Nexstar Names Totsch GM for Operations in Des Moines

Nexstar Media Group has named Robert “Bobby" Totsch as VP and general manager of WHO-TV and its associated mobile and digital operations in Des Moines, Iowa.

Nexstar acquired WHO when its purchase of Tribune Media was approved earlier this month. The post has been open.

Totsch, who had been a general manager for Sinclair Broadcast Group and market director for Sinclair in Mobile, Ala., will report to Mike Vaughn, senior VP and regional manager of Nexstar.

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“Bobby has an impressive sales and management industry background and is a highly respected leader who has increased ratings and revenue at every station he has managed. He’s led a variety of initiatives focused on developing exclusive local content for viewers and digital users, and highly effective multi-platform marketing opportunities for local and national advertisers,” said Vaughn.

“Bobby has consistently strengthened station operations and exceeded economic goals by implementing sales, marketing and new-media efforts that enhanced service to local viewers, businesses and the communities they served,” Vaughn added. “Along with our broadcast and digital staffs in Des Moines, Bobby will continue to build upon our commitment to the local viewing and advertising communities that are served by WHO-TV and whotv.com every day.”

From 2008 to 2012, Totsch served as VP and general manager of KCTV-TV and KSMO-TV in Kansas City, Missouri. Earlier in his career, he served as director of sales and station manager at KMOV-TV in St. Louis.

“I am excited to join Nexstar, the nation’s leading local broadcast television group, and I look forward to working with the talented team at WHO-TV and its related mobile and digital properties,” said Totsch. “WHO-TV has a legacy of delivering strong local news and programming to its viewers and digital users, and a wide variety of multiplatform marketing and advertising solutions to its advertisers. We will look to expand in innovative ways that continue building viewership, revenue, and our relationships in the communities we serve.”

Jon Lafayette

Jon has been business editor of Broadcasting+Cable since 2010. He focuses on revenue-generating activities, including advertising and distribution, as well as executive intrigue and merger and acquisition activity. Just about any story is fair game, if a dollar sign can make its way into the article. Before B+C, Jon covered the industry for TVWeek, Cable World, Electronic Media, Advertising Age and The New York Post. A native New Yorker, Jon is hiding in plain sight in the suburbs of Chicago.