Vera Buzanello to lead Latin America and US Hispanic at Discovery Global

Brazilian executive Vera Buzanello will oversee Latin America and US Hispanic at Discovery Global, the new company that will separate from Warner Bros Discovery to house the group’s linear channels.

Vera Buzanello

Buzanello’s appointment was revealed internally at WBD and has been confirmed by C21. It was made by Fernando Medin, who will serve as international president of Discovery Global, as announced last month.

Buzanello is currently country manager for Brazil and head of revenue for Lat Am and US Hispanic at WBD. In her new position, she will assume a similar role to that currently held by Medin, who remains president of WBD for Latin America and US Hispanic until the company separation is finalised.

As announced when the separation was revealed, Discovery Global will be led by Gunnar Wiedenfels as president and CEO. The company will retain linear channels including CNN, TNT Sports and all Discovery channels, as well as the Discovery+ and Bleacher Report platforms.

In addition to Buzanello’s appointment, Alessandro Araimo will remain responsible for Italy and Iberia while adding France and Eurosport to his remit, excluding production.

Meanwhile, Vanessa Brookman will lead the global kids and international animation division; Jamie Cooke will retain responsibility for Central and Eastern Europe, the Middle East, Turkey, and pay TV strategy, while also adding Africa and the firm’s Asia-Pacific networks to his purview; and Christina Sulebakk, who currently leads the networks in the Nordics, will add the Benelux region to her responsibilities. Finally, Michael Bishara will take over as head of Discovery+.

Warner Bros, the other company that will be formed after the separation, will focus on streaming, studios and gaming. It will retain Warner Bros Television, Warner Bros Motion Picture Group, DC Studios, HBO, HBO Max and Warner Bros Gaming Studios, as well as their entire film and TV libraries.

Vera Buzanello began her career at Discovery in 1998 and held various leadership positions in distribution and affiliate sales. Her previous roles include senior VP of distribution for Discovery Lat Am and US Hispanic.

In 2016, she moved to Madrid, where she served as exec VP and general manager of Discovery Networks Iberia. In 2018, she became head of revenue for Lat Am and US Hispanic and country manager for Brazil, playing a strategic role in the launch of Discovery+ in the country.

Before joining Discovery, Buzanello worked in sales and marketing at Multicanal Telecomunicaciones and Globo Net Brasil.