December 10, 2023
Friday, December 15, 2023 UPDATE:
Greetings:
A veteran newsman returns to a CBS o-and-o, this time as the VP/News Director.
Saiers
PETE SAIERS will began Monday as the VP/ND for CBS duopoly KOVR/KMAX-TV (CBS/Independent) in Sacramento. More details here.
Pete spent some time earlier in his career as a reporter/producer at KOVR before an 18 year run at CBS’s KPIX-TV in San Francisco. He then went to two years stints as an ND for KING-TV (Tegna/NBC) in Seattle and then KTLA-TV (Nexstar/CW) in Los Angeles.
In Sacramento, Pete replaces MARY BAYNES who left in October after about 18 months as ND.
Lots of action this week on the ND front. We’ll recap it all this weekend in our full newsletter.
regards,
Rick Gevers
Monday, December 11, 2023 UPDATE:
We’re always delighted to report a news director moving into a general manager job, and that’s the case today.
Gregory
BRIAN GREGORY, who’s been the news director for Nexstar’s KDVR/KWGN-TV (FOX/CW) in Denver is headed to Norfolk to be the general manager at Tegna’s WVEC-TV (ABC). More in this Tegna news release. Brian’s been the ND in Denver for more than six years following four years as the ND for KWCH-TV (Gray-CBS) in Wichita. He’s also worked in Sacramento, Knoxville, and Erie, PA.
More this weekend in our full newsletter.
regards,
Rick Gevers
**** ***** ****
Greetings:
Just ONE new ND named this week, and ONE surprising new opening in Louisiana.
So our list of stations with ND openings remains at 31.
Just ONE Paid Help Wanted ad, that for a an ND opening in Upstate New York.
There are TWO obituaries for newswomen (one current, one former) who died far too young.
There a new GM in Lexington who’s also an old GM in Lexington. And he’s got a BIG mess to fix.
Hopefully the THIRD time is a charm as some moron (me!) will once again try to accurately tell you about a new Assistant ND in Miami.
And we’ve got a story about a worthwhile project at Indiana University driven by a two-time former news director.
All that and more below.
SciLine briefing: Loneliness and longevity in older adults
December 18th from 1-2 p.m. ET
- A quarter of Americans aged 65 and older are socially isolated, and those over age 50 are at greater risk of becoming lonely. Earlier this year, the U.S. Surgeon General released an advisory calling loneliness and isolation urgent public health threats. SciLine’s next briefing will cover the latest research on the links between social connections and physical and mental health for older adults, including studies that show loneliness in this age group can adversely affect heart function, cognitive health, and even lifespan. Three panelists will make short presentations and then take questions on the record.
- Panelists:
- Dr. Julianne Holt-Lunstad, Brigham Young University
- Dr. Ashwin Kotwal, University of California, San Francisco
- Dr. Karen Fingerman, University of Texas at Austin
- SciLine Director Rick Weiss will moderate the briefing.
Upcoming expert-interview availability (Zoom):
- Jan. 12: Winter road safety with Dr. Charlie Klauer (Virginia Tech)
- Feb. 8: Climate change and winter sports with Dr. Elizabeth Burakowski (UNH)
SciLine, a philanthropically funded, free service for reporters, arranges 1-on-1, broadcast-quality interview opportunities with articulate scientists. Reporters can book 15 mins with them via Zoom or request a SciLine interview clip for your use. SciLine also runs a free expert matching service that connects reporters rapidly to scientist-sources on deadline.
Newly Named News Directors:
Vinkler
WKBN/WYTV, Youngstown, OH…JASON VINKLER has been promoted to ND for this Nexstar operation. Jason’s worked here since 2003, except for a four year detour to WIVB-TV in Buffalo. He’s been the Assistant ND the last eight years and succeeds MITCH DAVIS who stepped down for health reasons. Nexstar owns WKBN (CBS) and provides services to WYTV (ABC) which is owned by Vaughan Media.
New News Director Openings:
Shelley
WBRZ-TV, Baton Rouge, LA…JONATHAN SHELLEY resigned on Friday as the news director for this Manship owned ABC affiliate. He’d been the news director there since September 2022, following long stints as news director at WPTA-TV in Ft. Wayne (2016-2022) and WDSU-TV in New Orleans (2007-2016). He’s also worked in Oklahoma City, Las Vegas, Milwaukee and Ft, Myers, FL.
Paid Help Wanted Ad:
News Director, WHEC-TV, Hubbard Broadcasting, Rochester, NY:
Opportunity for an experienced news leader with history of success in leading broadcast and digital news operations. We emphasize in depth and investigative reporting, first to alert weather coverage, overwhelming response to breaking news, and growing digital services.
