Jonathan Sichel
General Manager, Content Acquisitions & Operations
Discovery Inc
Education
Princeton University
B.A. Public and International Affairs
Harvard Law School
J.D. Law
Podcasts
29:36311: What the GM of Content Acquisitions & Operations at Discovery Does w/ Jonathan Sichel, Discovery Inc. [Main T4C episode]
Jonathan Sichel is the General Manager of Content Acquisitions and Operations at Discovery Inc, where he oversees 18 different lifestyle networks and manages 11 different brands. This includes everything from HD TV to the Food Network to Animal Planet and the Travel channel. Jonathan began working at Discovery Communications..
Career Path
Interview Highlights
“I play a part along with other members of our team in helping guide our networks, helping build our audiences that we have and reach nuance.”
Best Career Advice
“Say something twice and then don’t say it again. What I mean by that is when you give an opinion to somebody the first time, they may not have heard you. The second time, they have, and they may choose to disregard your opinion. They may choose to take it, but not acknowledge that they’re taking it … And you may be frustrated because you’re not being heard … but at some point you have to just live with it and say, ‘I’ve made my point. And it’s now my turn to decide what I’m going to do with it.'”
Career Challenge
While working at E! entertainment television in LA, Sichel wrote a letter to one of the company’s talent who was not showing up to work on time or behaving appropriately. The talent took the letter to a local news show and the letter was aired with Sichel’s name on it. “I didn’t think about the consequences of what I was doing … It was such a great learning experience. And I think about that every day when I write an email, that it could get in the hands of anybody.”
Skills
Digital Media, Strategic Partnerships, New Media
