There is no "I" in Skydance, and advertising leader Jay Askinasi is wasting no time putting that philosophy into practice as he shapes his new team for the newly combined media giant. Following the completion of the monumental $110 billion merger between Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery to form Skydance, the media landscape has been closely watching how leadership roles would shake out across legacy divisions.
Earlier reporting by ADWEEK established that Jay Askinasi would be stepping up to lead advertising operations for the newly formed powerhouse, serving as the chief revenue officer of the combined entity. That massive consolidation at the top immediately signaled a shifting of the guard, paving the way for key exits including Warner Bros. Discovery ad sales leaders Ryan Gould and Bobby Voltaggio, who departed following the transaction.
Now, the contours of the new organization are coming into sharper focus. In a fresh internal memo distributed to staff and obtained by ADWEEK, Askinasi officially revealed the members of his new ad leadership team, setting the stage for a unified sales strategy across some of the most recognizable entertainment brands in the industry.
Among the primary announcements in Askinasi’s memo is the appointment of Danielle Carney to a critical operational role. Carney, who made headlines earlier this year when she exited Amazon to join Paramount, recently spearheaded the company’s upfront presentation cycle. Under the newly structured Skydance ad sales organization, Carney will officially serve as the head of U.S. sales, taking charge of domestic revenue generation and client partnerships across the combined portfolio.
The integration of talent from Amazon, Paramount, and the legacy Warner Bros. Discovery network represents a complex puzzle for executive leadership. Merging organizations of this scale requires not only aligning massive portfolios of linear television, streaming services, and digital properties, but also harmonizing different corporate cultures and sales methodologies. By tapping executives with deep marketplace experience like Carney, Askinasi is signaling a commitment to continuity and proven leadership as the combined company navigates its first major commercial cycle post-merger.
The $110 billion merger between Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery has fundamentally altered the competitive dynamics of the media and entertainment sector. As traditional media companies contend with the ongoing migration of audiences and ad dollars toward streaming and digital platforms, consolidation has become an increasingly favored strategy to achieve scale, operational efficiency, and greater leverage with brand partners and media agencies.
For the advertising community, the formation of Skydance creates a colossal single point of contact for massive slates of premium content, spanning major broadcast networks, cable staples, film studios, and rapidly growing ad-supported streaming tiers. Advertisers and media buyers navigating the upcoming upfront and scatter markets will be watching closely to see how the newly minted leadership team under Askinasi consolidates inventory packages and presents cross-platform opportunities to brands seeking maximum reach.
Askinasi’s memo outlines the initial steps of building out this massive commercial apparatus, but the work of integrating two legendary media empires is only just beginning. With key leadership positions now locked in and veterans like Carney steering domestic sales, Skydance’s advertising division is moving swiftly to establish its footprint in a transformed media ecosystem.