A strong leader is sought to help grow our leadership position and work with some of the most talented investigative reporters anywhere. If you join us, you will direct execution of our news strategic plan and continue to improve the plan while working with talented and supportive fellow department heads. The successful candidate must motivate and inspire high performers and be an effective teacher — this is the first TV news job for some team members.
Rochester was high-tech before the term was coined. Intellectual capital that once drove Kodak, Xerox, and Bausch and Lomb has created hundreds of new tech enterprises. Today Rochester is the optics industry capital of America. Two large research universities, smaller colleges, and superior health care are the foundation of a mid-sized city with attributes of larger cities. Lake Ontario and the Finger Lakes are the core of recreational gems. Surprisingly, the cost of purchasing housing is among the lowest in the Northeast.
Yes, there is snow. We know what to do with it.
To learn more about Rochester and News10NBC, please watch this 1:20 video:
To learn more about this remarkable opportunity and to apply, please see the full job description here:
Questions? Please contact Michael Hammond, Recruiting Manager, Hubbard Broadcasting: mhammond@hbi.com
Other News Management Openings:
ASSISTANT NEWS DIRECTOR:
KNBC/KVEA-TV, Los Angeles, CA (listed 10/8/23)
WCCO-TV, Minneapolis, MN (listed 10/22/23)
WNCN-TV, Raleigh, NC (relisted 10/22/23)
WBNS-TV, Columbus, OH (listed 11/5/23)
KVVU-TV, Las Vegas, NV (listed 11/12/23)
WHTM-TV, Harrisburg, PA (listed 11/5/23)
KCCI-TV, Des Moines, IA (listed 11/12/23)
WLTX-TV, Columbia, SC (listed 11/5/23)
WBRZ-TV, Baton Rouge, LA (listed 11/12/23)
WJHL-TV, Tri-Cities, TN (listed 10/1/23)
KBMT-TV, Beaumont, TX (listed 11/5/23)
EXECUTIVE PRODUCER:
WPIX-TV, New York, NY (Special Projects EP, relisted 10/29/23)
WPIX-TV, New York, NY (Sports EP, listed 12/3/23)
KNBC-TV, Los Angeles, CA (listed 10/22/23)
KRON-TV, San Francisco, CA (listed 12/10/23)
WJLA-TV, Washington, DC (PM EP, listed 12/3/23)
WTSP-TV, Tampa/St. Petersburg (AM EP, relisted 10/22/23)
WSNN-TV, Sarasota, FL (listed 10/8/23)
KMGH-TV, Denver, CO (listed 11/12/23)
KUSA-TV, Denver, CO (relisted 10/22/23)
WCNC-TV, Charlotte, NC (listed 11/5/23)
KATU-TV, Portland, OR (listed 11/12/23)
WNCN-TV, Raleigh, NC (relisted 10/22/23)
WRTV, Indianapolis IN (Digital EP, listed 11/12/23)
WTHR-TV, Indianapolis, IN (AM EP, relisted 10/22/23)
WXIN/WTTV, Indianapolis, IN (relisted 10/8/23)
WKRN-TV, Nashville, TN (relisted 10/8/23)
WBNS-TV, Columbus, OH (AM EP, relisted 11/5/23)
WTIC-TV, Hartford, CT (relisted 11/5/23)
WTNH-TV, Hartford/New Haven, CT (listed 11/5/23)
WTMJ-TV, Milwaukee, WI (Digital EP, listed 11/12/23)
WOOD-TV, Grand Rapids, MI (relisted 11/12/23)
WVEC-TV, Norfolk, VA (AM EP, relisted 10/22/23)
WFMY-TV, Greensboro, NC (AM EP, relisted 12/10/23)
WIVB-TV, Buffalo, NY (relisted 11/12/23)
WNEP-TV, Wilkes-Barre, PA (listed 11/5/23)
WLEX-TV, Lexington, KY (listed 11/12/23)
WKEF-TV, Dayton, OH (listed 12/3/23)
WJHL-TV, Johnson City, TN (listed 10/22/23)
WMAZ-TV, Macon, GA (listed 10/22/23)
MANAGING EDITOR, DIGITAL, NEW MEDIA:
WBRZ-TV, Baton Rouge, LA (listed 11/12/23)
More News Management Openings:
Listed 12/10/23:
WATN-TV, Memphis, TN (Director of Digital Content)
Relisted 11/5/23:
WBNS-TV, Columbus, OH (Director of Digital Content)
Obituaries:
Garza
A celebration of life will be held after the holidays for SARAH GARZA who died unexpectedly in Dallas on Thursday. She was 55. Sarah held news management positions at stations in Seattle and Dallas before leaving TV almost five years ago. She was married to consultant and former news director (Dallas, Seattle, Des Moines) MARK GINTHER, who posted this item on Facebook Friday morning.
