Seven West Media has established the David Leckie Scholarship Program in memory of the former television executive.
To be held annually, the program offers a 12-month scholarship at Seven West Media for a junior graduate with a passion for sales, programming, or news.
It comes two months after the death of Leckie at age 70 following a long battle with illness.
The scholarship was developed in conjunction with Skye Leckie and the pair’s sons Harry and Ben, who will also judge applications alongside senior Seven West Media executives.
In a statement, the family said the former Seven Network CEO was never happier than when he was working in television.
“David’s passion in life was television, from the time he joined GTV Melbourne as managing director, to his role as CEO at TCN and then as CEO of Seven Network,” they said.
“David had an innate ability to understand what Australians wanted to watch. He also loved working across sales and management. He always said he learnt a lot from his fellow executives at Seven and from all the staff, whom he held in very high regard.”
Leckie held several senior roles with the Seven group, including CEO of Seven Network, managing director and CEO of Seven Media Group and Seven West Media, and a director of Seven Network Limited, Seven West Media, and Seven Group Holdings.
Seven West Media managing director and CEO James Warburton said the company had wanted to find a way to honour his legacy following his passing.
“We lost a very good friend and a very talented media executive with the passing of David in July this year,” he said.
“David made an enormous contribution to Seven and to the media industry in general, and this annual program is a fantastic opportunity for someone who wants to learn, grow and become a leader of our industry.”
Applications for the David Leckie Scholarship Program will open in January 2022, with the successful applicant starting in March. Further details will be announced soon.