He is credited with helping introduce U.S. audiences, U.K. formats such as renovation programming Changing Rooms, reality soaps The Hotel and mockumentaries like The Office.
Programs like The Secret Life of the American Teenager and Pretty Little Liars helped ABC Family succeed with the coveted 18-34 demographic, knocking MTV out of the top spot.
(1974) to feature an African-American female lead;[4] How to Get Away with Murder (2014), which starred Viola Davis, made history when she became the first-ever African-American woman to win an Emmy Award for Best Actress in a Drama Series;[5] Quantico (2015) which, led by Priyanka Chopra, marked the first time a South-Asian female actress headlined a network television series;[6] American anthology crime drama American Crime (2015), created by Academy Awards winner John Ridley presaged the Black Lives Matter movement.
His TGIT: Thank God It's Thursday block on Thursday night anchored by Shonda Rhimes' Grey's Anatomy, Scandal and How to Get Away with Murder and his Wednesday night comedy block anchored by Modern Family and Black-ish helped elevate ABC to first position in entertainment programming.
[9] Additionally, Lee cultivated diverse comedy voices that had not been heard on U.S. broadcast television led by Kenya Barris' Black-ish (2014) and Nahnatchka Khan's Fresh Off The Boat (2015).
In 2016, Lee departed the Walt Disney Company and founded the TV and Movie studio wiip backed by Creative Artists Agency.