May 14, 2011
Greetings:
We’re still in a rating period but there’s a lot of movement among news directors this week.
We have FOUR new openings to report, with THREE new NDs to introduce you to, although all three newly named NDs are not really ‘new’ news directors.
Those changes bring our list of available ND jobs to 31.
We have THREE new ads this week, including one for an EP opening at the Weather Channel. And we have two ads from a top 15 market station which has producer openings.
Unfortunately, this week’s report includes FIVE obituaries.
And there’s just one Name in the News, so it may be time to remind you that we welcome your submissions via email.
All that and more after this week’s changes:
New News Director Openings:
WPMI-TV, Mobile, AL…WES FINLEY is leaving to become ND for WKEF/WRGT-TV in Dayton, OH. More on that below. Wes has been ND for this Newport-owned NBC affiliate since November, 2008.
WSYR-TV, Syracuse, NY…longtime ND JIM TORTORA has left this Newport owned station where he’s been news director for almost ten years. Jim was promoted to ND for this ABC affiliate in 2001.
WSAW-TV, Wausau, WI…SUSAN RAMSETT is leaving one Gray TV owned CBS station for another. She’s been named ND of KOLN/KGIN-TV in Lincoln, NE. More on that below. She also anchors for WSAW, where she’s been ND for more than four years.
Cruz
KYMA-TV, Yuma, AZ…LUIS CRUZ is returning to an on-air job, joining KGTV in San Diego as a reporter after the current rating period. Luis is leaving this Intermountain West Communications (formerly Sunbelt) owned NBC affiliate where he’s been the ND for three years. It’s his second stint as ND here. He previously had worked on-air for KYMA’s sister-station, KVBC-TV (now KSNV-TV), in Las Vegas, as well as in several California markets. The move to KGTV reunites him with ND JOEL DAVIS, who was the ND when Luis worked for KFSN-TV in Fresno.
Newly Named News Directors:
Finley
WKEF/WRGT-TV, Dayton, OH…as mentioned above, WES FINLEY will be the next ND. Wes has been ND for WPMI-TV in Mobile for the last 2 1/2 years, but he worked in both Lexington and Louisville before that, and he tells me the move will bring him and his family closer to relatives in Kentucky. Wes has also worked in Harrisburg, PA, where he was the Assistant ND for WHP-TV before being promoted within Newport. He replaces PAT CASEY at this Sinclair owned ABC/FOX duopoly. You’ll remember that Pat died in March after a long battle with a brain tumor.
Dennison
WDBJ-TV, Roanoke, Va…DAN DENNISON returns to a newsroom as he’s been named ND for this Schurz Broadcasting owned CBS station. Dan’s been an ND in Honolulu, Colorado Springs, and San Luis Obispo, CA, and also worked as a reporter for two stations in Denver. Since December, 2008 (when he left KHNL-TV in Honolulu when his job was eliminated), Dan’s been working for the NOAA/Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument in Hawaii, beginning as media coordinator and more recently as constituent outreach & partnerships coordinator. At WDBJ, he replaces AMY MORRIS who left the station in March after almost four years as ND.
Ramsett
KOLN/KGIN-TV, Lincoln, NE…as reported above, SUSAN RAMSETT has been promoted to News Director for this Gray Television owned CBS affiliate. She’s currently the ND and anchor for Gray’s WSAW-TV in Wausau, WI. She’s a Wisconsin native, has worked for two stations in the LaCrosse market, and also spent two years working for a medical foundation. At KOLN/KGIN, she replaces JERRY HOWARD who left the station last month after more than three years as news director.
Finally, one clarification from last week. We reported that BRAD NEUHOFF had left WIS-TV in Columbia, SC. He is actually leaving that Raycom-owned NBC affiliate next month.
**** ***** ****
Help Wanted Ads:
Weekend EP, The Weather Channel, Atlanta, GA
I. OVERALL RESPONSIBILITIES
Responsible for all aspects of Weekend Morning live programming.
II. SPECIFIC RESPONSIBILITIES
Determine daily editorial content, overall production elements, graphic support and contributions from bureaus and affiliate partners. Supervise, coordinate, schedule, teach, guide, coach and work hand in hand with individual show producers. Script approval on studio copy, pre-produced packages and series and live content from field reporters and meteorologists. Producing in a control room, including multiple live shots from various locations. Consult with Meteorologists during daily briefings.
III. QUALIFICATIONS –
A. KNOWLEDGE 10-15 years experience in live television news production. Bachelor’s degree in communications, or related subject preferred. Control room experience producing live news programs that contain live remote elements. Must be able to work in a team environment with minimum supervision. Advanced knowledge of computer newsroom systems.
