Nexstar Media has named Gregory Raifman as president of Nexstar Digital.
Raifman will take on the newly created role effective April 1, 2017 and he will report directly to Nexstar CEO Perry Sook. Raifman joins Nexstar after previously serving as president and board member for advertising group The Rubicon Project.
The new job for Raifman comes after Nexstar Media merged its local digital advertising and content monetization products into one wholly-owned subsidiary, Nexstar Digital. The subsidiary targets media companies and advertisers and offers digital solutions and services for audience targeting, user engagement and general performance improvements for online, mobile and multimedia content and marketing
Raifman will take on the development and implementation of the Nexstar’s digital business strategy, leading the integration of existing and recently acquired digital products under the Nexstar Digital brand, and alignment of complementary technologies and capabilities to maximize performance and accelerate revenue and earnings growth, according to a news release.
“In this role, I will leverage my technology and management experience to identify commonality across our existing and acquired technologies, while integrating our digital products under the Nexstar Digital brand and evaluating new potential complementary capabilities to maximize results for our clients and customers and revenue opportunities for the Company’s shareholders. My team will also be proactive in supporting the goals and objectives of Nexstar’s broadcast operations with digital technology solutions that engage audiences and drive results,” said Raifman in a statement.
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The new appointment comes amid several executive shifts that Nexstar Media in January made after completing its $4.4 billion acquisition of Media General.
At Nexstar Media, Elizabeth Ryder has been promoted to executive vice president and general counsel after serving in the same position for the Nexstar Broadcasting Group. Brett Jenkins will assume the newly created position of chief technology officer at Nexstar Media. Jenkins previously worked as CTO for both Media General and LIN Media, prior to that company’s merger with Media General.
At Nexstar Broadcasting, Timothy Busch has been promoted to president after serving since 2008 as co-chief operating officer at Nexstar. The other co-COO, Brian Jones, has been named executive vice president and COO of Nexstar Broadcasting. In addition, Nexstar Broadcasting has promoted Diane Kniowski, Doug Davis and Mike Vaughn to three new regional management positions.
The newly combined company is expecting annual revenue of more than $2.3 billion.
“Our increased scale will allow us to create news bureaus in more state capitals than any other broadcaster, and Nexstar Media Group will produce over 3,500 hours a week of local news for medium and small markets while employing almost 10,000 people. Our teams consistently leverage localism to bring news, entertainment, information, services and value to consumers and advertisers through Nexstar’s television, digital and mobile media platforms, and their dedication is reflected in our strong standings in the local communities where we operate. The focus of our corporate, station-level and digital teams on local leadership, local vision and local targeting is the foundation of our positive near- and long-term financial outlook,” said Sook in a statement.