A+E ups Dirk Hoogstra

A+E Networks has promoted Dirk Hoogstra to executive VP, development and programming, for its History and H2 channels. Hoogstra is one of the programming executives responsible for History’s smash-hit cable series Hatfields & McCoys and has been given a wider role following its success.

Hoogstra has been senior VP since 2010 under A+E’s president of entertainment and media Nancy Dubuc, to whom he’ll continue to report into in the new role. Moving forward, he’ll continue to oversee History and H2′s programming teams, and will also seek to integrate new programming with online initiatives.

He will continue to look at new drama projects, but the focus for the nets he is responsible will remain in the unscripted world. Speaking about Hatfields and scripted programming he told TBI: “Our core business will always be unscripted and that allows us to have 100% original content, but we’ve seen the pay cable channels make historical drama a priority and said this is a space we should own.”

Alluding to other factual networks moving into drama following History’s succcess with Hatfields, he said: “It would have been nice if we could have owned that space a little longer.”