Social-news publisher NowThis Media, which specializes in short-form mobile and video content, has hired MTV marketing vet Tina Exarhos as its first CMO.
Exarhos also is joining Lerer Hippeau Ventures, the venture-capital fund that seeded NowThis, as marketing adviser. She spent nearly 30 years at Viacom’s MTV, including the last 15 years as CMO overseeing all marketing and creative development for the network.
At NowThis, which she joined in mid-April, Exarhos is in charge of brand strategy, consumer marketing and creative services and will report to Ken Lerer, chairman of NowThis and managing partner of LHV. For LHV, she will provide guidance on marketing strategies as well as consult with the fund’s portfolio of companies on go-to-market, branding and marketing strategies. The VC fund has investments in companies including BuzzFeed, Distractify, Mic, Giphy, PandoDaily and Thrillist Media Group.
Exarhos’ “knowledge and experience will be invaluable to both organizations, especially at this pivotal point in the growth of NowThis, and we couldn’t be more excited to have her join our teams,” Lerer said in announcing her appointment.
NowThis has “quickly become a massive and leading force in video news publishing and I’m excited to help drive innovation, growth and to build the brand into a true powerhouse,” Exarhos said in a statement. “Plus, it’s a real bonus to be in business with Kenny, who has been an amazing friend and mentor. Joining the team at LHV gives me the opportunity to be at the forefront of the most strategic and successful tech and media investments in the business.”
NowThis has raised $27 million in funding from investors including Lerer Hippeau Ventures, German media company Axel Springer, NBCUniversal, Bedrocket Media Ventures, Bridge Investments, Oak Investment Partners and SoftBank.
The company was founded as NowThis News in late 2012 by Lerer, former chairman and co-founder of Huffington Post, and Eric Hippeau, former CEO of Huffington Post and partner at Softbank Capital. NowThis says it generates more than 1.6 billion video views monthly across social channels with more than 8 billion monthly overall impressions.