B. SKILLS REQUIRED Must be a leader. Excellent writing skills. Organizational skills. Management skills. Strict attention to detail. Creativity. Ability to work within deadlines and within a team environment. Must be able to clearly communicate with live crews in the field, providing clear directions and scripting information as well studio talent and the broadcast operations crews. Work well with others especially under stressful situations
Please email resumes to Rashida Jones (rjones@weather.com) for consideration.
**** ***** ****
11:00 AM Producer, KOMO-TV, Seattle, WA:
Candidate must be an experienced journalist with extremely strong writing, producing and leadership skills to take over our 11am newscast Monday through Friday. Candidate must be plugged into the day’s news and ready to bring story ideas every morning. Candidate must work well under pressure, be aggressive with breaking news and willing to throw the rundown out the window.
We’re looking for someone who is imaginative and knows how to weave a newscast with a variety of stories. It’s crucial that candidate has strong skills in social media as it applies to broadcast. ***Do not apply for this position if you have not produced television newscasts in a medium market for at least 3 years*** Bachelor’s degree preferred.
Follow this link to our career website to view the complete job description and fill out the online application for this position.
No phone calls please and no physical resumes accepted.
**** ***** ****
Producer, KOMO-TV, Seattle, WA:
Candidate must be an experienced journalist with extremely strong writing, producing and leadership skills. Candidate must be plugged into the day’s news and ready to bring story ideas to the editorial meetings.
We’re looking for someone with outstanding writing skills who can produce compelling and creative newscasts with high production value. Candidate must be aggressive with breaking news and willing to throw the rundown out the window. Candidate must be able to work well under pressure.
We’re looking for someone who is imaginative and knows how to weave a newscast with a variety of stories. It’s crucial that candidate has strong skills in social media as it applies to broadcast. ***Do not apply for this position if you have not produced television newscasts in a medium market for at least 3 years*** Bachelor’s degree preferred.
Follow this link to our career website to view the complete job description and fill out the online application for this position.
No phone calls please and no physical resumes accepted.
**** ***** ****
News Director, KDVR/KWGN-TV, Denver, CO:
BLOCKBUSTER DUOPOLY SEEKS M/F NEWS DIRECTOR FOR LONG TERM RELATIONSHIP
Denver, CO FOX/CW duopoly. 71 hours of live news and local per week. 140 professionals in the combined news staff. Ingest to playback HD. Building ratings and headed for the top.
Owned by a progressive private company and led by an experienced GM. Are you up for the challenge?
Send link or DVD of your current newscasts, a complete resume and qualified references to:
Mercedes Romero
FOX 31 KDVR and KWGN 2
100 E. Speer Blvd.
Denver, CO 80203
or via email to: mercedes.romero@kdvr.com
EOE M/F/V/D
**** ***** ****
**** ***** ****
Other News Management Openings:
Assistant News Director:
WFLD-TV, Chicago, IL (listed 4/22/11)
KHOU-TV, Houston, TX (listed 4/15/11)
KSDK-TV, St. Louis, MO (relisted this week)
WTHR-TV, Indianapolis, IN (listed 5/1/11)
WRTV, Indianapolis, IN (listed 4/22/11)
WVIT-TV, Hartford/New Haven, CT (relisted 4/15/11)
WISN-TV, Milwaukee, WI (relisted 4/15/11)
KXAN-TV, Austin, TX (listed 5/8/11)
KVOA-TV, Tucson, AZ (listed 3/31/11)
KTIV-TV, Sioux City, IA (relisted 2/25/11)
Executive News Producer:
The Weather Channel, Atlanta, GA (Weekend EP new listing this week, see ad above!)
KYW-TV, Philadelphia, PA (listed 3/12/11)
KPHO-TV, Phoenix, AZ (relisted 3/31/11)
KTVK-TV, Phoenix, AZ (AM EP, listed 5/8/11)
Northwest Cable News, Seattle, WA (AM EP, listed 5/1/11)
KXTV, Sacramento, CA (listed 2/25/11)
WTAE-TV, Pittsburgh, PA (Dayside EP, listed 3/25/11)
WRAL-TV, Raleigh, NC (listed 4/9/11)
WXIN-TV, Indianapolis, IN (relisted 4/15/11)
WVIT-TV, Hartford/New Haven, CT (relisted 4/15/11)
WCPO-TV, Cincinnati, OH (2 openings, AM & afternoon, listing revised 4/15/11)
WTMJ-TV, Milwaukee, WI (Special Projects EP, relisted 4/15/11)
WBRC-TV, Birmingham, AL (relisted 4/15/11)
WXII-TV, Winston-Salem, NC (AM EP, relisted 4/15/11)
KVOA-TV, Tucson, AZ (AM EP, listed 3/31/11)
Special Projects Producer:
WSVN-TV, Miami, FL (relisted 4/15/11)
Managing Editor:
WFTS-TV, Tampa, FL (listed 4/15/11)
**** ***** ****
Obituaries:
Moen
Our best wishes to the family, friends, and co-workers of KOMO-TV (Seattle) producer TRICIA MOEN, who died Friday, May 6th, at the age of 39. She battled colon cancer for more than two years. Tricia was graduated from Washington State University and also worked for KCPQ-TV in Seattle. Here’s a link to an obituary the station aired.
