Disney promotes April Carretta to EVP of Communications, Exec to Head of PR for Dana Walden
Disney elevated April Carretta to EVP of communications, reporting to Chief Communications Officer Paul Roeder. As part of her expanded duties, Caretta will serve as the day-to-day communications lead for Dana Walden, who last month assumed the newly created role of president and chief creative officer under CEO Josh D’Amaro.
Carretta most recently served as head of communications for Disney’s direct-to-consumer business and technology and product teams. In the new role, she will continue to lead PR for those areas, while also adding responsibility for Disney’s games biz (which now falls under Walden’s purview rather than Disney Experiences).
Roeder, who took over Disney’s top communications job under D’Amaro last month, announced Carretta’s promotion — along with other changes to the company’s PR organization — in a memo to staff Thursday, a copy of which was obtained by Variety.
“As Josh and Dana shape this next chapter for our company, I’ve been thinking about the role communications will play in helping us succeed and, just as importantly, the people who make that possible,” Roeder said in the memo. Roeder previously served as EVP of communications for Disney Entertainment Studios, Direct-to-Consumer and International.
Other updates for Disney’s communications team, detailed by Roeder:
- David Jefferson, EVP, communications, will continue to lead day-to-day corporate communications efforts, including public affairs, media relations and corporate social responsibility. He will now also lead Disney’s international communications teams and work with regional communications leaders: Belina Tan (Asia Pacific), Amy Holland (EMEA) and Felicitas Castrillon (Latin America), each of whom will continue to report to their respective regional presidents and now also to Jefferson.
- Mimi Fong, VP of communications, will join Carretta’s team to support Disney’s international content communications, working with Eric Schrier, president of Disney Television Studios, and Joe Earley, president of direct-to-consumer at Disney Entertainment.
- Carrie Brown, SVP of internal communications, will now report directly to Roeder and will continue to lead company-wide employee communications and engagement efforts and provide internal communications support to Disney’s corporate functions.
- Mariana Vaca has joined Roeder’s team as communications director and will work across Disney’s communications teams across the company. Vaca previously served as director of external communications for Walt Disney Studios.
Disney’s business segment communications leads will remain the same, with some changes to the reporting structure:
- Alannah Hall-Smith, EVP, communications and public affairs, Disney Experiences, will continue in this role and dually report to recently appointed Disney Experiences Chairman Thomas Mazloum and Roeder.
- Josh Krulewitz, EVP, ESPN Communications, will continue to report to ESPN Chairman Jimmy Pitaro and Roeder.
- Naomi Bulochnikov, EVP, Communications, Disney Entertainment, will continue to lead communications for Disney Entertainment Television, including advertising, dual reporting to Entertainment TV Chairman Debra OConnell and Roeder.
- Bridget Osterhaus, VP of communications, will continue to lead communications for Disney’s Platform Distribution organization and will now report dually to Bulochnikov and Krulewitz.
- Erin Barrier, SVP, Communications, Walt Disney Studios, was recently promoted to this role, dually reporting to Alan Bergman, Chairman of Walt Disney Studios, and Roeder.
