aide - 'Color of Change' Boycott Leader Says FOX Host ‘Trying to Change Subject’ Posted August 24, 2009 8:45 PM by Mark Silva This may help explain why President Barack Obama is so -- as the producer for FOX News' O'Reilly Factor puts it -- "thin-skinned'' about FOX News. FOX's Glenn Beck used his popular program today to "attack the background of Van Jones, a White House environmental advisor who co-founded an African American political advocacy group that has organized an advertising boycott of his program,'' as the L.A. Times' Matea Gold notes in Show Tracker. This is the Beck who, one morning on FOX & Friends, accused Obama of "a deep-seated hatred for white people or the white culture." In protest, the group, "Color of Change,'' has promoted an advertising boycott and says it has secured commitments from 36 companies pledging not to advertise on Beck's afternoon show, with a growing audience of more than 2 million viewers. Beck "spent a large share of his program suggesting that Jones, who co-founded Color of Change in 2005, is a radical,'' Gold writes. "During a six-minute biographical profile, set to ominous music, Beck said Jones was twice arrested for political protests and has described himself as a "rowdy black nationalist.''' "Why is it that such a committed revolutionary has made it so high into the Obama administration as one of his chief advisers?" Beck asked. Jones serves as a special advisor for Green Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation at the White House Council on Environmental Quality. James Rucker, executive director of Color of Change, says Jones has not been active with the group for nearly two years and Beck is "trying to change the subject... The issue is his baseless fear mongering." Although the ad boycott has generated publicity, FOX News says it has not hurt the network;s revenue or Beck's audience. "The advertisers referenced have all moved their spots from Beck to other programs on the network so there has been no revenue lost," a spokeswoman said. Since his show made its debut in January, Beck has attracted a sizable following with his crticisim for the Obama administration. This month, his viewership has averaged 2.25 million, with ratings up from July, when it averaged 2.05 million viewers. "This president, I think, has exposed himself as a guy, over and over and over again, who has a deep-seated hatred for white people or the white culture, I don't know what it is,'' Beck said on FOX & Friends last month "I'm not saying that he doesn't like white people. I'm saying he has a problem. This guy is, I believe, a racist.'' "The controversy has triggered a broader discussion about the risks to advertisers of running commercials amid the incendiary rhetoric of cable talk shows,'' Gold notes. Clorox announced last week that it was making a clean sweep of its ads from all political talk shows. ""We do not want to be associated with inflammatory speech used by either liberal or conservative talk show host," the company said in a statement. "After a comprehensive review of political talks shows across the spectrum, at this time we have made a decision not to advertise on them.'' As for the vacationing White House, there appeared to be no word forthcoming on Beck's newest assault, but a spokesman professed that he wasn't sure what O'Reilly's producer was talking about on that "thin-skinned'' question. .(Glenn Beck, of FOX News, is pictured above right in a a file photo by Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times. Van Jones, of the White House Council on Environmental Quality, is pictured above left speaking at the National Clean Energy Summit in Las Vegas in a phhoto by Ethan Miller / Getty Images) http://www.swamppolitics.com/news/politics/blog/2009/08/glenn_becks_obamassault_green.html

