George Entwistle has been appointed to one of the most senior jobs at the BBC, director of BBC Vision, the person responsible for the BBC's television channels.
Entwistle has been acting director since the end of January, following the departure of Jana Bennett to the BBC's commercial arm BBC Worldwide.
He will be paid £270,000 and becomes one of the key internal contenders to eventually succeed Mark Thompson as director general.
The job of director of BBC Vision is one of the biggest in the corporation and includes overseeing more than 20,000 hours of programmes.
Entwistle, who was the BBC's controller of knowledge commissioning and controller of editorial standards for BBC Vision, told Media Guardian in February that he was applying for the job on a permanent basis.
His previous roles include editing Newsnight, launching The Culture Show on BBC2 and being acting controller of BBC4.
Entwistle, who will take up the post with immediate effect, said: "I am genuinely honoured to have been chosen for the role of director, BBC Vision. The BBC's television portfolio is of enormous importance to the creative and cultural life of the UK and is performing strongly in terms of quality and audience reach and share.
"At the heart of its success, BBC Vision Productions is responsible for some of the best television programmes we broadcast. I feel enormously proud to be leading these teams and I will do my utmost to build on the legacy of talent and excellence left by my predecessor, Jana Bennett."
The BBC director general, Mark Thompson, said: "I am delighted to be able to confirm George as the BBC's new director, Vision. The breadth of his experience across journalism, the arts and factual programmes, combined with his rock-solid editorial judgment and deep understanding of the BBC's values, equip him brilliantly for this formidable task. I am looking forward to working closely with him to ensure the BBC's television portfolio remains the envy of the broadcasting world."
The BBC was keen to ensure that it made a thorough international search for the Vision job, appointing headhunters and placing adverts asking for someone who could act "as a prominent ambassador for the BBC".
According to sources, the BBC Trust also wanted someone who could one day be a credible internal candidate for director general. Entwistle's appointment seems to have been met with approval by BBC Vision staff.
One said: "It will ensure continuity – we don't need any more disruption – and he knows so much already about the job and has so much experience."
Bennett, now BBC Worldwide president, worldwide networks and global iPlayer, said: "George is a talented leader and has a real conviction for high-quality content and that's true, regardless of whether it is current affairs, starting a new arts show or doing something like the year of books or science, he thrives in all genres.
"He's also witty and has a good sense of humour about things, which is important. He is incredibly talented and will be great in the job – staff who've worked with him are loyal to him."
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