Ian Katz facts for kids

Ian Alexander Katz (born 9 February 1968) is a British journalist and TV executive. He is currently the Chief Content Officer at Channel 4. This means he is in charge of all the shows and content you see on Channel 4's TV channels, streaming services, and social media.

Before joining Channel 4, Ian Katz worked in newspaper journalism. He was a deputy editor at The Guardian newspaper until 2013. After that, he became the editor of Newsnight, a current affairs TV show on BBC Two. He left Newsnight in late 2017 to start his role at Channel 4.

Early Life

Ian Katz was born in South Africa in 1968. He lived there for the first ten years of his life. After that, his family moved to London, England.

He went to University College School, which is a school for boys in London. Later, he studied at New College, Oxford. There, he studied Philosophy, Politics, and Economics.

Starting a Career in Journalism

Ian Katz began his journalism career in 1989. He joined a newspaper called Sunday Correspondent as a trainee. The next year, he moved to The Guardian newspaper. He worked there until 2013.

During his time at The Guardian, he had many different jobs. He was a reporter and a foreign correspondent in New York. He also edited the G2 section for eight years. He was also in charge of the Saturday and weekday editions of the newspaper.

In 2004, while he was editor of the G2 section, Ian Katz led a special project. The Guardian encouraged its readers to connect with undecided voters in Ohio, USA. The goal was to influence the 2004 United States presidential election. However, the campaign did not work as planned and was stopped.

In 2008, he became a deputy editor at The Guardian.

Deputy Editor at The Guardian

As a deputy editor, Ian Katz helped oversee important investigations. He supervised The Guardian's work on the News International phone hacking scandal. This was a big story about phone hacking.

He also helped the newspaper when it published the Palestine Papers. These were secret documents released by Al Jazeera and The Guardian. Ian Katz defended the newspaper against criticism.

Ian Katz was also one of the people at The Guardian who worked with Julian Assange from WikiLeaks. The Guardian first published information from WikiLeaks.

In 2015, Ian Katz was considered for the top job of editor-in-chief at The Guardian. However, another journalist, Katharine Viner, was chosen instead.

Editor of Newsnight

Ian Katz joined the BBC in July 2013. He became the editor of Newsnight in September of that year. He took over after some problems with how the show was run.

Soon after becoming editor, Ian Katz made a mistake on Twitter. He accidentally sent a public tweet saying that a politician, Rachel Reeves, was "boring snoring" during an interview. He quickly deleted the tweet and apologized to her.

A year later, Ian Katz wrote about this experience. He explained that he felt many political interviews could be more interesting. He wanted interviews to help people understand the challenges politicians face. He believed interviews should offer "light as well as heat."

On 31 October 2017, it was announced that Ian Katz was leaving the BBC. He left his role as Newsnight editor to join Channel 4. He became the Director of Programmes there in January 2018.

Working at Channel 4

Ian Katz became Channel 4's Director of Programmes in October 2017. He was chosen by the new Chief Executive, Alex Mahon.

In May 2018, Ian Katz gave a speech about Channel 4. He said the channel's goal to serve the public was very important. He promised to make Channel 4 even more unique. He announced new shows like Brexit: The Uncivil War and The Big Narstie Show.

Ian Katz has commissioned many popular shows. These include Russell T Davies' drama about the AIDS pandemic, It's A Sin. This show broke streaming records and encouraged more people to get tested for HIV. Other shows he commissioned include The Dog House, Joe Lycett's Got Your Back, Help, Grayson's Art Club, and We Are Lady Parts.

Under Ian Katz, Channel 4 also created "Black To Front" in September 2021. This was a day of programming that featured only black talent. This initiative was praised for making a positive change in British television.

Ian Katz has also helped Channel 4 broadcast major sports events for free. In July 2019, Channel 4 showed England's Cricket World Cup final. Millions of viewers watched England win.

In January 2020, Ian Katz was promoted to Chief Content Officer. This gave him even more responsibility for all of Channel 4's content. In 2020, Channel 4's streaming service, All 4, grew by 26%.

Channel 4 has faced some discussions during his time there. In November 2019, Channel 4 was accused of not being fair during a climate change debate. They used a melting ice sculpture to represent a politician who didn't attend. However, the regulator Ofcom later said Channel 4 had not broken any rules.

Ian Katz also reviewed older shows on Channel 4's streaming service. He decided that most older content would stay online. Instead of removing shows, Channel 4 would add warnings to content that might be seen as offensive today. He has also helped create Channel 4's teams across the UK, with offices in Leeds, Glasgow, and Bristol.

Ian Katz has spoken strongly about the idea of Channel 4 being sold to a private company. He believes that if this happened, "what is special about the channel would be destroyed."

Personal Life

Ian Katz was married to Justine Roberts. She is the person who started Mumsnet, a popular website for parents. They have four children. They separated in 2019.