Rick’s Weekly Newsletter | Rick Gevers & Associates

September 20, 2026

Greetings:

Obviously the big news of the week was the tragic crash of KNBC-TV‘s helicopter, killing the pilot and a reporter on board, and a passerby on the ground. Reporter ELIANA MORENO and pilot GEORGE MARCINIW died. Both worked for Angel City Air, a helicopter provider.

Here’s a link to the station’s website and its continuing coverage page, with many stories.

In addition, these items of interest on the crash.

KTLA-TV in Los Angeles recaps other news helicopter crashes.
TVNewscheck has an interesting history of news choppers in what it calls the epicenter of such coverage.
The Desk says the FAA issued a bulletin just a week ago about possible engine issues with the Airbus AS350.
And the spokesman for the Fallen Journalists Memorial Foundation offered these thoughts.

Our sympathy to everyone involved.

To our normal business, with just ONE new news director to report and NO new openings. Thus, our list of open ND positions drops to 28.

We have an obituary for a long ago Arkansas anchor and ND.
A longtime Houston news man is retiring after 42 years at his station.
A Florida man (couldn’t resist) is moving across the state for a new job.
And a changing of interim NDs in Washington with names you probably know.

Also, I am told that former news director MIKE CREW has passed, but am unable to confirm or find any details on his passing. If any readers can provide more information I’ll share it next week.

Have a great week.

Newly Named News Director:

WWAY-TV, Wilmington, NC…ANDREW BANAS leaves New York State for North Carolina and the news director job at this Morris Multimedia owned ABC/CBS/CW operation. He’s been the Assistant ND for WROC-TV (Nexstar/CBS) in Rochester, NY. He replaces MARCY CUEVAS who left earlier this summer after six years as ND (and 12 at the station) for a PR job with Cape Fear Community College.

New News Director Openings:

I’m not aware of any new openings this week. Please let me know if I’ve missed anything.

Help Wanted Ads:

No ads this week, but if you have a news management opening, there’s no better place to advertise it. Email me for details: rick@rickgevers.com

News Management Openings:

ASSISTANT NEWS DIRECTOR:

WUPA-TV, Atlanta, GA (listed 8/30/26)
WXIA-TV, Atlanta, GA (listed 9/20/26)
WLWT-TV, Cincinnati, OH (listed 9/13/26)
WHAS-TV, Louisville, KY (listed 8/9/26)
KRDO-TV, Colorado Springs, CO (listed 9/7/26)

EXECUTIVE PRODUCER:

WPIX-TV, New York, NY (Digital EP, relisted 9/13/26)
WXIA-TV, Atlanta, GA (listed 9/13/26)
WFLA-TV, Tampa, FL (relisted 8/9/26)
KPNX-TV, Phoenix, AZ (listed 9/13/26)
KING-TV, Seattle, WA (listed 9/13/26)
WFTV, Orlando, FL (listed 8/2/26)
WFTV, Orlando, FL (Special Projects Producer, listed 8/2/26)
KSTP-TV, Minneapolis/St. Paul. MN (listed 8/16/26)
KTXL-TV, Sacramento, CA (Digital EP, listed 7/26/26)
WRAL-TV, Raleigh, NC (Multiplatform EP, listing revised 7/19/26)
KGW-TV, Portland, OR (listed 9/13/26)
WKRN-TV, Nashville, TN (Digital EP, listed 8/30/26)
KFMB-TV, San Diego, CA (listed 9/13/26)
WTIC-TV, Hartford, CT (listed 9/13/26)
KTVX/KUCW-TV, Salt Lake City, UT (relisted 9/20/26)
KVUE-TV, Austin, TX (listed 9/13/26)
WXIX-TV, Cincinnati, OH (relisted 8/30/26)
WPBF-TV, West Palm Beach, FL (listed 9/13/26)
WGAL-TV, Lancaster, PA (AM EP, listed 9/13/26)
WVTM-TV, Birmingham, AL (Senior EP, listed 9/13/26)
WWL-TV, New Orleans, LA (relisted 7/26/26)
WHBQ-TV, Memphis, TN (listed 9/7/26)
KARK/KLRT-TV, Little Rock, AR (Morning EP, relisted 9/13/26)
KCCI-TV, Des Moines, IA (listed 9/13/26)
WLTX-TV, Columbia, SC (listed 7/26/26)
WJCL-TV, Savannah, GA (listed 9/13/26)
KFSM-TV, Fayetteville, AR (listed 9/7/26)
WMBD-TV, Peoria, IL (listed 7/26/26)
KWES-TV, Midland/Odessa, TX (listed 9/13/26)

MANAGING EDITOR:

WDBJ-TV, Roanoke, VA (relisted 9/13/26)
WCBD-TV, Charleston, SC (relisted 8/30/26)

Other News Management Openings:

Relisted 9/20/26:

