General manager at KPXE is out as Pax checks bottom line
Yet another general manager of a local TV station is out of a job. Lisa Bench confirmed this week that she's being let go as general manager of KPXE, Channel 50, at the end of this month. As was the case with Rich Deutsch, who was fired Jan. 11 as the general manager of KSMO, Channel 62, Bench failed to meet the sales objectives set by her out-of-town corporate managers. Bench, a native of Springfield, arrived here in 1997 to run Channel 50 after it was purchased by onetime home-shopping mogul Bud Paxson. Her primary job was selling infomercials for the seven hours each day when the Pax TV network and religious videos aren't on the air. "We've done a very good job as far as I'm concerned, but this is a tough market," Bench said. Very tough. A decade ago there were five TV stations in Kansas City competing for local ad dollars. Today there are eight, and yet broadcast viewership is going down because of cable. Making matters worse, six of those eight stations are owned by out-of-town companies. They're all under pressure from Wall Street to show results. Paxson management also eliminated a position from KPXE's bare-bones staff of 18 and instituted a hiring freeze. Pax TV's viewership has, in fact, exceeded company estimates in many markets. And KPXE has been one of the chain's best performers, recently averaging a 2.1 Nielsen rating in prime time. (A rating point equals 1 percent of households.) Change in the weather Brian Greenwald will begin doing weekend weather today on KSHB, Channel 41. The St. Louis native, who last worked at KWCH in Wichita, also will sit in on KSHB's 9 a.m. morning show Mondays through Wednesdays. Greenwald's hiring comes about as a result of Lori Miller's departure. KSHB hired former WDAF weathercaster Gary Lezak as its chief meteorologist, replacing Miller. But because his WDAF contract bars Lezak from appearing on another station for six months, Jeff Ray has been filling in on 41's nightly newscasts. New voice at Channel 5 Starting today, Kansas City's self-styled "voice gal," Roberta Solomon, becomes the new voice of KCTV, Channel 5. Solomon, the former 99.7 FM radio personality, is transferring allegiances from KCPT, Channel 19, where she had been the announcer for 10 years. KCTV's program manager Peter Barrett said Solomon was chosen "not only because of her obvious talents, but because she is local. " Her voice will replace that of broadcasting legend Charlie Van Dyke (who lives in Phoenix) on all of Channel 5's newscasts and promotions. Solomon is also the voice of KSDK in St. Louis, WGBH in Boston and 26 other TV stations. To reach Aaron Barnhart, television writer for The Star, phone (816) 234-4790 or e-mail writeme@tvbarn.com