One time CNN President BURT REINHARDT died Tuesday, May 10th, at the age of 91 after suffering a series of strokes. He worked at CNN from 1979 to 2003, and served as President from 1982-1990.
Veteran network news executive JEFF GRALNIK died Monday, May 9, at the age of 72. During a long career, he worked at ABC, CBS, CNN, and NBC, and most recently served as a consultant to NBC News President STEVE CAPUS.
TINA GULLAND, a one-time bureau chief for Post-Newsweek’s Washington bureau, died Wednesday, May 11, from lung cancer. She was 62 years old. She spent most of her long career in Washington, including two radio news director positions.
MIKE FLANAGAN, husband of MARIE CURKAN FLANAGAN, died Sunday, May 9th, at the age of 61. Marie is a former ND for KOCO-TV in Oklahoma City, the first woman ND in the Gannett company. She also worked for Gannett in Minneapolis, where she met her Mike. They were married for 22 years. Marie also worked in Hartford/New Haven, CT. She spent a number of years teaching after leaving KOCO, and now lives in Florida. She retired from teaching at the University of South Florida last December. I’m told she no longer uses email.
**** ***** ****
Name in the News:
Dankert
GEOFF DANKERT is headed south to become News Content Director for KPRC-TV, Post-Newsweek’s NBC affiliate in Houston. He’ll report to VP/Managing Director, News DEB COLLURA who oversees KPRC’s newsroom in addition to her Post Newsweek corporate duties. Geoff has been the Assistant ND for WFLD-TV in Chicago, where he spend 12 years in a variety of roles. He’s also worked in Detroit (two stations), Tampa, Grand Rapids, MI, and Traverse City, MI.
**** ***** ****
The Full List:
To the best of my knowledge, here is the list of stations with open news director jobs, as of Friday, May 13, 2011.
If you know of any additions/deletions/changes/updates, please email me at: rick@rickgevers.com
KMEX-TV 5999 Center Dr. Los Angeles CA 90045 **
KTTV/KCOP-TV 1999 S. Bundy Dr. Los Angeles CA 90025
KARE-TV 8811 Olson Memorial Hwy. Minneapolis MN 55427
KDVR/KWGN-TV 100 Speer Blvd. Denver CO 80203 (see ad above!)
KOIN-TV 222 SW Columbia St. Portland OR 97201
WTNH/WCTX-TV 8 Elm St. New Haven CT 06510
KLUZ-TV 2725 F. Broadbent Pwky NE Albuquerque NM 87107 **
WPMI-TV 661 Azalea Road Mobile AL 36609
KMSB-TV 1855 N. 6th Ave. Tucson AZ 85705
WJRT-TV 2302 Lapeer Road Flint MI 48503
WMTW-TV 99 Danville Corner Road Portland ME 04210
WSYR-TV 5904 Bridge St. Syracuse NY 13057
WIS-TV 1111 Bull St. Columbia SC 29201
WCYB-TV 101 Lee St. Bristol VA 24201
KVAL-TV 4575 Blanton Road Eugene OR 97405
KSBY-TV 1772 Calle Joaquin San Luis Obispo CA 93405
WREX-TV 10322 W. Auburn Rd. Rockford IL 61105
KTVE/KARD-TV 200 Pavilion Rd. West Monroe LA 71292
KTKA-TV 2121 SW Chelsea Dr. Topeka KS 66614
WSAW-TV 1114 Grand Ave. Wausau WI 54403
WFXL-TV 1211 N. Slappey Blvd. Albany GA 31707
KIMT-TV 112 N. Pennsylvania Ave. Mason City IA 50401
WJHG-TV 8195 Front Beach Rd. Panama City Beach FL 32407
KUPB-TV 10313 W. Country Rd. #117 Midland TX 79706 **
WCJB-TV 6220 NW 43rd St. Gainesville FL 32653
WUTR/WPNY/WFXV-TV 5956 Smith Hill Rd. Utica NY 13502
KSWT-TV 1301 Third Ave. Yuma AZ 85364
KYMA-TV 1385 S. Pacific Ave. Yuma AZ 85365
KGNS-TV 120 W. Delmar Blvd. Laredo TX 78045
KFBB-TV 3012 Highwoods Blvd. Great Falls MT 59403
KSAN/KLST-TV 2800 Armstrong San Angelo TX 76903
** Spanish language station
