Kim Martin
President & General Manager
WE tv & Wedding Central
As president and general manager of WE tv and Wedding Central, Kim Martin oversees all aspects of WE tv and sister network Wedding Central, including marketing, programming, production, scheduling and digital media. Martin’s efforts are directed at further cementing WE tv as the destination that offers compelling, entertaining stories that focus on key life stages of a modern woman, from getting married to having children and raising a family, and Wedding Central is first and only 24/7 destination where women, who are fascinated by all things wedding related, can go to get engaged in and entertained by the aspiration and drama of weddings.
Martin was named president of WE tv in September 2008 and expanded her role with the launch of Wedding Central in August 2009. She previously oversaw WE tv as executive vice president and general manager since December 2004.
Under Martin’s leadership, WE tv has seen tremendous increases in ratings, including delivery of younger women. She is credited with the continued growth of WE tv, now available to nearly 77 million U.S. households (Source: Nielsen Media Research). Under Martin’s tenure, WE tv’s original programming slate has also grown significantly, with hit series including Bridezillas, The Locator and Raising Sextuplets. She also spearheads the brand’s multiplatform strategy, including WEtv.com, WeddingCentral.com and GuySpeak.com, a new online destination that provides an interactive forum for women to have their most fascinating questions about the opposite sex answered by real men. WE tv On Demand is the brand’s VOD service and features original series and specials from the network. Martin is a passionate about WE tv’s public affairs initiative WE Empowers Women, which is dedicated to creating programs that foster and celebrate women’s strength, confidence and diversity. WE Empowers Women’s current initiative, WE Volunteer, is a call-to-action for women to become more involved in their communities by connecting them with local causes they are passionate about while encouraging them to volunteer.
Prior to joining WE tv, Martin served as executive vice president of distribution and affiliate marketing for Rainbow Media Holdings LLC. In this role, she was responsible for the distribution of all the company’s networks, including AMC, Fuse (now managed by Madison Square Garden), IFC (The Independent Film Channel), WE tv (then known as WE: Women’s Entertainment), and Rainbow original VOD services at that time - Mag Rack and SPORTSKOOL. She also worked with allied distributors in the marketing and promotion of the networks’ product. Martin joined the company in 1999 as executive vice president of affiliate sales and marketing for AMC Networks, overseeing distribution and affiliate marketing for AMC and WE.
Before joining Rainbow Media, Martin was senior vice president of affiliate sales for Discovery Networks where she was responsible for managing affiliate sales for the United States and Canada. She was instrumental in promoting Discovery Channel, TLC, Animal Planet, Travel Channel and Discovery Health, as well as developing and maintaining relationships with regional and corporate multiple system operators. Martin’s leadership resulted in overachieved sales goals every year since joining Discovery in 1992. Martin’s positions prior to joining Discovery Communications, Inc. include financial advisor for The Legend Group in West Palm Beach and senior sales representative for Mead Johnson & Company, Pharmaceutical Division in Atlanta.
Martin holds a Master of Business Administration from Georgia State University and a Bachelor of Science degree in political science from Georgia College and State University. Martin serves on Women in Cable Telecommunications’ (WICT) national board of directors as chair of the Development Committee, is a graduate of WICT’s Betsy Magness Leadership Institute (BMLI) and has served as a WICT executive mentor. She is also a member of the Cable & Telecommunications Association for Marketing (CTAM). Martin was named by CableFAX for four consecutive years as one of the 50 most powerful women in cable and is a Multichannel News & WICT Wonder Woman.
In addition, Martin serves on the Foundation Board of Trustees for Georgia College and State University, the Board of North Shore Animal League and is a Luminary Circle member of Step Up Women’s Network, a national, nonprofit membership organization dedicated to connecting and advancing women and girls.