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Mar. 1--AOL is looking for a CEO -- and pinstripe-wearing guys with M.B.A.'s need not apply.
But moms who work, pick up the kids from soccer, put dinner on the table and keep the toilet flushing make good candidates.
AOL is embarking on a nationwide search for "Chief Everything Officers" -- women who can do it all -- as part of a new strategy to create "specials" a la network television.
The stunt is patterned after TV sweeps, with the goal of attracting more eyeballs and luring sponsors.
"We're acting like a TV network," AOL network programming chief Tina Sharkey told the Daily News. "This is sweeps on AOL."
Dove, which is promoting its new Dove Calming Night line, has signed on to sponsor the CEO search.
And AOL has tapped a frazzled mom -- "Desperate Housewives" star and real-life mother Felicity Huffman -- to promote the site, AOL.com/ceo, and meet the winners of the contest at a big New York event in May.
Huffman's association with the AOL special is an extension of a larger commitment she's made to push the Dove Calming Night line.
The "Housewives" star and Oscar-nominated actress is starring in a series of video vignettes, directed by Penny Marshall that can be found on the site.
Huffman plays herself as an exhausted mom who meets up with vintage TV characters, including the Brady Bunch kids. Of course, shots of Dove Calming Night products make an appearance, too.
Starting this week, Dove will be promoting the "webisodes" in TV, print and online ads.
These kinds of mini programs created for the web have become an increasingly popular form of product placement.
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