Sahand Sepehrnia

Sahand Sepehrnia
Sepehrnia, NYC TV Week 2023
Born	Sahand Sepehrnia Pittsburgh, U.S.
Education	BS University of California, San Diego MBA Northwestern University
Occupation	Television and news executive

Sahand Sepehrnia (Persian: سهند سپهرنیا) is an American television executive, journalist, and entrepreneur who serves as the executive vice president of digital content, strategy and business of CBS News, CBS Stations, CBS Entertainment, and CBS Sports.

Sepehrnia leads content strategy and development, business, and operations for all streaming and digital properties across CBS. He also oversees the incubation and development of new streaming channels. The portfolio of streaming channels include CBS News, 48 Hours, 60 Minutes, CBS Sports HQ, Inside Edition, ET, and 14 local news streams from CBS' owned-and-operated television stations.

Early life and education

Sepehrnia was raised in Los Angeles, California, by Iranian American parents. Graduating from Arcadia High School, he was a star athlete – a National Karate Champion in Kata and All CIF-SS tennis player.

He graduated honors with highest distinction from University of California, San Diego with a Bachelor of Science degree in Management Science and wrote his honors thesis in game theory. He also holds a Master of Business Administration from Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management, graduating with six majors: Management & Strategy, Finance, Entrepreneurship, Marketing, Managerial Analytics, and Decision Sciences.

Career

Sepehrnia began his career as a private equity analyst at PCG Capital Partners. He later co-founded and served as president of LA Source, a successful e-commerce retailer. Sepehrnia then joined Mattel in corporate strategy, where he focused on innovation, tech, and direct-to-consumer.

In 2016, Sepehrnia joined Disney to help build the strategic plan for Disney+. He was later elevated to executive director, content strategy and analysis of ABC Stations.

CBS Career

Sepehrnia was named senior vice president of streaming of CBS Stations in February 2022. Under his leadership, CBS Stations marked several records and grew to #1 in streaming in its markets, from being ranked #4 two years prior. Sepehrnia expanded the distribution of CBS Stations' streaming channels, signing deals with Local Now, NewsOn, VUit, and others. He also constructed a first-of-its-kind stream to audio venture with Audacy.

CBS Stations debuted its 14th streaming channel, CBS News Detroit in January 2023. Later that year, Sepehrnia launched Car Chase, the first streaming channel with 24/7 police chases, which received acclaim from the Los Angeles Times . Broadcasting & Cable magazine named the CBS Stations its Station Group of the Year in 2023, citing the launch of CBS News Detroit and growth in streaming .

In January 2024, Sepehrnia was upped to executive vice president of digital content, strategy and business of CBS News, Stations, Entertainment, and Sports.