Dawn Ostroff
Ostroff in 2021
Born	1960 (age 65–66) Brooklyn, New York City, New York
Education	Florida International University
Occupations	Chief content officer and Advertising business officer,Spotify[1]
Spouse	Mark Ostroff
Children	4

Dawn Ostroff is an American businesswoman. She was thechief content officer and advertising business officer ofSpotify^[2] and was the former president of entertainment ofThe CW and also the former president ofCondé Nast Entertainment.^[3][4][5]

Ostroff was born in Brooklyn, New York in 1960.^[6] She had an early introduction to music, her father being a concert promoter who worked withFrank Sinatra.^[7] Ostroff holds a Bachelor of Science degree fromFlorida International University.^[8]

Ostroff began her career in news as a reporter forWINZ, a CBS affiliate in Miami. She also worked in local news atWPLG andWTVJ inMiami. She later held senior positions at20th Century Fox,Michael Jacobs Productions (Disney) and theKushner-Locke Company.^[9]

From 1996 to 2002, she served as executive vice president of entertainment atLifetime Television and led the network to become the #1-rated cable network in prime time.^[8]

From 2002 to 2006, Ostroff served as president of theUPN Network, a subsidiary ofCBS, where she developed the popular reality seriesAmerica's Next Top Model, along with other programs includingVeronica Mars andEverybody Hates Chris.^[10]

Beginning in 2006, Ostroff launchedThe CW broadcast network - a joint venture ofCBS andWarner Bros. - and served as president of entertainment. Ostroff was in charge of programming, digital initiatives, branding, marketing, research and sales. As president, she developed several TV series, includingGossip Girl andThe Vampire Diaries.^[11]

Ostroff andCondé Nast CEO Bob Sauerberg co-founded and launchedCondé Nast Entertainment (CNE) in 2011, a studio and distribution network for film, television, premium digital video, social, and virtual reality.^[5] At CNE, Ostroff produced film projects includingOnly the Brave, adapted from aGQ feature;The First Monday in May;The Old Man & the Gun withRobert Redford as well as TV series includingLast Chance U onNetflix andVanity Fair Confidential onInvestigation Discovery.^[12][13][14] Additionally, through its digital franchises, such asVogue's "73 Questions" andWIRED's "Autocomplete Interview," CNE made 5,000 videos, garnering more than 11 billion views in 2017.^[12]

Ostroff joinedSpotify in August 2018 as Chief Content Officer.^[15] She led all aspects of content and distribution operations, including global advertising, global original content, content marketing, industry and creator relationships, and licensing.

During Ostroff's time as Chief Content Officer, she focused on expanding the music streaming service into other forms of audio, primarilypodcasts.^[16] She signedBarack andMichelle Obama's production company,Higher Ground Productions, to produce a slate of exclusive podcasts for Spotify.^[17] She also negotiated exclusive podcast deals withKim Kardashian West,Joe Rogan,Prince Harry andMeghan Markle.^[17][18][19] She is also responsible for overseeing the acquisitions of digital media company and podcast networkGimlet Media, the podcast creation tool Anchor, digital media firmParcast, and Bill Simmons'sThe Ringer.^[20][17]

Ostroff helped Spotify increase the number of podcasts from 185,000 to 3 million, as of January 2022, and in 2020, the company's stock more than doubled.^{[21][19][22][23]}

In January 2023, it was announced that Ostroff would be departing Spotify.^[24]

Ostroff serves on the board ofNew York University College of Arts & Science. In June 2020,Activision Blizzard appointed her to its board as an independent director.^[25][26] She has also served on the board of directors forWestfield Corporation and on the City Year LA board.^[27] Ostroff is also one of the listed directors for theTom Brady-backed digitalNFT companyAutograph^[28] and is on the board of trustees for thePaley Center for Media.^[29] She also served on the board of American entertainment companyAnonymous Content.^[30]

Ostroff joined Paramount Global’s board of directors in May 2023 as an independent, non-executive director.^[31][32] She stepped down from the position in 2024.^[33][34]

In February 2024, it was announced that Ostroff joined Mattel Corporate’s Board of Directors.^[35]

• Hollywood Reporter 2021 Women in Entertainment Power 100 (2021)^[36]
• New York Women in Communications Matrix Award (2021)^[37]
• Billboard Power List (2020)^[38]
• Rolling Stone The Future 25 (2019)^[39]
• New York Women in Film & Television MUSE Award (2014)^[40]
• AdAge Women to Watch (2012)^[41]

Ostroff resides inNew York City with her husband Mark Ostroff and their four children.^[9]

• Dawn Ostroff atIMDb

• 1960 births
• 20th-century American Jews
• 21st-century American Jews
• American television executives
• Businesspeople from Miami
• Paramount Skydance people
• Warner Bros. Discovery people
• Warner Bros. people
• The CW executives
• Florida A&M University alumni
• Living people
• Businesspeople from New York City
• Presidents of The CW
• Spotify people
• UPN television network executives
• American women television executives

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