KFVS director of sales promoted to general manager

A new vice president and general manager has been announced at KFVS12 and WQWQ-TV. Former director of sales Scott Thomas has stepped into the role full-time, having served as the interim general manager since mid-July.

Thomas joined Raycom Media and KFVS in the spring of 2015 with many years of television broadcasting experience under his belt, most recently as the general manager of POP TV Inc. in Springfield, Missouri. He also served in management positions at KWES-TV in Midland, Texas, KALB-TV in Alexandria, Louisiana, KTAL-TV in Shreveport, Louisiana, and KOLR-TV in Springfield.

“I was a boomerang,” Thomas said. “I started my career in Springfield. I left for a while, then came back.”

When Thomas joined KFVS in 2015, he saw the job as a pathway to something bigger, and his new role in the company was the destination.

“I came here as the director of sales to have the opportunity to prove myself and move into a GM spot,” Thomas said. “The timeline was a little quicker than what we thought, because we figured [former general manager Dave Thomason] would be here for a few more years.”

Thomas’ promotion follows other changes at the station, including the departure of Thomason, who transferred in July to another Raycom-owned station in Huntsville, Alabama. Two months earlier, longtime news director Mark Little transferred to a sister station in South Carolina and was replaced by assistant news director Roger Seay.

The quick succession of changes, Thomas said, was circumstantial, with Little and Thomason receiving opportunities within the company they found appealing.

“Raycom has a firm belief in growing from within,” Thomas said.

“We did a comprehensive nationwide search to find the right person to fill this important position,” Nick Simonette, group vice president for Raycom Media, said in a news release. “As it turned out, the right person was already here and running this fine TV station. Scott brings a wealth of experience and success to this job. He is a proven leader.”

Thomas has no plans to make major changes to the station as he begins his role as general manager. Because the television medium is ever-evolving, he said, the changes he expects to make are in the digital realm, to stay relevant and “make sure we remain competitive and grow in the space that’s going to be the future.”

Thomas said he is pleased with his place at the station and looks forward to serving the company in this capacity.

“KFVS has a tremendous legacy,” Thomas said. “I’m pretty happy with where I’m at and I’ll be staying a while.”

bbrown@semissourian.com

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