CBS’s Rhodes To Keynote NewsTECHForum

CBS News President David Rhodes will kick off the third annual NewsTECHForum with a one-on-one interview with TVNewsCheck Editor Harry A. Jessell.

Set for Dec. 14-15 at the New York Hilton in midtown Manhattan, NewsTECHForum will gather news, technology and news operations executives to address the challenges and opportunities at the intersection of technology and news.

The conference is co-presented by TVNewsCheck and the Sports Video Group.

The Rhodes interview is scheduled for Monday, Dec. 14, at 1 p.m. The conference starts then and runs through Tuesday.

“We can’t think of anyone more qualified to talk about TV news during these days of disruption than David Rhodes,” said Jessell. “He’s up against it every day, maintaining the integrity and excellence of the network’s legacy news programs, while trying to secure a prominent place for CBS News among the proliferating digital media.”

NewsTECHForum is held in conjunction with the annual SVG Summit and exhibition. “The two conferences provide a one-two punch of in-depth panel discussions, technology exhibits and thought leadership that is unsurpassed,” said Ken Kerschbaumer, SVG’s editorial director.

NewsTECHForum sessions will address ENG, white spaces/wireless mics, targeting millennials, virtual sets/augmented reality, covering the 2016 political races and the pope’s visit to North America, story-centric workflow, news everywhere and more.

David Rhodes was named president of CBS News in February 2011. He is responsible for CBS News broadcasts and the division’s newsgathering across all platforms including television, CBS News Radio, CBSNews.com and CBSN, the first live-anchored streaming news network.

Rhodes has led a division-wide rejuvenation of the storied CBS News brand, emphasizing “real news” from top broadcast journalists around the world. A rededication to the division’s hard-news roots pervades every broadcast.

Rhodes was a catalyst behind the creation and launch of the highly-regarded CBS This Morning, including the development of a new studio and newsroom at the legendary CBS Broadcast Center in New York. He also spearheads CBS News’ multiplatform, division-wide approach to major news events such as the Democratic and Republican National Conventions, election night, presidential debates and special events.

Prior to joining CBS News, Rhodes held senior roles at Bloomberg and Fox News. At Bloomberg, he was head of US Television, responsible for all programming, development, editorial and newsgathering. He made significant changes in the network’s talent and programming, relaunching the financial news service’s flagship cable channel in 2009.

Rhodes began his career as a production assistant at the newly-launched Fox News Channel in 1996, where he later became VP of news. At the network he managed coverage of three presidential elections, wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, hurricanes including Katrina, and was the channel’s assignment manager on the news desk the morning of Sept. 11, 2001.

Since joining CBS News, Rhodes has been named to the power lists of several prominent media and business publications, including Fortune magazine’s 40 Under 40, Crain’s New York Business’ 40 Under 40, The Hollywood Reporter’s 35 Most Powerful People in Media and GQ’s The 50 Most Powerful People in Washington.

Rhodes became a Young Global Leader of the World Economic Forum at the group’s 2013 gathering in Yangon, Myanmar, and participates in the forum’s annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland.

He holds a B.A. in economics and political science from Rice University in Houston. He is a native of New York City and lives in Manhattan with his wife, Emma, and sons Ethan and Oliver.

About TVNewsCheck: Founded in 2006, TVNewsCheck is the leading source of business news for the local broadcast industry. It also publishes TVNewsCheck’s Executive Outlook, a premium print publication that addresses the future of the industry.

About Sports Video Group: SVG is a membership organization promoting excellence in sports production. Members include technology and operations managers at networks, sports leagues, venues, production companies and allied fields.