Only a year left to reach the retiring age, Dennis Swanson, is still enjoying his work as the head of CBS. “The good thing about my work,” says Dennis, “is that everyday is different.” Different enough that one day he will be traveling to another state to choose a new general manager and the next day he will be back in the CBS building trying to figure out how to execute the operations better.

Dennis’s interest with the media sparked at a young age. He went to University California of Champaign and put his self through school. Knowing what he wanted and having a good education, Dennis got into the media business and worked his way up. “The most important thing for a media organization is credibility,” says Dennis.

With 39 stations in the division, CBS competes with other stations such as Channel 7. According to Dennis, most of the New York’s audiences focus on Channel 7 for the news. Entertaining the audience and presenting in a fashionable way is important for a media organization. CBS needs to convince its viewers that Channel 2 is the best station for news and entertainment. Dennis believes, “Show the truth and do a better job on the news. It sounds simple but basically it gets down to that.” CBS’s network getting better with its primetime, daytime, and sports ratings increasing.

Having worked at several places and experienced at what he does, Dennis wants things right. “I want things to be right. If you work for me, you have to do it right, unless, you have to go somewhere else. You are responsible for what is going on the screen,” said Dennis. One of the challenges of CBS is execution. Improving the execution of CBS is not the easiest thing on earth. According to Mr. Swanson, CBS is in need a combination of people who are motivated. Dennis explains, “In the end, it all gets on to people. But it’s still people.” Well in the end, the best of the best gets the credit in a competitive media industry.

Mr. Swanson received numerous awards thorough out his career. He was honored the prestigious George Foster Peabody award and the Ellis Island Medal of Honor. Dennis also took part in several community affairs. For example, he is one of the Board of Directors of Emma Bowen Minority Media Partnership which helps minority students in getting access with the media industry. Students have the chance to be involved in important events in the media field. “Public schools in New York need help. These students just need a chance. You just give them a chance economically and they will go up,” said Dennis. Not only does he partake in community affairs, he is the person who created the well-known Oprah Talk show. “Not a lot of minority women are in talk shows,” says Dennis. Dennis saw Oprah as the talented person for the talk show after seeing her audition tape.

CBS was the only station available in homes without cable television after 9/11 and its major programs is getting better and better. As a result, it is catching people’s attention in the very competitive media industry where talk shows, advertisements, and reality shows can catch the attention of viewers within a blink of an eye.