MTV reality chief exits

Long-serving MTV head of reality programming Lauren Dolgen is leaving the Viacom youth-skewed channel.

Dolgen has worked at Viacom Media Networks and its predecessors for 19 years, most recently as head of reality programming and executive VP, series development.

She was one of the execs from MTV’s earlier days who avoided the axe in the company-wide restructuring, and was handed her current role in the process.

According to various US trades, her post will not be filled. Her scripted counterpart Mina Lefevre, meanwhile, is remaining at Viacom.

Dolgen’s exit comes three months after Viacom tapped Condé Nast Entertainment for Michael Klein, who became EVP of original content, and after Discovery Communications digital media chief Sean Atkins replaced Stephen Friedman as president of MTV.

In an internal memo from Viacom Music & Entertainment Group president Doug Herzog, Dolgen was praised for having her “fingerprints and great work… all over MTV”.

Dolgen is credited for series such as Jackass, Teen Mom, 16 and Pregnant and Ridiculousness, and for reinventing early reality series The Real World and launching dating format Are You the One?.

“You can trace Lauren’s career in the history of the network over the past two decades, and as an exec she represents the best of the brand – smart, funny, irreverent, full of ideas, and an absolute junkie for culture and content,” said Klein in his internal memo.