Congrats to Kevin Roach on being named the Associated Press Executive Producer of Online Video. Kevin goes to the AP’s Washingon-based Online Video Network after serving as ND at WDTN in Dayton, Ohio. He has a background in online as well, having served as a regional director of IBS. (Disclosures: I consulted for the AP’s Online Video Network and worked with Kevin in the early days of New England Cable News.) Full press release:
Washington, D.C. (February 22, 2007) — As part of its strategic initiative to expand video news operations, The Associated Press has named Kevin Roach as the Executive Producer for Online Video, based in Washington, D.C. He will be responsible for the day-to-day production of AP’s online video services, including the Online Video Network — a video service with 45 million unduplicated unique visitors per month – which is completing its first year of operation.
“Kevin brings unique skills and key insights into the way news video is produced and distributed to the Web,” said James Williams, Senior Vice President for AP Global Broadcast. “His experience in overseeing Web sites, producing network television and managing local television news will greatly benefit AP’s online video product and long term growth.”
Roach worked as the regional director of IBS (Internet Broadcast Systems) where he oversaw 17 station Web sites including those of WNBC in New York, WCVB in Boston and WDIV in Detroit. He hired and managed editorial staffers for the sites, coordinated news coverage and was a liaison with the station news directors and general managers.
He began his career at ABC News in New York, where he worked his way up from production assistant to producer. His responsibilities included line producing, field producing and managing assignments. He worked primarily for Good Morning America News and World News This Morning. He was also instrumental in the startup of New England Cable News in Boston, where he was second in charge of news content. In local television, Roach was most recently news director at WDTN in Dayton, and served previously as assistant news director at WCPO in Cincinnati and executive producer at WFSB-TV in Hartford .
AP’s online video services include the Online Video Network, a free, ad-supported service provided in partnership with Microsoft, and several subscription-based feeds that serve such clients as major Internet portals and national newspaper sites. OVN has more than 1,300 affiliated Web sites and 45 million unduplicated unique visitors.
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