Stephen Chao
movie producer, TV executive
After graduating from Harvard University in 1977 with a degree in classics, Chao became a reporter for the National Enquirer. He received an MBA from Harvard business school in 1981. Chao joined News Corporation as a vice president, working on the purchase of Twentieth Century Fox and Metromedia TV stations. He eventually became president of Fox TV and Fox News, launching such successful shows as America's Most Wanted, Cops, and Studs. In 1992, however, Chao hired a male stripper to perform at a management conference attended by his boss, Rupert Murdoch, as well as such prominent guests such as now Vice President Richard Cheney. An enraged Murdoch promptly fired Chao, who formed a TV production company the following year. In 1998 he joined USA Networks, now USA Cable, becoming president of the company in 2000, but he resigned in 2001. He went on to work in direct response television advertising.
