Marc Mekler, a longtime Hearst Television advertising operations executive, will retire at the end of the year after more than four decades with the company.
Mekler currently serves as the Senior Director of Ad Operations for Hearst Television, where he spent his entire broadcasting career and was closely involved in the evolution of the company’s advertising systems and workflows.
He began at WCVB-TV (Channel 5, ABC) in Boston as an ad traffic specialist, later serving as Assistant Traffic Manager, Traffic Manager and Corporate Director of Commercial Operations.
After 23 years at WCVB, Mekler was promoted in 2006 to Director of Ad Operations for Hearst Television and relocated to the company’s Charlotte office. He became Senior Director of Ad Operations in 2023.
Mekler played a key role in Hearst’s initiative to consolidate advertising operations serving 27 markets into a single hub in Charlotte.
“Marc has been a thought leader and innovator in our ad operations group for more than four decades,” Hearst Television President Michael J. Hayes said. “He has helped imagine and build the backbone of our operational infrastructure from the station level to its present-day service center.”
Hearst Television Chief Financial Officer John Drain said Mekler also played an important role in the company’s work to enable addressable advertising within linear television broadcast streams.
Beyond Hearst, Mekler has been a longtime participant in the TV Interface Practice Committee, a broadcaster-led industry group focused on developing open interfaces to streamline advertising transactions between television companies and media agencies.
“I’ve been incredibly fortunate to spend my entire career at Hearst,” Mekler said. “The company has given me so many opportunities, including the chance to help build the Ad Operations Hub in Charlotte.”