KSAT-TV, San Antonio, TX (Mgr. of Coverage and Content)

Listed 9/13/26:

KLBK-TV, Lubbock, TX (Digital Media Director)

Listed 8/16/26:

WMAR-TV, Baltimore, MD (Executive Reporter)
WKBW-TV, Buffalo, NY (Executive Reporter)

Relisted 8/9/26:

Arizona PBS, Phoenix, AZ (Dir. of News & Public Affairs)

Listed 8/9/26:

WGN-TV, Chicago, IL (Digital Media Director)
KERO-TV, Bakersfield, CA (Executive Reporter)
KXXV-TV, Waco, TX (Executive Reporter)
KERO-TV, Bakersfield, CA (Multi-Media Managing Editor)
KXXV-TV, Waco, TX (Multi-Media Managing Editor)

Listed 8/2/26:

WTSP-TV, Tampa/St. Petersburg, FL (Story Desk Manager)
WNEP-TV, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, PA (Story Desk Manager)
WTLV/WJXX-TV, Jacksonville, FL (Story Desk Manager)
KXRM-TV, Colorado Springs, CO (Director of Multiplatform Content)

Listed 7/2t/26:

E. W. Scripps, remote in any state where Scripps operates (SVP of News)

Obituary:

Gaddy

KAYE BANES GADDY, a long ago news director and anchor for KPOM-TV in Ft. Smith, AR, died last Sunday. She was 87 years old. She worked in a number of Texas markets, including KTVT-TV in Dallas where she anchored and midday and evening news, according to this obituary. She had many other jobs outside of television after leaving the newsroom.

Names in the News (and other stuff):

Bishop

After 47 years in our business, 42 of them at one station, BILL BISHOP is retiring. He’s been the managing editor for Tegna’s KHOU-TV (CBS) in Houston in the latest of a wide variety of jobs there. The station honored him here.

MARTIN GONZALEZ moved across Florida to fill one of the vacant EP openings at WINK-TV (CBS) in Ft. Myers. He had been working at WPTV in West Palm Beach where he worked with WINK Chief of News and Content Strategy KATHY REYNOLDS when she was the Executive ND there. One more EP has been hired and will be announced later.

And a changing of the guard…or at least the interim news director job…at Nexstar’s WDCW/WDVM-TV, branded as DC NEWS NOW in Washington,. Former Orlando, Raleigh, Tulsa, and Little Rock ND ED TRAUSCHKE has been filling in there for the last nine months. He’s returning to retirement and is being replaced in the interim role by STEVE ACKERMANN, (on the left in the picture below) the latest in a series of interim jobs for Steve, who posted this on Linkedin.

General Manager News and Notes:

Diener

Tuesday’s UPDATE brought first word that SCOTT DIENER is coming out of retirement to become GM for KOMU-TV (NBC) in Columbia. That’s owned by the University of Missouri and where Scott began his career.. Scott retired last summer after nine years as ND for KMOV-TV (CBS) in St. Louis, the last of his many jobs during his career. He’s just the FOURTH GM in the last 52 years for the station.

NJPBS, now operated by Montclair State University, filled SIX key positions, including GM and ND, as it prepares to launch programming on October 1. Details about the hires…and the operation…in this news release.

Gray Media has upped RONNA (CORRENTE) STEBER to Chief Revenue Officer. Ronna has held several upper management jobs for Gray and also served as GM for several of the company’s stations.

TIM MALONEY, a 20 year veteran of the station, has been promoted to GM and Director of Sales for Gray’s WBKO-TV in Bowling Green, KY.

Our List of Open News Director Jobs:

Here’s our list of open ND jobs as of Sunday, September 20, 2026:

It’s unofficial, there may be others that are open, and some of these m have been filled. If you know of any in either category, please let me know: rick@rickgevers.com

