Two stations in the South TV News area will soon be receiving an alternative to Nielsen for its ratings information.
Morris Network, Inc., has signed a deal with Rentrak Corp. to provide daily ratings that it says is more dependable than the diary method Nielsen’s used for years.
Jennifer Ortega (Courtesy: Official Site)
West Palm Beach, Fla., native Jennifer Ortega has been hired by CBS affiliate WCBI-TV as the station’s newest reporter.
She fills the spot left open when former reporter Joe Barnes jumped markets and stared reporting for WLBT-TV in Jackson, Miss.
WBBJ-TV Logo
Jackson, Tenn., ABC affiliate WBBJ-TV has tapped Keith Baker to be the news director there.
Industry firm Rick Gevers reports Baker has roots in the area and comes from WCTI-TV in New Bern, N.C., where he served as assistant news director. Baker also has major market experience in Tampa and Pittsburgh.
Jennifer Watson (Courtesy: WTVA-TV)
After three years at WTVA-TV in the Tupelo-Columbus-West Point-Houston market, morning meteorologist Jennifer Watson will soon begin work as a meteorologist at WHNT-TV in Huntsville, Ala., according to an insider at the CBS affiliate.
Watson first began working at the Tupelo NBC affiliate in 2009 as a weekend meteorologist. The farewell article on WTVA’s website states she got bumped up to mornings a year later. But who will fill her shoes?
Joe Barnes (Courtesy: Twitter)
Joe Barnes, former reporter for CBS affiliate WCBI-TV in the Columbus-Tupelo-West Point-Houston market, has recently been hired at the Magnolia State’s flagship station in Jackson.
Barnes started working at NBC affiliate WLBT-TV last month. Insiders tell South TV News his shift includes weekends and anchoring duties on Sundays.
Russ Geller (Courtesy: Twitter)
It’s usually not a vote of confidence when a job posting is listed for someone still working at a television station.
And while that happens at stations across the U.S. anyway because news directors need to fill that position before a reporter’s contract runs out, it usually doesn’t happen to the man in charge.
Keith Gibson (Courtesy: WCBI-TV)
Keith Gibson, former chief meteorologist at FOX affiliate KEVN in Rapid City, S.D., is now the new chief meteorologist for WCBI-TV, the CBS affiliate for the Columbus-Tupelo-West Point-Houston market.
Gibson’s career has taken him through both Dakotas and the Mississippi Delta, where he once worked at WABG, an ABC affiliate.
Gibson replaces Rob Smith, who’s been at the station for 18 years. A Facebook update on the station’s weather page states Smith is leaving to “concentrate on his studies” as he returns to school, but Smith will be around to fill in from time to time.
What station doesn’t want to get paid just for being carried? 
In the most recent example of media companies negotiating for more dollars, DirecTV and CBS affiliate WCBI-TV have reached an agreement to continue carrying the north Mississippi station as part of its local channel lineup.
Matt Laubhan (Courtesy: KLBK)
Matt Laubhan will be the new chief meteorologist at WTVA-TV, the NBC affiliate for the Tupelo-Columbus-West Point-Houston market, effective next month.
Laubhan currently serves as the chief meteorologist at the CBS affiliate KLBK in Lubbock, Texas.
From the station’s website:
“My wife Emily and I are very excited about moving to northeast Mississippi and joining the WTVA family,” said Matt. “It will be difficult to fill the shoes of a living legend and was an honor to even be considered as a successor to Dick Rice. Weather, and, in particular, severe weather is such a big part of living in the Mid-South, and I feel honored to work for a company and a station that is committed to saving lives.”
Current WCBI Logo
We’ve gotten a few tips over the last few days (and thank you for those) that Alexandra St. Pe has already started as a weekend meteorologist for WCBI, the CBS affiliate for the Columbus-Tupelo-West Point-Houston market in Mississippi.
This has been confirmed by her LinkedIn profile, though no official mention has been made on WCBI’s website, nor the news team listings.
It would appear she’s replacing current weekend met Courtney Cooper. No reason was given for Cooper’s departure, and I’m not sure if Cooper’s even still on-air (because I live in Louisiana).
According to Pe’s Twitter profile (@stpeweather) , she’s already begun on-air work for the station (from a profile picture posted to the social networking page).
If you have any more tips on this, please let us know!
