Discovery announced that its Investigation's Chief Henry Schleiff and Head of programming Kevin Bennett are set to exit the US division, while TLC’s Jason Sarlanis takes on an expanded remit. The announcement was made by Chief lifestyle brands officer, Discovery, Kathleen Finch. "Jason is a brilliant content creator and an exceptionally smart strategist, so putting him in charge of the crime and investigative group is the right move," Finch said.
Sarlanis, who was appointed to President of Crime & investigative content for linear and streaming, will now oversee ID, Destination America, and American Heroes Channel starting in September. He will also lead all programming development, production, and content strategy operations for true crime series and documentaries, including Discovery+'s catalog.
Lee, serving as President of TLC streaming & network originals, will contribute to the Travel channel. Schleiff will engage in production through his first-look deal with Discovery, which recently unveiled its mega-merger with WarnerMedia. "He is one of our most insightful, creative, and passionate storytellers and his skill set is an ideal complement to the work we’re doing in this genre," Finch said.
Bennett, who currently is group EVP programming and general manager at Investigation Discovery (ID) will depart the company. Bennett’s next move has not yet been announced. Matt Butler, general manager, Travel Channel will report to Lee, while Sarlanis, who previously reported to Lee, will now report directly to Finch.
While Schleiff initiates his deal with Discovery networks. "Henry Schleiff is a changemaker, a risk-taker, and a company and industry legend,” Finch said. “His creative vision brought decades of success to our networks and we will miss having his influence and voice in the room. We are grateful that we had a creative visionary with us for so many years."