Turner raids MTV for head of programming

Turner Broadcasting System has poached Chris Linn from MTV. Linn will be president and head of programming at TBS’ TruTV, responsible for all programming on the cable net including development and production of originals.

Linn was executive VP of programming and head of production at the US MTV channel. At MTV he developed and oversaw shows including Jersey Shore, Catfish and trend-setting reality series The Real World. He originally joined the Viacom net in 2004.

At Turner he will be based in New York and report to Steve Koonin, president of Turner Entertainment Networks.

“With his proven ability to reach and understand the young-adult audience, Chris has successfully developed shows that evolve beyond the television screen to become full-fledged phenomena,” Koonin said. “Chris has the strategic vision and energy to take TruTV forward in the next phase of the network’s brand evolution as it continues to grow competitively in the unscripted arena.”

truTV is in 92 million US homes and signature original series include Hardcore Pawn, Impractical Jokers, Killer Karaoke and Lizard Lick Towing. Acquired programming includes Wipeout.