Cablefax The Magazine May 2022 - 51

39
HOW MAY WE
HELP YOU?
As the heads of associations devoted to independent operators,
Borrelli and Polka embody servant leadership-always on the
lookout for ways they can help members' businesses. Polka
may be the seasoned veteran of the two (Borrelli joined NCTC
last May), but his intensity is as strong as it was on Day 1. Much of Polka's past year
was spent meeting with lawmakers and their staffs to ensure that government broadband
funding doesn't result in massive overbuilding of ACA Connects members. Now
he's turning his sights to NTIA's BEAD program, working to make sure ACAC companies
get the most from the grant program. While Borrelli is new to representing NCTC's more
than 700 operators, he's a familiar face with more than 40 years of experience that
includes roles at Marcus Cable and AOL. Borrelli spent the first year on the job reorganizing
the co-op to refocus on business growth-a process that started with a listening
tour. This spring, NCTC began holding its inaugural IdeaXchange region meetings for
co-op members to collaborate and learn about industry trends.
Lou Borrelli
CEO
NCTC
Years at Current Organization: 10 months
First Job in the Industry: 1978 - Local
Programming Manager, UA-Columbia
Cablevision of Westchester
Bucket List: Sailing my boat Libertá through
the Caribbean to Lovango...for lunch.
What's your Wordle strategy? Just Say No
Band I'd go see live: Foo Fighters
What childhood memento have you kept? I carry one of my dad's WWII
dog tags in my wallet
Favorite dish that I can also make myself: Eggplant Parmigiana
39
THE BIRDMAN
Matt Strauss
Q&A
Matthew Polka
President & CEO
ACA Connects - America's
Communications Association
Years at Current Organization: 25
First Job in the Industry: Lawyer, Buchanan
Ingersoll
Bucket List: Australia and New Zealand
What will it take to see a seismic shift away from linear
television for sports? Well, it's starting. If Amazon's
Thursday Night Football is a success, then the
Q&A
floodgates will really open. I'm a hockey fan, and ESPN+ has moved in this
direction too with some games only available through the app.
What childhood memento have you kept? My favorite baseball glove. It still
catches!
I was today years old when I found out... That the woman in the American Gothic
is the farmer's daughter and not his wife! ■
Chairman, Direct-toConsumer
& International
NBCUniversal
Years at Current Organization: 18
First Job in the Industry: Financial
analyst in strategic planning at ABC
Bucket List: Climb Mount Kilimanjaro
Strauss led Peacock through a stellar first
year, which included earning a whopping
84 award nominations. When the streaming
service launched internationally, he was
instrumental in finding the joint ventures
and strategic partnerships to reach the right
audiences in the untapped global market.
To boot, he shepherded deals with the NFL,
securing the Super Bowl. Under his leadership,
the negotiated Pay 1 movie deal is
kicking in, and there's a growing number of
originals in the pipeline. ■
cablefaxmag.com
May 2022
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