Rick Gevers & Associates

November 18, 2011

Saturday Nov 19, 2011

Monday, November 21, 2011 UPDATE:

Don Hickman

Funeral services will be held Wednesday, November 23, for longtime WICS-TV (Springfield/Champaign, IL) anchor (1972-2001) and news director (1995-2001) DON HICKMAN.  Don died Saturday of natural causes at the age of 74.  He also worked in Minneapolis and Memphis, where he provided reports to NBC News on the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King.  After leaving WICS, he started a magazine in Springfield.  His former station remembered him in this story.

Don is survived by his wife, Betty, and two sons.

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Greetings:

Happy Thanksgiving.  I do hope to publish a newsletter next week, but it may be delayed by the holiday.

In this week’s report, we have FOUR new ND openings, and, to the best of my knowledge, NO new NDs were hired this week, bringing our total of open ND positions to 27.

As you may have read elsewhere, Belo’s KMSB-TV in Tucson is eliminating its news department and contracting with Raycom’s KOLD-TV to produce newscasts. Most of the KMSB employees will lose their jobs, though some may be hired by KOLD. More in this article from the local newspaper.

Also in this week’s edition, we have a paid ad for one of those newly open ND jobs. There’s also an ad for a different type of position, a Content Recruiter for a major broadcast group. And we also have an ad for an EP position in Dallas.

Also this week, be sure to check out our ad for a FREE two week trial of a portable uplink product. The company is LiveU, and I was impressed with their product at RTDNA.

All that and more after this week’s changes.

New News Director Openings:

CENTRAL FLORIDA NEWS 13, Orlando, FL…STEVE CHAVARIE is retiring from TV, so this Brighthouse Networks owned cable news operation is looking for his replacement. Steve’s been the ND here for more than ten years, and earlier worked for WKMG-TV and WFTV in Orlando. I’m told that Steve wanted to retired when he reached age 56, which he will next month, though he’ll stay on during the transition to his replacement. You can learn more about this opportunity in the paid ad below.

KCOY/KKFX-TV, Santa Maria, CA…JOHN ZUCHELLI is leaving this Cowles-owned CBS/FOX duopoly. He’s returning to KNTV in San Jose/San Francisco to work as the Assignment Manager. That’s where he worked before moving to KCOY/KKFX. John’s been ND here for almost six years. He’s also worked at KCRA-TV in Sacramento.

KRCG-TV, Jefferson City, MO…LADD EGAN is returning to his native Utah as Southern Bureau Chief for KUTV, the CBS station in Salt Lake City. Ladd has been news director for this Barrington Broadcasting owned CBS affiliate since January, 2009. He also co-anchors the 5:00 newscast. Ladd first joined the station in 2006. His replacement will be the fourth news director in five years.

Gobel

WTOV-TV, Steubenville, OH…BRANDON GOBEL is leaving one Cox Media Group owned station for another. He’s transferring to sister-station WSB-TV in Atlanta where he’ll be an executive producer. He’s been the ND for this NBC affiliate since September, 2007, and was an EP for the station for two years before that.

Newly Named News Directors:

None that I know of.

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Help Wanted Ads:  

Senior Director of News, Central Florida News 13, Orlando, FL:

Central Florida News 13 is seeking a unique, forward thinking and experienced leader for the position of Sr. Director of News. This candidate will be overseeing an award-winning team of journalists providing around-the-clock local television news coverage for viewers in the Orlando/Daytona Beach/Melbourne, FL, market. This position requires a hands-on leader who can coach and develop talent, inspire a passion for excellence, and who thrives on new technology and innovation. Previous News Director experience a must, along with a track record of aggressive and strategic news and weather coverage.

JOB RESPONSIBILITIES INCLUDE:
Developing news coverage strategy for 24-hour local news channel, web site, and on-demand products;
Daily newscast analysis for quality control and program growth;
Collaborating editorially with other stations within Bright House Network’s Local Programming Group;
Leading and inspiring a talented and accomplished team committed to providing outstanding local coverage.

This is an exceptional opportunity to take your career to the next level at a station utilizing the very latest state-of-the-art technology. We have the finest tools available and an exceptional team using them. In the past year alone News 13 has won, among others, a national SPJ breaking news award, regional Edward R. Murrow award for its website, and a national Walter Cronkite Award for Political Reporting. The best candidate for this job will be a leader who appreciates the tradition of television news and who is also constantly looking for ways to establish new and creative coverage traditions for News 13 and its viewers.

Apply online at www.mybrighthouse.com

Central Florida News 13 is an Equal Opportunity Employer – EOE – all qualified candidates are encouraged to apply.

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Content Recruiter, E.W. Scripps, Cincinnati, OH:

Do you have a passion for news and recruiting? The E. W. Scripps Company has an opportunity for you to make a significant impact by recruiting top talent who will continue to produce quality journalism and serve our local communities. The Content Recruiter will establish a local and national recruiting plan with a focus on identifying and attracting leaders for newsroom roles for the Scripps TV Station Group. The content recruiter will partner closely with the broadcast executive team and with General Managers, HR leaders and News Directors at our stations.
The Content Recruiter will serve as a member of the corporate recruiting team with involvement in recruiting-related activities that serve the company as a whole. We are seeking a dynamic and engaging recruiter who will:

Demonstrate an understanding of market/industry trends and their related effect on talent acquisition.
Establish and coordinate the recruiting process to attract a well-qualified and diverse workforce.
Conduct regular meetings with hiring managers and human resources to determine the effectiveness of the recruiting plans and their implementation.
Deliver metrics related to key performance indicators and interpret the story they tell.
Develop a pool of qualified candidates in advance of need by utilizing aggressive sourcing strategies.
Work effectively with talent agents and external recruiters in both sourcing and hiring qualified candidates.
Post openings with professional organizations and via social media avenues; use social and professional networking sites to identify, source and create connections with both active and passive candidates
Please visit www.scripps.com/careers for more information on this position, Requistiion #3810. You may also contact Laura Tomlin, Senior Manager Recruiting via email at laura.tomlin@scripps.com

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Executive News Producer, KXAS-TV, Dallas/Ft. Worth, TX:

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