David Zaslav reinvented Discovery. Now he’s building a new streaming giant.
Taylor Telford
David Zaslav is a cable guy.
“Zas,” as he is known to friends, spent the first two decades of his career at NBC, where he helped launch CNBC and MSNBC before taking the helm at Discovery in 2007. He took Discovery public, turned it into a reality television kingpin, then brought it back to its documentary and science-oriented roots. He made it a live sports destination with the acquisition of Eurosport and a deal to provide coverage of the Tokyo Olympics in international markets. During his tenure, Discovery’s profits more than doubled.