Ogden Named President and GM at KUSA-TV, Denver; Franzgrote Retires
Cecil Walker, president and CEO of Gannett Broadcasting, today announced that Roger Ogden has been named president and general manager of KUSA-TV, the NBC affiliate in Denver. In addition, Ogden has been appointed a vice president of Gannett Broadcasting to consult with emphasis on new media. Ogden will assume his new duties on August 4.
Ogden will replace Joe Franzgrote, who announced his retirement today after 30 years at KUSA and Gannett Television stations.
“Joe has made significant contributions to our company and the industry. As we encourage people within our company to think differently, a part of us will always be thinking about Joe. He has always looked for the extra dimensions to make our stations more competitive and he will be missed,” said Walker.
Franzgrote and his wife, Helenn, will continue to live in Denver and be involved in the community.
“This marks a return home for Roger – a return to Colorado after two years in London running NBC’s European operations and a return to KUSA, where he began his television career. We are delighted to have him back in the Gannett family and back in Denver, where he has an impressive record of success,” said Walker.
Before moving to London in 1995, Ogden spent 14 years as president and general manager of KCNC-TV, the former NBC-owned and -operated station in Denver. During that period he also headed several projects for NBC, including coordinating NBC’s cooperative efforts with TV Azteca in Mexico and overseeing operations for KUTV in Salt Lake City.
Ogden, a native of Colorado, began his broadcast career in Denver at age 13 at radio station KPOF. He worked at radio stations KLIR and KBTR while attending the University of Colorado. He later held management positions at WLKY-TV (Louisville, Ky.) and KBTV-TV in Denver (now KUSA), including vice president and news director. He joined KCNC-TV in 1981. Ogden was twice named Broadcaster of the Year in Colorado in 1984 and 1994 by the Colorado Broadcasters Association.
Franzgrote returned to KUSA in May 1989 after six years as president of KARE-TV in Minneapolis. Prior to his assignment in Minneapolis, Franzgrote spent more than 15 years with KUSA, rising up through the ranks of sales.
Franzgrote’s first position in broadcasting was with WNDU-TV in South Bend, Ind., where he was a cameraman and an account executive. He moved on to hold various positions in television stations throughout the country such as WMDB-TV (Peoria, Ill.), WTVO and WIFR-TV (Rockford, Ill.) and KIRO-TV (Seattle, Wash.).
Born in Peoria, Ill., Franzgrote earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Notre Dame in South Bend, Ind.
KUSA (NBC-Denver) is a part of Gannett Broadcasting’s 16-television-station group. Other television stations are: WUSA (CBS-Washington, DC); WXIA (NBC-Atlanta); WKYC (NBC-Cleveland); KARE (NBC-Minneapolis); WTSP (CBS-Tampa); KPNX (NBC-Phoenix); KSDK (NBC-St. Louis); WZZM (ABC-Grand Rapids/Kalamazoo/Battle Creek); WGRZ (NBC-Buffalo); WFMY (CBS-Greensboro); WTLV (NBC-Jacksonville); KTHV (CBS-Little Rock); WBIR (NBC-Knoxville); KVUE (ABC-Austin); and WMAZ (CBS-Macon). Gannett Broadcasting also consists of cable operations in five states, alarm security services and five radio stations. On April 10, 1997, Gannett entered into an agreement to sell its radio stations to Evergreen Media. The transaction is expected to close later this year.
In addition to its broadcasting operations, Gannett publishes 90 daily newspapers, including USA TODAY, and USA WEEKEND, a newspaper magazine.