Rick’s Weekly Newsletter | Rick Gevers & Associates

January 19, 2025

Greetings:

Only THREE ND changes this week, but a lot of other interesting items in this report.

There are TWO new news director openings and ONE new ND that were announced this week, moving our list of stations with ND openings to 43.

ONE of those openings (in California!) is featured in a Paid Help Wanted ad.

We have the obituary for a longtime anchor of an Arkansas station who also was the ND for seven years, and more details (and what I think is an fun story, if that’s possible in an obit) on the death of an early adopter webmaster in Indianapolis.

Just a week after CBS announced changes to its weather presentations, a group owner announced big changes on how its stations present weather …and they are possibly related.

That’s in Names in the News, along with the departure of the President of MSNBC, once a former local ND. You’ll also learn that some Los Angeles newspeople (including a former ND) lost homes in the wildfires, and news of other news people, some current, and some former.

And we confirmed the departure of a top five market o-and-o GM.

Have a great week.

Newly Named News Directors:

Shelley

WZDX-TV, Huntsville, AL…veteran news director JONATHAN SHELLEY moves from interim ND to permanent ND at this Tegna owned FOX affiliate. Jonathan’s been the interim ND since last July and was made permanent about a month ago. He’s a former ND in New Orleans, Ft. Wayne, and Baton Rouge and succeeds ANDREA CLENNEY who stepped down in October, 2023, after six years on the job

New News Director Openings:

Roberts

WRCB-TV, Chattanooga, TN…MEGAN ROBERTS is stepping down after three years as ND for this Sarkes-Tarzian owned NBC affiliate. Megan posted the details of her departure on her Linkedin page. She started at the station in 2013 as a weekend producer, went to Nashville, and then returned as ND, replacing CALLIE STARNES who was promoted to (and remains) GM here.

Reyes

KINT-TV, El Paso, TX…BRENDA REYES has left this Entravision owned station after three years as news director. She first joined the station in 2009 as a weather anchor. When her newscast was cancelled, she moved into a producer position and then served as Assistant ND for three years before her promotion to ND.

Paid Help Wanted Ad:

News Director, Redwood News, Eureka, CA:

KIEM/KVIQ in beautiful Eureka, California is currently on the lookout for a dynamic individual to fill the role of News Director. The role demands a great deal of patience and a knack for mentoring, making it essential for the candidate to possess strong leadership and coaching skills.

The person stepping into this role will be responsible for overseeing all news, weather, and sports content and execution. You won’t be bogged down by budgets and endless reports. Newsroom experience a must: producers and executive producers are welcome to apply.

Redwood News is situated in Eureka, CA which is the largest city in the two county DMA: Humboldt and Del Norte. Route 101 runs from the top to the bottom of the DMA with breathtaking views of the ocean and weaving in and out of the magnificent Redwoods. There are numerous rivers for kayaking and fishing. The area has a temperate climate, but if it’s heat or snow you seek it’s an hour away inland. The area boasts a significant population of artists and performers and is home to Cal Poly Humboldt University. In recent times Cal Poly has been a feeder to our news staff so you will have a recruiting pipeline.

If you love the outdoors and a laid-back vibe then Eureka is the place to be!

Learn more and apply here!

Salary $68,640

Imagicomm Communications, LLC is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate against applicants on the basis of race, color, creed, religion, genetic information, ancestry, age, sex, gender, marital status, national origin, disability or handicap, veteran status, or any other status or characteristics protected by federal, state and/or local laws. Applicants may notify the appropriate local, state or federal agency if they believe they have been the victims of discrimination.

