Women History Month Spotlight: Leading the Charge Towards Inclusion in Hollywood, The Women of WarnerMedia

There are many women behind the scenes leading the charge in Hollywood. But their work and contributions often go unnoticed.

Here are some women leading the charge toward inclusion in Hollywood at WarnerMedia. Check out who they are and their accomplishments.

CHRISTY HAUBEGGER

Executive Vice President, Communications and Chief Inclusion Officer, WarnerMedia

Christy Haubegger is Executive Vice President, Communications and Chief Inclusion Officer, WarnerMedia.

Recognized for advancing diverse representation in the entertainment industry, Haubegger leads WarnerMedia’s global marketing and communications efforts and is also responsible for furthering diversity, equity and inclusion across the enterprise’s workforce, so it more closely reflects the audience and community the company serves. Additionally, Haubegger works cross-divisionally to support and facilitate WarnerMedia’s overall mission to deliver the world’s best stories and most engaging content to help its global businesses capitalize on the outsized opportunities represented by underserved and diverse voices.

Haubegger joined WarnerMedia from Creative Artists Agency (CAA) where she spent 14 years leading the company’s drive to become the market leader in the representation of women and people of color, as well as transforming the workforce to become the most diverse and inclusive agency in the entertainment business. Under Haubegger’s leadership, CAA launched CAA Amplify, an invitation-only annual event convening high-level multicultural artists and leaders, as well as the Amplify Database, the industry’s first searchable database of television writers of color. During her tenure, the agency grew its diverse roster more than 1400% and according to USC’s Annenberg Inclusion Initiative, the agency now represents the largest share of female directors and African- American directors in the motion picture business.

Upon graduating from Stanford Law School, Haubegger founded Latina magazine in 1996. She moved into the world of entertainment in 2002 and worked as a film producer on Chasing Papi (20th Century Fox) and Oscar-winner James L. Brooks’ romantic comedy Spanglish (Columbia Pictures).

Haubegger serves on the boards of Management Leadership for Tomorrow (ml4t.org), a non-profit organization that works to increase the number of minority business leaders, as well as Hudson Pacific Properties (NYSE: HPP). Haubegger is also a founding member of “Poderistas” (formerly known as “She Se Puede”), a coalition of 10 prominent Latina activists from a variety of backgrounds who elevate, celebrate, and inspire Latinas to amplify their voices and actions on behalf of themselves, their communities and injustice in the workplace.

SAMATA NARRA

Senior Vice President, Equity and Inclusion, Content Strategy, WarnerMedia

Samata Narra is Senior Vice President, Equity and Inclusion, Content Strategy, WarnerMedia. She is responsible for building innovative tools and creative solutions to help facilitate the advancement of diversity in our storytelling globally.

Since joining WarnerMedia in May of 2020, Narra has been involved in creating tools that are in service of our talent and content across the enterprise. By identifying critical moments in the content life cycle, she drives targeted effort that deploy seamless systems, which facilitate connection and creativity. She has designed programs and systems that support executives and producers at every stage of the creative development and production process. By working closely with external experts her aim is to build creative leadership capabilities and expand access to staffing resources, subject matter experts, development executives, and emerging talent.

Prior to joining WarnerMedia, she was Senior Vice President of Comedy Development and Current Programming for FOX where she developed and oversaw live action and animated comedy series. While there, she had the pleasure of working with the creative forces behind “The Last Man on Earth,” “Brooklyn Nine-Nine,” “New Girl,” “Bob’s Burgers,” and “The Mindy Project.”

Narra also spent a part of her career in representation at Fineman Entertainment and The William Morris Agency. While at Fineman, she developed the series “Lights Out” for FX and produced the Emmy-nominated romantic comedy documentary, “Meet the Patels.”

She is on the board of Film2Future, a non-profit providing equitable access to the entertainment industry for underrepresented LA youth. Her other board work includes Colour Entertainment and South Asian Women in Entertainment (SAWIE).

