The president of the Cartoon Network cable channel resigned suddenly on Friday in the wake of a marketing campaign in Boston that went awry.
The president, Jim Samples, who had worked for 13 years at the Cartoon Network, a unit of Time Warner Inc's Turner Broadcasting System Inc, had been embroiled in a publicity crisis after a marketing stunt went awry on Jan. 31, leading to a bomb scare in Boston. A marketing agency hired by the media company, Interference Inc, carried out the campaign, which placed electronic advertisements for the show Aqua Teen Hunger Force in public places, including a Boston overpass where it was mistaken for a bomb.
Last Tuesday, Turner Broadcasting and Interference apologized and agreed to pay US$2 million in restitution and other costs for the inconvenience and panic the stunt caused. Turner is covering the bulk of the payment, which was partly earmarked to reimburse federal, state and local agencies for their response to the events. Subway stations, part of the Charles River and a highway were closed for hours after dozens of the devices, which resembled Lite-Brite toys powered by batteries, were found in and around Boston.
The episode underscored the risks of guerrilla marketing campaigns -- the same devices had been in place in several other cities, including New York, Los Angeles and Chicago, but had caused no controversy.
In an e-mail message to Cartoon Network employees on Friday, Samples said that he regretted the panic the campaign had caused.
"I feel compelled to step down, effective immediately, in recognition of the gravity of the situation that occurred under my watch," he said.
While a search is conducted for his successor, Mark Lazarus, who leads Turner's Entertainment Group, will assume Samples' duties.
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