Other News Management Openings:

ASSISTANT NEWS DIRECTOR:

KUSA-TV, Denver, CO (relisted 1/5/25)
WJZY-TV, Charlotte, NC (listed 12/8/24)
WDAF-TV, Kansas City, MO (relisted 11/17/24)
WREG-TV, Memphis, TN (listed 1/19/25)
WBRE/WYOU-TV, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, PA (relisted 1/12/25)
WDTN-TV, Dayton, OH (relisted 1/12/25)
KREM-TV, Spokane, WA (listed 1/5/25)
WSYR-TV, Syracuse, NY (listed 11/3/24)
WCIA-TV, Champaign, IL (relisted 12/1/24)
WANE-TV, Ft. Wayne, IN (listed 1/12/25)
WSYM-TV, Lansing, MI (listed 1/19/25)
WMBD-TV, Peoria, IL (listed 1/5/25)

EXECUTIVE PRODUCER:

Spectrum Noticias, New York, NY (Senior EP, relisted 1/12/25)
KPRC-TV, Houston, TX (AM Broadcast EP, relisted 10/6/24)
Spectrum News, Tampa, FL (National EP, released 12/22/24)
WFLA-TV, Tampa, FL (relisted 1/12/25)
WTSP-TV, Tampa, FL (Digital EP, listed 1/5/25)
WXYZ-TV, Detroit, MI (relisted 1/12/25)
Spectrum News, Orlando, FL (relisted 1/12/25)
WCNC-TV, Charlotte, NC (relisted 1/5/25)
Spectrum News 1, Raleigh NC (relisted 12/22/24)
WNCN-TV, Raleigh, NC (listed 12/22/24)
KSDK-TV, St. Louis, MO (relisted 1/5/25)
WTVF-TV, Nashville, TN (listing modified 1/12/25)
WCMH-TV, Columbus, OH (Digital EP, relisted 1/12/25)
WDAF-TV, Kansas City, MO (listed 1/5/25)
WDJT-TV, Milwaukee, WI (Nightside EP, listed 1/5/25)
WTLV/WJXX-TV, Jacksonville FL (listed 1/5/25)
WWL-TV, New Orleans, LA (relisted 1/5/25)
WHO-TV, Des Moines, IA (listed 1/12/25)
WVLA/WGMB-TV, Baton Rouge, LA (relisted 11/17/24)
WQAD-TV, Moline, IL (relisted 1/5/25)

More News Management Openings:

Listed 1/19/25:

WFTS-TV, Tampa, FL (Manager of Real-Time Depth)
KTLX-TV, Sacramento, CA (News and Content Manager)
WJET-TV, Erie, PA: (Digital Content Manager)
WSAV-TV, Savannah, GA (Digital Content Executive Producer)

Listed 1/12/25

WTMJ-TV, Milwaukee, WI (Senior Digital Content Producer)

Listed 1/5/25:

WATN-TV, Memphis, TN (Digital Director)

Relisted 1/5/25:

KGW-TV, Portland, OR (Digital Director)
WGNO/WNOL-TV, New Orleans, LA (Digital Content Manager)
KARK/KLRT-TV, Little Rock, AR (Digital Webmaster & Content Dir.)
WVLA/WGMB-TV, Baton Rouge, LA (Digital Content Manager)

Listed 12/15/24:

KRON-TV, San Francisco, CA (Streaming/Weekend Executive Producer)

Relisted 12/8/24:

Tegna, Jacksonville, or Tampa, FL (Florida Digital Director)

Relisted 12/1/24:

KSWB/KUSI-TV, San Diego, CA (Digital Content Manager)

Obituary:

Edson

BUR EDSON, a longtime anchor for KFSM-TV in Ft. Smith, AR, who also served as the station’s news director for seven years, died last Wednesday. He was 77 and died of pneumonia. His former station remembered him here. Bur stepped down as anchor in 2002 to take a job running a metal manufacturing business.

Mills

We now have a full obituary for former WTHR-TV (Indianapolis) photog and early webmaster WARREN MILLS, whose passing we reported last week. He was 69 and suffered from cancer and kidney disease which returned after a 2014 kidney transplant. I mentioned last week that he got this newsletter on the web for the first time.

A personal note: I’ve known his wife Kathy since I was a kid. She and her brother Rick (ironic since my sister is also Kathy, her brother was my age, while my sister is about her age) lived about four houses apart in St. Louis.

Despite his long running health issues, a pleasant moment came in 2017 when they joined us for a concert at the zoo. Told him I had a surprise for him.

Rolled the ‘Warren” bottle to him and he said “Thanks. I have several of these.”