KGO-TV 900 Front St. San Francisco, CA 94111
WJBK-TV 16550 W 9 Mile Rd, Southfield, MI, 48075
KMGH-TV 2323 Delgany St, Denver, CO 80203 (Regional ND for CO)
WLTV 9405 NW 41st St, Miami, FL, 33178-2301 **
KCRA-TV 3 Television Circle, Sacramento, CA 95814
KTXL-TV 4655 Fruitridge Road Sacramento, CA 95820-5299
WTMJ-TV 20 E Capitol Dr Milwaukee, WI 53212 (internal candidates only)
WZZM-TV 645 3 Mile Rd NW, Grand Rapids, MI, 49544
KOKH/KOCB-TV 1228 E. Wilshire Blvd. Oklahoma City, OK 73111
WGNO-TV 1 Galleria Blvd, Suite 850 Metairie LA 70001
KSEE/KGPE-TV 5035 E. McKinley Ave., Fresno CA 93727
KOKI-TV 2625 S Memorial Dr, Tulsa, OK 74129
KOLD-TV 7831 N. Business Park Dr. Tucson AZ 85743
WOI-TV 3903 Westown Parkway West Des Moines, IA 50266
KLEW-TV 2626 17th St, Lewiston, ID 83501
KNVO-TV, 801 North Jackson Rd., McAllen TX 78501 **
KCEN-TV 215 N. 3rd Street Temple, TX 76501
WCHS-TV 1301 Piedmont Road, Charleston, WV 25301
WSIL-TV 1416 Country Aire Drive Carterville, IL 62918
KLKN-TV 3240 South Tenth Street, Lincoln NE 68502
KNDU-TV 3312 W. Kennewick Ave. Kennewick, WA 99336
WMAZ-TV 1314 Gray Highway, Macon, GA 31211
WCBI-TV 201 5th Street South Columbus, MS 39701
WQOW-TV 5545 State Highway 93, Eau Claire, WI 54701
KNOE-TV 1400 Oliver Rd., Monroe, LA 71201
KBMT-TV 525 Interstate 10 South, Beaumont, TX 77701
KNBN-TV 510 North Cambell Suite 8. Rapid City, SD 57701
KAVU-TV. 3808 N Navarro St. Victoria, TX 77901

**: Spanish language station

September 13, 2026

Tuesday, September 15, 2026 UPDATE:

Greetings:

A veteran news director comes out of retirement to take the GM job at the station where he began his career.

Diener

SCOTT DIENER has been named General Manager for KOMU-TV (NBC) in Columbia, MO, the University of Missouri owned NBC affiliate. Most of you probably know that’s where journalism school students produce multiple newscasts a day (with, obviously, faculty and staff supervision). Scott, of course, is a Missouri alum.

More details about Scott, his new job, and his career history in this news release.

Scott most recently was the ND for Gray’s KMOV-TV in St. Louis, a job from which he ‘retired’ in the summer of 2025. That was his seventh ND job across a career which included ND stops in several large markets, including Los Angeles, Dallas, San Francisco and Phoenix. The full story is in his Linkedin page.

Remarkably, Scott becomes just the fourth GM at KOMU in more than 50 years, following TOM GRAY (1974-1998), MARTY SIDDALL (1999-2017) and MATT GARRETT, who is retiring after nine years on the job.

You can send a note of congratulations to Scott via an email here.

We’ll be back next Sunday barring any other updates.

regards,

Rick Gevers

**** ***** ****

Greetings:

TWO new news directors were named this, with both leaving current jobs, meaning we have TWO new openings.

Our count of open ND jobs remains at 29.

Check out our paid ad for a management job in a beautiful place to live. That’s below.

Also this week:

We have an obituary for the son of a longtime Hearst executive who many of our, uh, seasoned readers will remember.

Scripps is making more changes with GM’s running multiple stations, and eliminating more than two dozen jobs.

And we have several articles of interest:

The NY Times reviews the ‘new’ 60 Minutes which debuted tonight/
RTDNA says TV news employment declines again.
How four different companies are using very different tactics to battle changes in the business.
A Houston station becomes the latest to change its late news format.
Tips on how to change your content and improve your news marketing since breaking news is, in the author’s opinion, just a commodity.
Is CBS moving away from branding its o-and-o stations as CBS News (Location)?

Have a great week.

Newly Named News Directors:

Talley

WWL-TV, New Orleans, LA…a move within Tegna sends ASHLEY TALLEY to The Big Easy. Ashley is currently the news director for Tegna’s WZZM-TV (ABC) in Grand Rapids, MI, one of several jobs she’s held within Tegna. Her Linkedin page tells all. Ashley replaces NICOLE (WAIVERS) EVERAGE. We told you in July that Nicole was leaving this CBS affiliate after 3+ years as ND.

Shill

WEAU-TV, Eau Claire, WI…KRISTEN SHILL crosses the street to become the next news director for this Gray Media owned NBC affiliate. She’s worked at now-owned-by-Allen-Media’s WQOW-TV for almost 14 years, starting as an audio operator and video editor, and the last 7+ as news director. At WEAU, she replaces RUDY MURIETTA who left the station late last month after less than a year as news director.

New News Director Openings:

While not a new opening, please note that Scripps has reclassified the opening at its Denver station, KMGH-TV (ABC). It is now a Regional News Director position for all the Scripps Colorado stations (Denver, Colorado Springs, and Grand Junction).

WZZM-TV, Grand Rapids, MI…you learned above that ASHLEY TALLEY is moving within Tegna to become ND for WWL-TV in New Orleans. Ashley was at the ABC affiliate for about a year.

WQOW-TV, Eau Claire, WI...and if you were paying attention, you also learned above that KRISTEN SHILL is crossing the street, leaving this Allen Media station (after 7+ years as ND) to become ND for WEAU-TV, the NBC affiliate owned by Gray.

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