• by David Goetzl  @dgoetzl, September 30, 2008

Pleased with the progress of its We network, Rainbow Media has given a more prestigious title to its current chief. Kim Martin becomes president and general manager. 

She was executive vice president and GM for the network, which has been trying to build its stable of original programming. Its distribution has expanded to 72 million homes.

Martin joined We nearly four years ago, and recently oversaw the redesign of the network's Web presence and the launch of a VOD offering, now in 20 million homes.

We is a challenger to Lifetime and Oxygen in the female-targeted network space. Lifetime, which has had a hit with "Army Wives," may be stymied in further growth by a judge's ruling Friday that could prevent "Project Runway" from heading to the network from Bravo.

NBC Universal, which currently airs "Runway" on Bravo, won that legal maneuver, a potential boost--or at least block--for Oxygen in the three-way faceoff.

Like Lifetime, We is becoming more active in public affairs initiatives; its We Empowers Women program encourages voting registration.

"Under [Martin's] direction, the network [has] substantially increased its commitment to original programming, a strategy that has increased ratings significantly over the past four years," said Ed Carroll, president of national entertainment services at Rainbow Media. Series on We include "Bridezillas," heading toward a sixth season, and "High School Confidential," which debuted in 2008.

Martin's career at Rainbow stretches back to her previous post in distribution and affiliate marketing.