Then I rolled the other bottle to him, for which he had no response.

RIP, friend.

Names in the News (and other stuff):

Jones

RASHIDA JONES, a one-time local news director (WIS-TV, Columbia, SC) announced this week that she would step down as President of MSNBC. She held the job for four years and was the first black person to head a national news network. She also held executive roles at The Weather Channel and at NBC News and worked as a producer in Norfolk.

Warren C.

Sorry to report that longtime Los Angeles newsman WARREN CEREGHINO was among the many residents who lost their home…and most everything else…in the wildfires raging through Southern California. Warren kindly emailed this account, which also mentions two other LA newsies who suffered the same fate. Warren’s a former ND at KTLA-TV and KTVU-TV in San Francisco and worked at several LA stations.

ROBIN FREEZE joins Transocean as a Senior Communications advisor. She’s been an EP for KPRC-TV and KTRK-TV in Houston.

JOE PEREA moves within Nexstar to become EP at WVLA/WGMB-TV in Baton Rouge. He’s been a producer for KLAS-TV in Las Vegas and has also worked in Madison and Wausaw, WI.

MARGARET CORDES, once a news director at WDSU-TV in New Orleans has joined Horse World Magazine as editor. She has a wealth of experience in TV news as detailed here.

For the second week in a row, a big change in how a large group is handling weather coverage. Last week it was CBS bringing its weather coverage in house and ending (at least for now) its partnership with the Weather Channel.

Only a cynic would wonder if that change occurred because Allen Media (owner of the Weather Channel) is now eliminating most meteorologists from its 27 local stations and those stations will instead provide weather coverage from TWC.

What could POSSIBLY go wrong?

Just a few days after Imagicomm Communications announced it was selling all of its stations, Marquee Broadcasting announced it was buying four Imagicomm stations in two markets.

General Manager News and Notes:

Harris

We have now confirmed that RIC HARRIS left WCAU-TV in Philadelphia after almost ten years as GM of that NBC o-and-o. While Ric never responded to our inquiries, others did forward a copy of the memo he sent to his staff. The Philadelphia Tribune also weighed in with this story. He’s a former GM for NBC’s WVIT-TV in Hartford and held other jobs outside of television as you’ll see in his Linkedin bio.

Our List of Open News Director jobs:

Here’s our list of open ND jobs as of Sunday, January 19, 2025:

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

WPHL-TV 5001 Wynnefield Ave. Ste 3. Philadelphia, PA 19131
KDFW-TV 400 N. Griffin Street Dallas, TX 75202
WKTB 4675 River Green Pkwy, Duluth, GA 30096 **
WTVT-TV 3213 W Kennedy Blvd, Tampa, FL 33609
KSTP-TV 3415 University Ave. St. Paul, MN 55114
WISH-TV 1950 N. Meridian St., Indianapolis, IN 46202
KSL-TV 55 North 300 West, Salt Lake City, UT 84180
WOAI-TV 4335 NW Loop 410, San Antonio, TX, 78229
WHTM-TV 3235 Hoffman Street. Harrisburg, PA 17110
WHAS- 520 W Chestnut St, Louisville, KY 40202
WOLF-TV 1181 Highway 315 Wilkes-Barre, PA 18702 (News Manager)
KFSN-TV 1777 G St, Fresno, CA 93706
KSEE/KGPE-TV 5035 E McKinley Ave, Fresno, CA 93727
KATV 10 Turtle Creek Lane Little Rock, AR 72202
KOKI-TV 2625 S Memorial Dr, Tulsa, OK 74129
KLEW-TV 2626 17th St, Lewiston, ID 83501
KCCI-TV 888 9th St. Des Moines, Iowa 50309
WCIV-TV 88 Allbritton Blvd, Mount Pleasant, SC 29464
KNVO-TV, 801 North Jackson Rd., McAllen TX 78501 **
WRCB-TV 900 Whitehall Rd. Chattanooga, TN 37405
WSAV-TV 1430 East Victory Drive Savannah, GA 31404
KTBS-TV 312 E. Kings Highway. Shreveport, LA 71104
KINT-TV 5426 North Mesa Street El Paso, TX 79912
WSIL-TV 1416 Country Aire Drive Carterville, IL 62918
WMBF-TV 918 Frontage Rd. East; Myrtle Beach, SC 29577
WNCT-TV 3221 South Evans Street. Greenville, NC 27834
KSFY-TV 325 S 1st Ave, Ste 100, Sioux Falls, SD 57104
WGXA-TV 599 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. Macon, GA 31201
KHSL-TV 3460 Silverbell Rd. Chico, CA 95973
WREX-TV 10322 Auburn Road, Rockford, IL 61101
KQDS-TV 2001 London Road Duluth, MN 55812
KOSA-TV 4101 E. 42nd. Suite J-7. Odessa, TX 79761
KMID/KPEJ-TV 1550 West I-20 Odessa, TX 79763
KWES-TV 11320 West County Rd. 127. Odessa, TX 79765
WTWO-TV 10849 N US Highway 41, Farmersburg, IN 47850
WDTV 5 Television Dr. Bridgeport, WV 26330
KECI/KCFW/KTVM-TV, 340 W. Main St. Missoula, MT 59802
KTVQ-TV 3203 3rd Ave N., Billings, MT 59101
WWNY-TV 120 Arcade St. Watertown, NY 13601
KREX-TV 345 Hillcrest Drive Grand Junction, CO 81501
KIEM/KVIQ-TV 5650 S, Broadway St. Eureka CA 95503 (see ad above!)
KIDY-TV5 S. Chadbourne San Angelo, TX 76902
KYOU-TV 820 West 2nd Street; Ottumwa, IA 52501

