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He Was Known as the Father of Viacom and a Co-Founder of C-SPAN — a TV Pioneer Dies

Mar 7, 2016  •  Post A Comment

A television pioneer who was a driving force in the cable industry, who founded and served as chairman and CEO of Viacom International, has died. Multichannel News reports that Ralph Baruch died March 3 at 92.

He was CEO of Viacom International from 1971-1983 and chairman from 1983-1987.

Born in Germany, Baruch “began his television career in 1950 at the DuMont Television Network, joining CBS in 1954 and eventually becoming CBS Group president,” the article reports. “When CBS decided to spin off Viacom in 1971, Baruch played an integral role, later becoming CEO.”

He co-founded C- SPAN and was chairman of the NCTA’s Pay Cable Committee, which worked to remove FCC industry restrictions. He was named to the Cable Hall of Fame in 2006.

Baruch’s autobiography, “Television Tightrope — How I Escaped Hitler, Survived CBS and Fathered Viacom,” was published by Probitas Press in 2007.

television tightrope-ralph baruch-book cover

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