Paramount Network Poaches Lauren Dolgen From BuzzFeed

By Todd Spangler

LOS ANGELES (Variety.com) – Lauren Dolgen, after spending a year heading up BuzzFeed Studios , is coming back to cable TV.

Paramount Network recruited Dolgen as senior VP, unscripted development and production. It’s a return to Viacom for the veteran TV producer, who in her nearly two decades at MTV created such franchises as “Teen Mom” and “16 and Pregnant.”

Dolgen starts at on June 3. She will be based in L.A., reporting to Keith Cox, president of development and production for Paramount Network and TV Land.

Dolgen will lead unscripted development team and oversee original productions for Paramount Network, which Viacom converted from Spike TV last year. She’s tasked with expanding Paramount Network’s unscripted lineup, which includes Spike holdovers like “Bar Rescue,” “Ink Master” and “Lip Sync Battle.”

“We’re ecstatic to have Lauren on board at Paramount Network and welcome her back home to the Viacom family,” Cox said in announcing her hire. “Her unbelievable track record of monumental hit series that continuously break into the cultural zeitgeist proves she has the perfect creative instincts to take our unscripted programming to the next level.”

Dolgen, in a statement provided by the network, said, “I’m excited to join Keith in continuing to shape the brand and the programming at Paramount Network. It’s a special opportunity to develop unscripted shows at a strong, growing brand with a name that holds so much legacy. I can’t wait to dive in and get my hands dirty.”

Most recently, Dolgen served as head of BuzzFeed Studios, overseeing development of original productions for BuzzFeed partners including Netflix, Facebook and Twitter as well as the company’s growing slate of original digital series. She left BuzzFeed earlier this month .

Prior to BuzzFeed, Dolgen served a one-year stint as head of West Coast development for Viceland , the joint venture between Vice Media and A+E Networks, where she oversaw West Coast-based production and development for the network, including series “Hate Thy Neighbor.”

Dolgen started her career at MTV, making her mark with credits on series including “16 and Pregnant,” “Teen Mom,” “Teen Mom 2,” “Rob & Big,” “Rob Dyrdek’s Fantasy Factory,” “Ridiculousness,” “The Real World,” “Parental Control,” “Are You The One?,” “Punk’d,” “America’s Best Dance Crew” and “Jackass.” Dolgen holds a bachelor of arts degree from Pitzer College in Claremont, Calif.