10 answers - Asked By: Janice F - 8/26/2009

Glenn Beck's Obamassault 'Green' Aide - 'Color of Change' Boycott Leader Says FOX Host ‘Trying to Change Subject’ Posted August 24, 2009 8:45 PM by Mark Silva This may help explain why President Barack Obama is so -- as the producer for FOX News' O'Reilly Factor puts it -- "thin-skinned'' about FOX News. FOX's Glenn Beck used his popular program today to "attack the background of Van Jones, a White House environmental advisor who co-founded an African American political advocacy group that has organized an advertising boycott of his program,'' as the L.A. Times' Matea Gold notes in Show Tracker. This is the Beck who, one morning on FOX & Friends, accused Obama of "a deep-seated hatred for white people or the white culture." In protest, the group, "Color of Change,'' has promoted an advertising boycott and says it has secured commitments from 36 companies pledging not to advertise on Beck's afternoon show, with a growing audience of more than 2 million viewers. Beck "spent a large share of his program suggesting that Jones, who co-founded Color of Change in 2005, is a radical,'' Gold writes. "During a six-minute biographical profile, set to ominous music, Beck said Jones was twice arrested for political protests and has described himself as a "rowdy black nationalist.''' "Why is it that such a committed revolutionary has made it so high into the Obama administration as one of his chief advisers?" Beck asked. Jones serves as a special advisor for Green Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation at the White House Council on Environmental Quality. James Rucker, executive director of Color of Change, says Jones has not been active with the group for nearly two years and Beck is "trying to change the subject... The issue is his baseless fear mongering." Although the ad boycott has generated publicity, FOX News says it has not hurt the network;s revenue or Beck's audience. "The advertisers referenced have all moved their spots from Beck to other programs on the network so there has been no revenue lost," a spokeswoman said. Since his show made its debut in January, Beck has attracted a sizable following with his crticisim for the Obama administration. This month, his viewership has averaged 2.25 million, with ratings up from July, when it averaged 2.05 million viewers. "This president, I think, has exposed himself as a guy, over and over and over again, who has a deep-seated hatred for white people or the white culture, I don't know what it is,'' Beck said on FOX & Friends last month "I'm not saying that he doesn't like white people. I'm saying he has a problem. This guy is, I believe, a racist.'' "The controversy has triggered a broader discussion about the risks to advertisers of running commercials amid the incendiary rhetoric of cable talk shows,'' Gold notes. Clorox announced last week that it was making a clean sweep of its ads from all political talk shows. ""We do not want to be associated with inflammatory speech used by either liberal or conservative talk show host," the company said in a statement. "After a comprehensive review of political talks shows across the spectrum, at this time we have made a decision not to advertise on them.'' As for the vacationing White House, there appeared to be no word forthcoming on Beck's newest assault, but a spokesman professed that he wasn't sure what O'Reilly's producer was talking about on that "thin-skinned'' question. .(Glenn Beck, of FOX News, is pictured above right in a a file photo by Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times. Van Jones, of the White House Council on Environmental Quality, is pictured above left speaking at the National Clean Energy Summit in Las Vegas in a phhoto by Ethan Miller / Getty Images) http://www.swamppolitics.com/news/politics/blog/2009/08/glenn_becks_obamassault_green.html

14 answers - Asked By: Janice F - 8/26/2009

Glenn Beck's Obamassault 'Green' Aide - 'Color of Change' Boycott Leader Says FOX Host ‘Trying to Change Subject’ Posted August 24, 2009 8:45 PM by Mark Silva This may help explain why President Barack Obama is so -- as the producer for FOX News' O'Reilly Factor puts it -- "thin-skinned'' about FOX News. FOX's Glenn Beck used his popular program today to "attack the background of Van Jones, a White House environmental advisor who co-founded an African American political advocacy group that has organized an advertising boycott of his program,'' as the L.A. Times' Matea Gold notes in Show Tracker. This is the Beck who, one morning on FOX & Friends, accused Obama of "a deep-seated hatred for white people or the white culture." In protest, the group, "Color of Change,'' has promoted an advertising boycott and says it has secured commitments from 36 companies pledging not to advertise on Beck's afternoon show, with a growing audience of more than 2 million viewers. Beck "spent a large share of his program suggesting that Jones, who co-founded Color of Change in 2005, is a radical,'' Gold writes. "During a six-minute biographical profile, set to ominous music, Beck said Jones was twice arrested for political protests and has described himself as a "rowdy black nationalist.''' "Why is it that such a committed revolutionary has made it so high into the Obama administration as one of his chief advisers?" Beck asked. Jones serves as a special advisor for Green Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation at the White House Council on Environmental Quality. James Rucker, executive director of Color of Change, says Jones has not been active with the group for nearly two years and Beck is "trying to change the subject... The issue is his baseless fear mongering." Although the ad boycott has generated publicity, FOX News says it has not hurt the network;s revenue or Beck's audience. "The advertisers referenced have all moved their spots from Beck to other programs on the network so there has been no revenue lost," a spokeswoman said. Since his show made its debut in January, Beck has attracted a sizable following with his crticisim for the Obama administration. This month, his viewership has averaged 2.25 million, with ratings up from July, when it averaged 2.05 million viewers. "This president, I think, has exposed himself as a guy, over and over and over again, who has a deep-seated hatred for white people or the white culture, I don't know what it is,'' Beck said on FOX & Friends last month "I'm not saying that he doesn't like white people. I'm saying he has a problem. This guy is, I believe, a racist.'' "The controversy has triggered a broader discussion about the risks to advertisers of running commercials amid the incendiary rhetoric of cable talk shows,'' Gold notes. Clorox announced last week that it was making a clean sweep of its ads from all political talk shows. ""We do not want to be associated with inflammatory speech used by either liberal or conservative talk show host," the company said in a statement. "After a comprehensive review of political talks shows across the spectrum, at this time we have made a decision not to advertise on them.'' As for the vacationing White House, there appeared to be no word forthcoming on Beck's newest assault, but a spokesman professed that he wasn't sure what O'Reilly's producer was talking about on that "thin-skinned'' question. .(Glenn Beck, of FOX News, is pictured above right in a a file photo by Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times. Van Jones, of the White House Council on Environmental Quality, is pictured above left speaking at the National Clean Energy Summit in Las Vegas in a phhoto by Ethan Miller / Getty Images) http://www.swamppolitics.com/news/politics/blog/2009/08/glenn_becks_obamassault_green.html

