Nexstar has named a new vp and gm to oversee Keloland Media Group in Sioux Falls, S.D.
Mari Ossenfort, a South Dakota native and longtime broadcast exec in the region, will oversee KELO-KCLO and Keloland.com, which serve parts of South Dakota, Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, Wyoming and Montana. She’s taking over for Jay Huizenga, who’s retiring after 40 years in broadcasting at Keloland.
Ossenfort has been the station’s general sales manager since 2017, overseeing all aspects of broadcast and digital advertising sales strategy and management. Prior to that, she was the general manager for a media group in North Dakota. All in all, she has 25 years of experience, including time as a general manager for another local station in South Dakota from 2006-2013.
“Mari’s years of experience in both North and South Dakota broadcasting have well-positioned her to oversee the market-leading operations at Keloland,” said Doug Davis, senior vice president and regional manager of Nexstar Broadcasting. “She is very familiar with our broadcast and digital operations in Sioux Falls and Rapid City and understands the vital role Keloland plays serving local communities across six different states. Mari also has a vast amount of experience in sales, news, marketing, station operations and establishing meaningful community partnerships. She recognizes the importance of creating and developing unique local content and finding new ways to grow the local audience and meet the needs of advertisers and marketers through a variety of cross-platform solutions. I am looking forward to working with Mari as she guides Keloland to even greater success in the years to come.”
Ossenfort will begin her new role immediately. She will report to Davis.