Bucknell University (BA)
Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre
Occupation
Media executive
Employers
Lorimar Television/Warner Bros. Television (1985–1995)
CBS (1995–2018)
Spouses
Nancy Wiesenfeld
(m. 1978; div. 2004)
Julie Chen
(m. 2004)
Children
4
Leslie Roy Moonves (/ˈmuːnvɛz/; born October 6, 1949)[1] is an American media executive who was the chairman and CEO of CBS Corporation[2][3] from 2003 until his resignation in September 2018 following numerous allegations of sexual harassment, sexual assault and abuse.[4] He has been married to TV personality Julie Chen since 2004.
He held a series of executive positions at CBS from July 1995 to September 2018.[2] He was also on the board of directors at ZeniMax Media from 1999 until 2021.[2][5] Later, he was co-president and co-chief operating officer (COO) of the original Viacom, the legal predecessor to CBS Corporation, from 2004 until the company split in December 2005. He became chairman of CBS in February 2016.[6][7][8] In September 2018, Moonves stepped down as chairman of CBS after multiple women brought forth sexual assault allegations against him. Moonves allegedly destroyed evidence of his sexual misconduct.[9]
According to various media reports, Moonves has amassed a net worth of over US$800 million through compensation from CBS. Moonves earned $68.4 million in 2017, combined with stock options of the media company, worth over $100 million.
^"Les Moonves: Business Leader (1949–)". Biography.com. A&E Networks. Retrieved January 2, 2019.
^ abc"Biography from CBS Corporation website". Archived from the original on May 16, 2017. Retrieved March 1, 2020.
^"Leslie Moonves Interview". Archive of American Television. Archived from the original on December 21, 2021.
^McCarthy, Tyler (September 9, 2018). "CBS chief Les Moonves steps down amid sexual misconduct allegations". Retrieved September 11, 2018.
^Makuch, Eddie (March 17, 2021). "ZeniMax Board Of Directors Dissolved After Xbox's Bethesda Purchase". GameSpot. Retrieved April 4, 2021.
^Steinberg, Brian (February 3, 2016). "Leslie Moonves Named CBS Chairman, Replacing Sumner Redstone". Variety. Retrieved February 3, 2016.
^"Sumner Redstone resigns as CBS executive chairman, replaced by Leslie Moonves". Los Angeles Times. February 3, 2016. Retrieved February 3, 2016.
^"Sumner Redstone Steps Down as CBS Chairman, Replaced by Leslie Moonves". The New York Times. February 4, 2016. Retrieved February 3, 2016.
^"Les Moonves: New allegation follows report saying ex-CBS boss destroyed evidence". USA TODAY. Retrieved January 11, 2019.
September 2018, Moonves stepped down as chairman of CBS after multiple women brought forth sexual assault allegations against him. Moonves allegedly destroyed...
Early Show on CBS. In 2004, Chen married CBS executive LesMoonves. Starting in 2010, Chen Moonves was a co-host and the moderator of the CBS Daytime talk...
her being entitled "The Most Watched Editor at Fashion Week". Moonves's father, LesMoonves, was a television executive, and The New York Times described...
Leslie Moonves' Crusade to Save CBS From Viacom". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved May 26, 2018. Parker, Ryan (September 9, 2018). "Leslie Moonves Exits...
Moonves also considered Bakish a threat as he never wanted an ally of Shari Redstone as a board member of the combined company. Following Moonves' resignation...
CBS LesMoonves (born 1949), American media executive, chairman and CEO of CBS Corporation (2003–2018) This page lists people with the surname Moonves. If...
2018. A public proponent of the #MeToo movement, Moonves Lutz, Eric (July 28, 2018). "CBS exec LesMoonves accused of sexual misconduct in latest Ronan Farrow...
examination by a geriatric psychiatrist. He was ultimately succeeded by LesMoonves at CBS and Philippe Dauman at Viacom. Redstone was born Sumner Murray...
took to her Twitter account to directly accuse Moonves of hindering her career. Partially quoting Moonves' statement denying the accusations that he attempted...
Owned Television Stations. July 27, 2018. Lee, Edmund (July 27, 2018). "LesMoonves, CBS C.E.O., Faces Inquiry Over Misconduct Allegations". The New York...
President, and the Privilege of Power. Former CBS President and CEO LesMoonves refused to approve the film, and CBS refused to air advertisements for...
her salary withheld by Moonves as retaliation. “I go from being sexually assaulted, fired for not having sex with LesMoonves, fired by everyone, to ‘We...
football team. After college, he was hired by CBS President and CEO LesMoonves as an intern, before becoming director of digital development for the...
those shows continued to air on CBS. In 2018, Shepherd claimed that LesMoonves hit on her during a dinner date, but she refused him. As a result, he...
non-executive chair, but she declined. The CBS board announced that LesMoonves replaced Sumner Redstone as chairman. In 2016, Redstone, who at the time...
insisting that its existing leadership, including long-time chairman and CEO LesMoonves, oversee the re-combined company. Viacom rejected the offer as too low...
CBS CEO Leslie Moonves of harassment and intimidation, and that dozens more described abuse at his company. In September 2018, Moonves stepped down as...
come forward with claims about Moonves have little motivation to fabricate or exaggerate past incidents with Moonves. 'You have women who are coming...
controversy resulted in an industry blacklisting under the direction of LesMoonves, then-CEO of CBS Corporation. Jackson subsequently experienced reduced...
negotiating exit for CEO LesMoonves". CNNMoney. Archived from the original on September 6, 2018. Retrieved September 6, 2018. "As Leslie Moonves Negotiates His...
Chairman and CEO LesMoonves. This is significant because, according to the New York Post, Ianniello was being poised to succeed Moonves as CEO at some...
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