3 answers - Asked By: Janice F - 8/26/2009

By VINNEE TONG, AP Business Writer Vinnee Tong, Ap Business Writer – Fri May 1, 12:07 am ET NEW YORK – U.S. companies remain generous with the perks they give to CEOs, including some that are unfathomable to the average American worker: chauffeured cars, bodyguards, club memberships and free travel in company jets. The median value of these and similar perks rose nearly 7 percent in 2008, according to an Associated Press analysis of regulatory filings from 309 companies in the Standard & Poor's 500. The increase came even as overall CEO compensation fell 7 percent to $7.6 million. Perks rose despite a public backlash against such benefits, which many investors and lawmakers deem excessive. They argue well-paid executives should cover the costs of life insurance, charitable donations and financial planning themselves, especially as companies struggle with falling profits, slumping stock prices and massive job cuts. Even some compensation consultants are saying enough is enough. "Those are things the average person, the average Joe, doesn't have, so we're saying, don't give them perks," said Paul Dorf, a managing director at pay consultant Compensation Resources Inc. But plenty of companies are keeping the spigots open. Occidental Petroleum CEO Ray Irani, for example, received $400,000 worth of financial planning, part of a $30 million pay package in 2008. To put it another way, that $400,000 in financial planning is more than the total annual household income of the vast majority of Americans. Occidental spokesman Richard Kline said the comprehensive financial planning helps Irani to "keep his complete attention on the company's business." The median value of perks — which is the midpoint at which half of the executives received more and half less — was $170,501 in 2008, up from $159,586 the year before. Only three CEOs in the AP survey received no perks in 2008. And perks made up a bigger percentage of total compensation, rising to 2.25 percent in 2008, up slightly from 1.95 percent, the AP's analysis found. The biggest earner of perks in 2008 was Johnson & Johnson CEO William Weldon. His perks package was worth $3.9 million, about 16 percent of his $23 million in overall compensation. Included in his perks package was a $3.6 million payment to a retirement plan, about $154,000 in personal flights on the company jet and about $26,000 for a car and driver. Only one CEO saw his entire compensation paid in perks in 2008: Richard Fairbank of Capital One Financial Corp. ($68,344). He received a car allowance, insurance, health care and home security. Some companies went beyond that. Cablevision Systems Corp. offered top executives free cable TV, free high-speed Internet service and use of the company travel department to book personal travel. Defense company Halliburton Co., meanwhile, has two separate programs to match charitable donations and yet another that boosts political giving. Fort Worth, Texas-based XTO Energy gave $3.4 million to Baylor University to help build a new sports complex. It was the second installment of a total $6.8 million pledge made in 2007 to supplement now retired CEO Bob Simpson's own $3.2 million donation to his alma mater. XTO's generosity extended to an unnamed school that Simpson's children attend. It got a $775,000 donation in 2008, the fourth installment of a $3.1 million gift. A company spokesman did not return a call for comment. On the other hand, some companies are increasingly using so-called perk allowances, basically cash that executives can dip into at their liking for the perks they want. For example, Tyco International CEO Edward Breen was given a $70,000 cash perk in 2008 while Reynolds American Inc. CEO Susan Ivey got $29,000 in cash to replace an old executive perks program. While plenty of companies were still willing to dole out generous perks, compensation advisers say there has been a slight pullback in certain benefits that seem to incite the most public outrage. Ira Kay, director of compensation consulting for Watson Wyatt, called perks a major "irritant" to shareholders. Some companies are changing their perks policies. Verizon Communications Inc. will no longer offer free jet travel to CEOs once they have retired, starting with its current chief executive. Past CEOs can still fly for free. "Companies are looking for stuff that isn't central to their pay programs," said David Swinford, chief executive of the compensation consulting firm Pearl Meyer & Partners. "Optics are very critical right now."

