April 24, 2022
April 29, 2022 UPDATE:
Greetings:
Another news director turned general manager gets a big promotion…this time to a GM’s job in the second largest market.
Mokhtari
TODD MOKHTARI returns to his native Los Angeles as President and General Manager for NBC’s KNBC/KVEA-TV (NBC-Telemundo.) Todd’s a former news director for KNBC who has been the general manager for NBC’s KNSD/KUAN-TV (also NBC-Telemundo) in San Diego for almost four years. He’s also been an ND for KIRO-TV (Cox/CBS) in Seattle and has worked in San Francisco/San Jose and Sacramento.
Here’s the news release from NBC.
At KNBC, he replaces STEVE CARLSTON and at KVEA he replaces CELIA CHAVEZ. We told you earlier this month that both were leaving and that their jobs would be combined into one.
Hopefully we’ll have more details in our full newsletter this weekend.
regards,
Rick Gevers
**** ***** ****
Greetings:
It’s a pretty slow week on the ND front, with just ONE new opening…that created when an ND left his station to return to his former market.
That means our always unofficial list of ND openings remains at 33.
ONE ads this week from a Houston station.
There’s an obituary for a veteran CBS News employee. NO GM changes that I know of, and just TWO items in Names in the News. Sadly, one of those items is a correction…of a correction. Embarrassing!
If you’re at NAB, I hope our paths cross.
Newly Named News Director:
Blanton
WZZM-TV, Grand Rapids, MI…BROOKS BLANTON starts May 31st, returning to West Michigan as the ND at this Tegna owned ABC affiliate. Brooks spent 7 1/2 years as ND for Grand Rapids’ FOX station, WXMI-TV (now Scripps) before leaving last year to be ND for Bahakel’s WCCB-TV in Charlotte. Brooks told me a change in his mom’s health brought him back. He replaces JULIE FLYNN who’s returned to sister Tegna station WKYC-TV (NBC) in Cleveland after three years here.
Brooks becomes the THIRD Grand Rapids ND to have been an ND for two different stations in the market.
DAN BOERS replaced Brooks at WXMI, crossing the street from Nexstar’s WOOD-TV.
STANTON TANG replaced Dan at WOOD. Earlier in his career he had been the ND at WZZM.
Only MATT JOHNSON at Sinclair’s WWMT-TV in Kalamazoo is a single station ND in the market.
New News Director Opening:
WCCB-TV, Charlotte, NC…as we shared above, BROOKS BLANTON is leaving this Bahakel Communications after just not quite a year as ND. He’s returning to Grand Rapids, this time as ND for WZZM-TV (Tegna/ABC).
Paid Help Wanted Ad:
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Other News Management Openings:
ASSISTANT NEWS DIRECTOR:
KTLA-TV, Los Angeles, CA (Digital AND, relisted 4/17/22)
WCNC-TV, Charlotte, NC (listed 4/3/22)
WXBW-TV, Buffalo, NY (listed 3/13/22)
WHAS-TV, Louisville, KY (listed 4/3/22)
WHO-TV, Des Moines, IA (listed 3/27/22)
KBTX-TV, Bryan, TX (listed 2/27/22)
WAND-TV, Decatur, IL (listed 3/27/22)
WTVC-TV, Chattanooga, TN (listed 4/3/22)
WBND-TV, South Bend, IN (listed 4/3/22)
KIVI-TV, Boise, ID (listed 3/20/22)
WKBT-TV, La Crosse, WI (listed 3/27/22)
EXECUTIVE PRODUCER:
WDCW-TV, Washington, DC, (Digital EP, listed 4/10/22)
KPHO/KTVK-TV, Phoenix, AZ (listed 4/3/22)
WFLA-TV, Tampa, FL (relisted 4/24/22)
KMGH-TV, Denver, CO (listed 2/27/22)
WEWS-TV, Cleveland, OH (listed 4/10/22)
WJZY-TV, Charlotte, NC (relisted 4/3/22)
KMOV-TV. St. Louis, MO (Special Projects EP, listed 2/27/22)
WRAL-TV, Raleigh, NC (listing revised 3/27/22)
WTVF-TV, Nashville, TN (listed 2/27/22)
KSTU-TV, Salt Lake City, UT (listed 4/10/22)
KXAN-TV, Austin, TX (2 openings, one a Digital EP, listed 4/17/22)
WIAT-TV, Birmingham AL (relisted 4/24/22)
WKBW-TV, Buffalo, NY (listed 4/10/22)
WFTX-TV, Ft. Myers, FL (listed 3/13/22)
WRIC-TV, Richmond, VA (Digital EP, listed 4/10/22)
WHEC-TV, Rochester, NY (listed 2/27/22)
WROC-TV, Rochester, NY (listed 3/20/22)
WNEM-TV, Saginaw, MI (relisted 3/20/22)
WAFF-TV, Huntsville, AL (relisted 3/20/22)
KRGV-TV, Weslaco, TX (AM EP, relisted 4/24/22)
KTSM-TV, El Paso, TX (relisted 4/3/22)
WBTW-TV, Myrtle Beach, SC (listed 3/20/22)
WBND-TV, South Bend, IN (listed 4/3/22)
WHBF-TV, Rock Island, IL (Digital EP, relisted 4/17/22)
KADN/KLAF-TV, Lafayette, LA (relisted 2/27/22)
KFDX-TV, Wichita Falls, TX (listed 4/17/22)
KSAN/KLST-TV, San Angelo, TX (listed 4/17/22)
SUPERVISING PRODUCER:
KOMU-TV, Columbia, Mo (relisted 4/3/22)
MANAGING EDITOR:
KPRC-TV, Houston, TX (listed 4/3/22, see ad above!)