**: Spanish language station

January 12, 2025

Greetings:

It appears I missed a BIG discount or sale on GM and upper management hires, as TEN such moves were revealed this week. We have the details below in our GM section.

THREE new news director openings and TWO new NDs were named, all the result of intra company moves. That brings the total of stations with ND openings to 42.

ONE of those openings (in what sounds like a beautiful part of California) is featured in a Paid Help Wanted ad.

Sorry to report the death of a longtime photographer who reinvented himself as a web expert. And while you didn’t know him, if you’re reading this newsletter you may owe him a small debt of gratitude.

CBS is making more changes on how it presents weather. That’s in Names in the News, along with the retirement of a long-ago ND who also reinvented himself…and later benefited from the services of his world famous last employer.

Finally, check out the new ad (and new format) from our friends at Sciline, which offers you free Zoom interviews with experts of a variety of topics, and weather consultant TIM HELLER is advertising as well.

Have a great week.

Plantinga

Newly Named News Directors:

Stanley

WHNS-TV, Greenville, SC…MATT STANLEY moves with Gray Media to become the new ND for this FOX Affiliate. Since 2019, he’s been the ND at WMBF-TV in Myrtle Beach. GM BRYCE CALDWELL sent this memo to the staff. Matt’s also worked in Shreveport, Baton Rouge, and Montgomery, AL. At WHNS, he replaces MARYBETH JACOBY who moved to Gray’s WIS-TV in Columbia, SC as ND.

WOWK-TV, Charleston/Huntington, WV…STEPHEN SHAW returns to this Nexstar/CBS affiliate as its next news director. Earlier in his career he was the Assistant ND here before moving up the Nexstar food chain to ND jobs at WTAJ-TV (CBS) in Altoona, PA, and KSEE-KGPE-TV (NBC/CBS) in Fresno, where he’s been since July, 2023. He replaces BOB SCHAPER who left in October to become ND for Scripps’ WGBA-TV in Green Bay.

New News Director Openings:

Smith

KCCI-TV, Des Moines, IA…ALLISON SMITH has been promoted to General Manager for sister Hearst station KETV in Omaha. She’s been ND here since 2018. Allison graduated from high school in Nebraska and worked in news at stations in Pennsylvania and Ohio before moving to KCCI. More on her new job in our General Manager News and Notes section below.

KSEE/KGPE-TV, Fresno, CA…you read above that STEPHEN SHAW has accepted a transfer within Nexstar to become ND for WOWK-TV in Charleston/Huntington, WV.