Michael Jermey, ITV‘s director of news and current affairs, has resigned after 16 years to chair the Disasters Emergency Committee.
Jermey will remain at ITV until the end of the year, at which point the British broadcaster hopes to have hired his successor. The role will be advertised in the coming days.
One of the UK’s most senior news executives, Jermey was influential in bringing election debates to Britain in 2010 and overhauled the Tom Bradby-fronted ITV News at Ten.
He launched ITV’s Exposure strand, which is perhaps best known for the 2012 documentary The Other Side of Jimmy Savile, which exposed the former BBC presenter as a monstrous sex offender.
During his tenure, Jermey has overseen coverage of five general elections, seven prime ministers, three U.S. presidencies, Brexit, Covid, the death of Queen Elizabeth II, and wars in Ukraine and the Middle East.
ITV CEO Carolyn McCall said he was an “exceptional” leader. “High quality, accessible and trusted news, with people at the heart of the coverage, has the prominence and trust it deserves in our business and amongst millions of viewers, in large part thanks to Michael who has built a fantastic team of journalists,” she said.
Kevin Lygo, ITV’s content boss, added: “Under Michael’s leadership, ITV News has demonstrated boldness, integrity, impartiality and robust independence. Michael leaves with the great respect and admiration of all of us, and I want to thank him for his huge contribution to ITV and public service broadcasting more broadly.”
Jermey said ITV is a “special place to work,” adding: “Every day the people of ITV News and Programmes produce television and digital output that serves a strong public purpose and which audiences value. I will continue to cheer on the team as a committed viewer.”