Spectrum News, Charlotte, NC (listing revised 4/3/22)
KOMU-TV, Columbia, Mo (relisted 4/3/22)
More News Management Openings:
Relisted 4/17/22:
WJW-TV, Cleveland, OH: (Digital Content Director)
Relisted 4/3/22:
Missouri School of Journalism, Columbia, MO: (Director, Documentary Journalism Center)
Listed 3/27/22:
KTXL-TV, Sacramento, CA (Digital Content Director)
Listed 3/13/22:
Listed 3/6/22:
U. of Mississippi, Oxford, MS (Director of Student Media)
Obituary:
Hopkins
MIKE HOPKINS, a beloved longtime employee for CBS News, died suddenly on Tuesday. He was the Director of Logistics for Special Events there, and spent more than four decades at the network. He leaves a wife and three children. More details in this story from CBS.
Names in the News:
Romito
There’s a new Assistant News Director to tell you about at KOLR-TV in Springfield, MO. DAN ROMITO returns to TV at this Nexstar owned CBS affiliate. He’s been out of TV news for a while, but previously worked for two stations in Cincinnati. More on his complete background via his Linkedin page.
It’s pretty sad when you have to correct a correction, but in Thursday’s UPDATE correcting last week’s story on Peabody Award nominees, I transposed (as I often do) some call letters. Honored was KNTV (NBC owned) in San Francisco/San Jose, not KTNV-TV in Las Vegas. Apologies to the stations involved, and to you.
General Manager News and Notes:
I’m not aware of any changes this week. If you are, don’t be selfish! Share it with me via email: rick@rickgevers.com
Our Full List of Open ND Jobs:
Here’s our list of open ND jobs as of Sunday, April 24, 2022.
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
KPIX-TV 855 Battery St. San Francisco, CA 94111
WTSP-TV 11450 Gandy Blvd, St. Petersburg, FL 33702
KOVR/KMAX-TV 2713 KOVR Drive, West Sacramento, CA 95605
WCCB-TV 701 Television Place Charlotte, NC 28205
KDKA-TV 1 Gateway Ctr. Pittsburgh, PA 15222
KTVX-TV 2175 West 1700 South Salt Lake City, UT 84104
WPTV 1100 Banyan Blvd. West Palm Beach, FL 33401
WTLV/WJXX-TV 1070 East Adams Street Jacksonville, FL 32202
WYMT-TV 199 Black Gold Blvd. Hazard, KY 41701
KGMB/KHNL-TV 420 Waiakamilo Rd. Suite 205, Honolulu, HI, 96817
KHQ-TV 1201 W. Sprague Ave. Spokane, WA 99201
KOLR-TV 2650 E. Division Springfield, MO 65803
KXXV-TV 1909 S. New Rd. Waco, TX 76711
WBTW-TV 101 McDonald Ct, Myrtle Beach, SC 29588
KRNV/KRXI-TV 1790 Vassar St. Reno, NV 89502
KNDO/KNDU-TV 216 W. Yakima Ave., Yakima, WA 98902
KAPP/KVEW-TV 601 N. Edison Kennewick, WA 99336
KADN-TV 1500 Eraste Landry Rd. Lafayette, LA 70506
WLTZ-TV 6140 Buena Vista Rd. Columbus, GA 31907
WTVO/WQRF-TV 1917 N. Meridian Road Rockford, IL 61101
KMIR-TV 72920 Park View Dr., Palm Desert, CA 92260
KBMT-TV 525 Interstate 10 South, Beaumont, TX 77701
KIMT-TV 135 E William St. Albert Lea, MN 56007
KODE/KSNF-TV 1502 S. Cleveland Avenue, Joplin, MO 64801
WBNG-TV 560 Columbia Dr. Johnson City, NY 13790
KTAB/KRBC-TV 4510 South 14th St. Abilene TX 79605
KULR-TV. 2045 Overland Ave. Billings, MT 59102
KALB-TV 605 Washington Street; Alexandria, LA 71301
KXLF/KBZK-TV 90 Television Way, Bozeman, MT 59718
KMVT-TV 1100 Blue Lakes Blvd North, Twin Falls, ID 83301
Delta News 837 Washington Ave Greenville, MS 38701
KAEF-TV 540 E Street Eureka, CA 95501
KYOU-TV 820 West 2nd Street; Ottumwa, IA 52501
**: Spanish language station