David Zaslav, the media executive who heads Warner Bros. Discovery, made almost $50 million in 2023, per recent financial disclosures from the publicly traded company.
Zaslav’s base salary was $3 million last year, but he made more than $47 million in stock awards and incentive compensation, the company revealed as part of its executive compensation disclosures.
Zaslav, one of the most influential and powerful figures across legacy media, oversees Warner Bros. Discovery, which owns major news and entertainment brands such as CNN, Max, TNT and TBS.
The longtime media mogul was instrumental in the Warner Bros. acquisition of media company Discovery, which was finalized in 2022 for more than $40 billion in cash at close.
Warner Bros. Discovery recently held talks with Paramount Global over a potential sale late last year, though discussion on a deal for it to acquire Paramount has reportedly since gone cold.
In my opinion, the compensation received by David Zaslav is exorbitant. While his contributions to Warner Bros. Discovery are undeniable, the vast difference between his base salary and total earnings raises questions about executive pay fairness.
I believe that the massive compensation received by David Zaslav raises concerns about income inequality and executive pay excess in the corporate world.