Sports Director / Sports Reporter

The Most Challenging Job of Your Life Awaits.

KVIA-TV, the first-place ABC affiliate in the sunny Southwest with two Division I football universities (UTEP and NMSU) and a new Triple-A baseball team, is seeking an experienced, articulate, well-read, multi-tasking sports director.

Or, if you have little professional experience but have confidence in your abilities, apply for the weekend sports anchor position.

IMPORTANT NOTE: We have an eager internal candidate who – depending upon the strength and experience of the applicants – will either be promoted to sports director or become the second sports anchor. Do not apply for the sports director position unless you have experience and superior organizational skills.

And here’s the best (or worst) part: the general manager, the managing editor, the news operations manager and our main anchor are all former sportscasters (see a pattern?). The general manager is a sports nut and still shoots sideline video at college football games. I`m a casual sports fan. We believe sports is often news – so if you can sell your stories to both ends of the spectrum, you’re a winner.

Expect constant critique, oversight and very demanding standards. Do not apply if you don’t bust your tail every day and are not ready to embrace the local sports scene.

Sports is always a first thought here, never an afterthought like it is at so many stations. We don’t hesitate to lead our newscasts with sports when something big is going on. We often follow local teams to regional meets, the NCAA tournament and a bowl game if either college can produce a winner. The sports scene here is vibrant. Two recent sports directors moved on to Denver and Tucson.

The weekend sports anchor/reporter position is a sports/news hybrid. During the slower summer months, you will be expected to report to the newsroom on weekdays to cover general assignment news. Naturally, we`d lean towards assigning you sports-related topics, but that will not be the case every time unless you convince news management of the importance of the sports story you are pitching. You will fill-in for the sports director when he is off.

For either position you should expect a full multimedia experience: you’ll have to pick up a camera and shoot, edit, interact with our Twitter/Facebook followers plus be responsible for the sports section at kvia.com.

El Paso is the 19th largest city in the country. We host the annual Sun Bowl each December. We also cover about 40 high schools and produce the Borderland Blitz, a 30-minute Friday night high school football show. This really is a premium job for a mid-market station.

Because we invest so many resources in sports, we want a serious commitment that you will stay a minimum of three years as sports director. At least two and possibly three years as the weekend sportscaster. The two market competitors have sports directors who used to work at KVIA and have many years of experience. We need stability, contrast and dedication to being the best. If you are under contract, you have to be able to start no later than the first of the year.

Applicants must provide the following upon application: link of your work, resume, salary requirement (essential so we don’t waste time) and a personalized cover letter that tells me why I should pick you over everyone else. My address is andkvia@yahoo.com.

Please use “SPORTS JOB“ on the subject line.

Bring it on!

Brenda De Anda-Swann
News Director
KVIA-TV