Narra is a native of Pikeville, Kentucky and earned a bachelor’s degree in Business Management and Marketing from the Boston University School of Management.

KAREN HORNE

Senior Vice President, Equity and Inclusion, Programs, WarnerMedia

Karen Horne is Senior Vice President, Equity and Inclusion, Programs, WarnerMedia. As a senior executive with over 20 years of experience in the entertainment industry, she has been recognized as a Diversity and Inclusion pioneer and pipeline builder.

Since coming to WarnerMedia in March of 2020, Horne has been involved in creating and implementing multiple pipeline programs that aim to amplify the voices of underrepresented communities. These programs give talented individuals, who would otherwise not have the opportunity, access to the entertainment industry to showcase their talent. She has brought expertise gained from her career to create cohesive programs, ranging from entry-level to mid-career, that service the entire enterprise. These programs support expansion in areas that have not traditionally been serviced (i.e., virtual production, games, news and sports, animation, comedy, etc.).

Before WarnerMedia, Horne was at NBC Entertainment and Universal Television Studios as Senior Vice President, Programming Talent Development and Inclusion where she was responsible for overseeing in-front-of and behind-the-camera primetime diversity efforts for NBC and Universal Television. While there, she started the Late-Night Writers Workshop in 2013 which changed the landscape of the writers’ rooms by increasing the number of women and ethnically diverse men, both of which were lacking. Another extraordinary program she developed was Female Forward, which guaranteed shadowing directors an opportunity to direct an entire episode in addition to the traditional shadowing access.

The programs and initiatives she created and/or developed became the industry’s gold standard and a blueprint for many other companies. Her background in finding and developing new talent allows her great ease in working with the creative world, while her corporate upbringing and work with C-Suite executives allows her equal comfort in any board room.

Horne’s lengthy resume includes a variety of disciplines and experience, including her tenure as Director of Creative Affairs at IDT Animation; designing, implementing, and overseeing Nickelodeon’s Writer Fellowship Program; serving as the Director of Writer Development & Special Projects and Studio Liaison for the Walt Disney Studios Fellowship Program at Walt Disney Network Television; and holding the position of Director, West Coast, for the Black Filmmaker Foundation. Her early career features stints as an executive assistant to the president of ABC Entertainment, as well as positions at ABC Television Network Group and ABC Sports. Horne also worked at HBO as a co-producer for the Emmy Award-winning animated series “Spawn.”

Horne has always been dedicated to increasing equity and inclusion in the entertainment industry throughout her career. She has been honored with several awards and recognitions for her diversity and inclusion work and her service to underrepresented communities. Horne serves on multiple industry boards and has spoken both nationally and internationally on diversity and inclusion best practices. She serves on the boards of Montclair State University’s School of Communication and Media, USC’s Annenberg Inclusion Initiative, The Alliance of Women Directors, RespectAbility, and The Urban League of the Greater San Francisco Bay Area. She is a member of several entertainment industry organizations.

MYKHANH SHELTON

SVP, Equity and Inclusion, Workforce, WarnerMedia

MyKhanh Shelton is the Senior Vice President of Equity + Inclusion at WarnerMedia where she leads the organization’s diversity, equity, and inclusion work.

Her role at WarnerMedia is to dive deeply into the work of equity, to balance feelings and sentiments with doing longer term invisible work to create a sustainable business. Previously MyKhanh built the global programs, content, and training around inclusion and anti-harassment policies for the 22,000 employees of 21st Century Fox, where she helped guide culture and elevate awareness to create safer spaces for marginalized employees, established community through the creation of Employee Resource Groups, and leveraged her interpersonal communication skills to get stakeholder buy-in.

MyKhanh has been lauded for her resiliency within constantly evolving internal and external cultures and environments. She is passionate about eliminating barriers for people from underrepresented groups and serves on the board of Facing History and Ourselves, an international non-profit that engages students in an examination of racism, prejudice and antisemitism to promote the development of a more humane and informed citizenry. She lives in Los Angeles with her husband and two children.