Smith
And funeral services were held Saturday, December 9, 2023 for AURORA (RORY) NELSON SMITH who died suddenly November 18th. She had just married about two months ago and, about the same time, started a new job as an executive producer for Fox’s WTTG-TV in Washington. You can learn much more about Rory, her life and career by checking out this obituary.
Names in the News:
Do you know how embarrassing it is to have to correct a correction? If not, ask me!
Turner
In Friday’s UPDATE, we tried…tried…to correct a mistake from Sunday’s newsletter regarding the new Assistant ND at WFOR-TV (CBS) in Miami. And we failed. Miserably. The correct name is ELIZABETH TURNER, who joins the o-and-o from the CBS Evening News where she was a Senior Broadcast Producer. Elizabeth spent eleven years at the network, following a career in local news that included stops in several markets.
Conway
In a project driven by a former TV news director turned professor, Indiana University is trying to preserve television video archives from stations around the state. MIKE CONWAY, who’d been an ND in Traverse City, MI and Erie, PA, is now a professor of journalism history at IU. Much more details about this worthwhile effort in this story. Would be great to see more states try to do something like this.
General Manager News and Notes:
Mossman
CHRIS MOSSMAN returns to Lexington, KY, this time as General Manager for Morris Multimedia’s WTVQ-TV (ABC). Earlier in his career he was GM for WKYT-TV (CBS) there. Details in this story from the local newspaper (free registration may be required). I’m guessing high on his ‘to-do’ list will be fixing this catastrophic issue.
Our List of Open News Director jobs:
Here’s our list of open ND jobs as of Sunday, December 10, 2023:
It’s unofficial, there may be others that are open, and some of these may have been filled. If you know of any in either category, please let me know: rick@rickgevers.com
News 12 Bronx/Brooklyn, 930 Soundview Ave. Bronx, NY 10473
KXTX-TV 4805 Amon Carter Boulevard, Ft. Worth, TX, 75155 **
WDIV-TV 550 W Lafayette Blvd, Detroit, MI 48226
KOVR/KMAX-TV 2713 Kovr Dr West Sacramento CA 95605
WCNC-TV 1001 Wood Ridge Cntr. Dr. Charlotte, NC 28217
WRAL-TV 2619 Western Boulevard Raleigh NC 27606
KSDK-TV 1000 Market Street St. Louis, MO 63101 (Director of Content)
WLOS-TV 110 Technology Drive Asheville, NC 28803
WJAX/WFOX-TV 11700 Central Pkwy 2, Jacksonville, FL, 32224
WBMA-TV 800 Concourse Pkwy Ste 200. Hoover, AL 35244
WRIC-TV 301 Arboretum Pl. Richmond, VA 23236
WRGB-TV 1400 Balltown Rd. Schenectady, NY 12309
WHEC-TV 191 East Ave, Rochester, NY 14604 (see ad above!)
WZDX-TV 1309 N. Memorial Parkway Huntsville, AL 35801
KNVO-TV, 801 North Jackson Rd., McAllen TX 78501 **
WBRZ-TV 1650 Highland Road, Baton Rouge, LA 70802
KLEW-TV 2626 17th St, Lewiston, ID 83501
WICS-TV 2680 E. Cook St. Springfield, IL 62703
KLKN-TV 3240 South 10th Street Lincoln, NE 68502 (Exec. ND)
KNDU/KNDO-TV 216 W. Yakima Ave. Yakima, WA 98902
KDRV-TV 1090 Knutson Avenue Medford, OR 97504
WTWO-TV 10849 N US Highway 41, Farmersburg, IN 47850
WDTV 5 Television Dr. Bridgeport, WV 26330
WWNY-TV 120 Arcade St. Watertown, NY 13601
KGNS-TV 120 W. Del Mar Blvd. Laredo TX 78041
Delta News 837 Washington Ave Greenville, MS 38701
WTOK-TV 815 23rd Ave. Meridian, MS 39301
KGWN-TV, 2923 E. Lincolnway. Cheyenne, WY 82001
KIDY/KXVA-TV 5 S. Chadbourne Street San Angelo, TX 76903
KYOU-TV 820 West 2nd Street; Ottumwa, IA 52501
KQTV 4000 Faraon St. Joseph, MO 64506
**: Spanish language station