2 answers - Asked By: George Mason - Patriot - 5/1/2009

I am taking computer science currently but going to switch out because i enjoy being an I.T guy more then just programming. I was an intern in my high school and i basically got to experience life as one as i worked hand in hand with the I.T director. We moved servers, work with the directory, ran cables imaged computers a bit of everything. I have to say it was fun and i wish to continue so i am going to do computer technology in another college. I just have a couple questions to anyone who is one. If you do not mid answering a couple of these. 1. What do you enjoy about being one. 2. how is a day at your job. 3.is it very stressful. 4. what are your hours. 5.finally is it difficult to get in the industry. I live close to boston i hear that a ton of jobs are in boston. mind* answering

2 answers - Asked By: gabriel a - 10/13/2011

By VINNEE TONG, AP Business Writer Vinnee Tong, Ap Business Writer – Fri May 1, 12:07 am ET NEW YORK – U.S. companies remain generous with the perks they give to CEOs, including some that are unfathomable to the average American worker: chauffeured cars, bodyguards, club memberships and free travel in company jets. The median value of these and similar perks rose nearly 7 percent in 2008, according to an Associated Press analysis of regulatory filings from 309 companies in the Standard & Poor's 500. The increase came even as overall CEO compensation fell 7 percent to $7.6 million. Perks rose despite a public backlash against such benefits, which many investors and lawmakers deem excessive. They argue well-paid executives should cover the costs of life insurance, charitable donations and financial planning themselves, especially as companies struggle with falling profits, slumping stock prices and massive job cuts. Even some compensation consultants are saying enough is enough. "Those are things the average person, the average Joe, doesn't have, so we're saying, don't give them perks," said Paul Dorf, a managing director at pay consultant Compensation Resources Inc. But plenty of companies are keeping the spigots open. Occidental Petroleum CEO Ray Irani, for example, received $400,000 worth of financial planning, part of a $30 million pay package in 2008. To put it another way, that $400,000 in financial planning is more than the total annual household income of the vast majority of Americans. Occidental spokesman Richard Kline said the comprehensive financial planning helps Irani to "keep his complete attention on the company's business." The median value of perks — which is the midpoint at which half of the executives received more and half less — was $170,501 in 2008, up from $159,586 the year before. Only three CEOs in the AP survey received no perks in 2008. And perks made up a bigger percentage of total compensation, rising to 2.25 percent in 2008, up slightly from 1.95 percent, the AP's analysis found. The biggest earner of perks in 2008 was Johnson & Johnson CEO William Weldon. His perks package was worth $3.9 million, about 16 percent of his $23 million in overall compensation. Included in his perks package was a $3.6 million payment to a retirement plan, about $154,000 in personal flights on the company jet and about $26,000 for a car and driver. Only one CEO saw his entire compensation paid in perks in 2008: Richard Fairbank of Capital One Financial Corp. ($68,344). He received a car allowance, insurance, health care and home security. Some companies went beyond that. Cablevision Systems Corp. offered top executives free cable TV, free high-speed Internet service and use of the company travel department to book personal travel. Defense company Halliburton Co., meanwhile, has two separate programs to match charitable donations and yet another that boosts political giving. Fort Worth, Texas-based XTO Energy gave $3.4 million to Baylor University to help build a new sports complex. It was the second installment of a total $6.8 million pledge made in 2007 to supplement now retired CEO Bob Simpson's own $3.2 million donation to his alma mater. XTO's generosity extended to an unnamed school that Simpson's children attend. It got a $775,000 donation in 2008, the fourth installment of a $3.1 million gift. A

1 answer - Asked By: George Mason - Patriot - 5/1/2009