• by Fern Siegel , October 29, 2008

Maria Grasso has been named senior vice president, programming for OWN: The Oprah Winfrey Network. Grasso will supervise development of scripted, alternative, short and long-form programming. She will also manage the creative department, production and scheduling.

Previously, Grasso was senior vice president, series development and current programming for Lifetime, where she was responsible for all scripted series. She is credited with creating one of Lifetime's biggest hits, "Army Wives," as well as the new "Rita Rocks."

Robin Schwartz, OWN president, says Grasso wants to "contribute to the world through television in a whole new way." Grasso reports to Schwartz.

In addition to her Lifetime creds, Grasso was formerly senior vice president, drama development, the WB--where she developed prime-time series "Supernatural," "Everwood" and "One Tree Hill." Earlier in her career, she worked at Will Vinton Studios, supervising "The PJs" and "Gary and Mike."

OWN, a multi-platform company, is a joint venture between Oprah Winfrey and Discovery Communications. OWN will debut in 2009 in more than 70 million homes on what is now the Discovery Health Channel. The effort also will include Oprah.com.