WASHINGTON—Mitchell Praver has been named senior vice president of new media for National Geographic Ventures (NGV), it was announced May 11 by Rick Allen, president and CEO of NGV. Praver had been vice president of new media distribution at Discovery Networks.

In this newly created position, Praver is responsible for coordinating new media initiatives within the NGV group of companies (National Geographic Television, National Geographic Maps and National Geographic Interactive), as well as assisting other National Geographic Society initiatives.

“Mitch has the perfect combination of broad vision, deep and multifaceted industry experience, and bedrock pragmatism for this challenging role,” Allen said. “National Geographic has the world’s finest content—Mitch will help us expand the platforms on which it can be enjoyed, so that the National Geographic Society will be as fresh and important in the next century as it has been since 1888.”

Praver has 20 years’ media experience, holding key positions with a broadcast network (ABC-TV), a major market TV station (WABC-TV New York), a leading media representation firm (Katz Communications), cable TV networks (Lifetime Television and Discovery Networks), and a regional telephone company subsidiary (Bell Atlantic Video Services).

Praver comes to NGV from Discovery Networks, where he served as vice president of new media distribution, responsible for targeting and developing relationships for distribution across new platforms and technologies of the Discovery Channel’s 11 networks, Discovery Channel Online’s high-speed cable modem services and integrated TV products.

With Bell Atlantic Video Services, Praver led the programming and content development team that helped create Stargazer, a pioneering video-on-demand TV service. With Lifetime Television, as vice president of program acquisitions, scheduling and planning, he directed short- and long-term programming and promotion strategies. With Katz Communications, as vice president of programming, Praver led the programming team responsible for 150 ABC, CBS and NBC affiliates. Prior to Katz he held positions in audience analysis, promotion and publicity and post-production with both ABC network and WABC-TV.

Praver, 39, was born in New York City. He has a master’s degree in media studies from the School for Social Research, New York, and a bachelor’s degree in liberal arts from the City University of New York. He and his wife, Adrienne Cox, live in Arlington, Virginia.

National Geographic Ventures, formed in 1995, has launched aggressive campaigns to compete in the commercial media marketplace. Encompassing the business endeavors of National Geographic Television, National Geographic Interactive, National Geographic Maps, and National Geographic Retail, NGV continues to further the Society’s mission of increasing and diffusing geographic knowledge while at the same time broadening its public reach.

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May 11, 1998