Scott Garner

Scott Garner is a senior programming and brand strategist, with 25 years of experience in content curation, marketing, and research for leading Fortune 500 companies. Garner uses a data-driven approach to build competitive and strategic business plans that define, differentiate, and accentuate a brand’s platform to successfully connect with consumers. He currently runs his own consulting firm, Conqueror Media, focused on helping both large and small clients navigate the rapidly evolving media and entertainment industry. Scott specializes in consumer insight and primary research, trend tracking, competitive landscape analysis, content library management, domestic and international program strategy, and content acquisitions and management.

Most recently Scott has been consulting with OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network on overseeing Primary Custom research,for the networks. He recently conducted an intensive primary and quantitative political tracking study over a period of five months to determine the political ideology and key issues that matter to young female African American voters to inform the #OWNYourVote campaign (2020). Additionally, he created a persona-based audience engagement study where he crafted exacting profiles of the Oprah viewer base. Scott has been engaged as a Program Strategy Consultant for VENN (a newly launched digital network) which targets gaming audiences. Garner has been working with the company on establishing its launch schedule, building out global programming, and generating best practices for metrics assessment for its long-term strategy. He is also serving as a board member and consultant for Binj (an iOS/Google app), which helps consumers streamline their content choices through algorithmic mechanics.

From 1992 to 2017, Garner served as a senior research executive for some of the top female and children’s entertainment brands. From 2011 to 2017, Garner served as executive vice president of program planning and acquisitions for OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network. Between 1999 and 2011, Garner served as a senior executive at Lifetime Networks and Disney Channel Worldwide where he was involved in the successful planning and launch of multiple content franchises. Scott started his career in qualitative, quantitative, and media research, with posts at Sesame Workshop, Cartoon Network, and Nickelodeon/Nick Jr.

Scott has a Ph.D. program in Media Psychology at Fielding University in Santa Barbara. In 2020, he was a Fielding Michael R. Neal Fellowship recipient. At Fielding, he worked on numerous research projects examining Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) as well as the LGBTQQIA2+ projects with the American Psychological Association (APA). He has also conducted primary research examining the psychological drivers for Peloton. The focus of his doctoral degree in Media Psychology examined audience engagement with diverse audiences across traditional and newer media platforms. Garner also holds a Master of Arts degree in Communication & Education from Teachers College—Columbia University (New York City) as well as a Bachelor of Arts degree in English & American Literature and French Studies from Emory University (Atlanta). Scott is currently serving as an Adjunct Professor in Psychology for Oxford College—Emory University as well as an Adjunct Professor for Carnegie Mellon’s Master in Entertainment Industry Management (a joint program with CMU’s College of Fine Arts and Heinz College). In his personal life, Scott is an avid swimmer, has completed several marathons and triathlons, and recently has taken up tennis. Scott likes to travel, and he remains fluent in French (as he has dual U.S. and French citizenship). He resides in Los Angeles and Palm Springs with his husband and their two dogs.