http://dailynews.yahoo.com/htx/bpihw/20011210/en/aol_tw_secures_secret_service_vet_1.html By Georg Szalai Tuesday December 11 02:32 AM EST NEW YORK (The Hollywood Reporter) --- In the wake of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, AOL Time Warner Inc. is breaking new ground in the media industry, saying Monday that it has named the deputy director of the U.S. Secret Service to the new position of chief security officer and senior vp. Larry Cockell, a 20-year Secret Service veteran, will start his new assignment at the world's largest entertainment and online conglomerate Jan. 14. Reporting to AOL TW executive vp administration Patricia Fili-Krushel, Cockell will be responsible for security on a global basis, coordinating and overseeing all security policies and operations, the company said. Analysts said Monday that they were not aware of similar positions at other media giants but that big corporations in other fields have started shoring up their security operations following Sept. 11. "I don't know of such a chief security officer position at any of AOL's media peers," Kaufman Bros. analyst Paul Kim said. "But this is definitely a growing trend at S&P 500 companies." AOL TW is in need of a security enforcer to avoid service interruptions, particularly at its online unit, Kim said. "America Online is a distribution platform for a lot of value the conglomerate creates," he said, adding that any service interruptions could hurt the company's overall business. The appointment of Cockell as chief security officer also is in line with comments from AOL TW CEO Gerald Levin in recent months. On several occasions, Levin has said that after the September terrorist attacks, he sees it as one of his main obligations to ensure the security of his employees and his company's operations. "In these increasingly turbulent times, Larry's appointment will bring a higher level of coordination and integration to our worldwide security operations," Fili-Krushel said Monday. Cockell has been with the Secret Service in various assignments for the past 20 years. Most recently, he was deputy director, making him the highest-ranking black agent in the agency's history. From 1998-2000, Cockell was special agent in charge of the presidential protective division, directing all security programs at the Clinton White House. Before that, he was assistant director of the Secret Service's office of human resources and training. Before joining the Secret Service, Cockell worked at the Metropolitan St. Louis Police Department for eight years. He holds a bachelor's degree in urban affairs from St. Louis University. - ISN is currently hosted by Attrition.org To unsubscribe email majordomoat_private with 'unsubscribe isn' in the BODY of the mail.
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