Gough Wehrenberg joins WBTV as SVP, comedy development

Erin Gough Wehrenberg, formerly second-in-command at Universal Media Studios, is joining Warner Bros. Television as senior vice president of comedy development, said Len Goldstein, the studio’s executive vice president of creative affairs.

“We loved working with Erin as a buyer and creative partner at the network, and we’ve seen first-hand her strong working relationships with talent and her great taste in material,” said Goldstein in a statement. “She is a terrific executive and a perfect fit for our team.”

In her new job, Gough Wehrenberg will oversee the development of WBTV’s primetime comedy series, working with WBTV’s existing gang of writers and producers while seeking out new talent.

Gough Wehrenberg formerly was executive vice president at Universal Media Studios, overseeing comedy development and current dramas and comedies. She departed that post in December, along with her boss, studio chief Katherine Pope. In January, Pope was replaced by Angela Bromstad, who returned from exile in London as head of NBC Universal International Production to reclaim her old job.

From May 2004 to February 2008, Gough Wehrenberg worked in series programming at NBC Entertainment, rising to the position of executive vice president, current series. During her tenure, she oversaw such series as 30 Rock, Friday Night Lights, Heroes, My Name Is Earl, The Office and Medium, among others.

From June 200 to May 2004, she was vice president of comedy development, helping to develop The Office and also overseeing Warner Bros.’ hit, Friends, and Ed. One of Gough Wehrenberg’s first TV assignments was overseeing the short-lived but critically adored Freaks and Geeks, produced by Judd Apatow and starring James Franco and Seth Rogen.

Gough Wehrenberg is a graduate of the University of California, Los Angeles, where she earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Sociology.

Paige Albiniak

Contributing editor Paige Albiniak has been covering the business of television for more than 25 years. She is a longtime contributor to Next TV, Broadcasting + Cable and Multichannel News. She concurrently serves as editorial director for The Global Entertainment Marketing Academy of Arts & Sciences (G.E.M.A.). She has written for such publications as TVNewsCheck, The New York Post, Variety, CBS Watch and more. Albiniak was B+C’s Los Angeles bureau chief from September 2002 to 2004, and an associate editor covering Congress and lobbying for the magazine in Washington, D.C., from January 1997 - September 2002.