KDFW Dallas VP/News Director Maria Barrs has been named president and general manager at Gannett's KXTV Sacramento. She wraps up a 17 year career at the Fox O&O August 5.
Anita Helt had been named KXTV general manager in October 2010, but departed nine months into the job.
"Maria is an incredibly talented product leader," said Dave Lougee, president of Gannett Broadcasting. "She has a passion for what she does, and it shows. She has proven herself over the past 13 years at the Fox-owned station in Dallas, where her newsroom has emerged as the leader among a group of talented competitors."
KXTV is the ABC affiliate in DMA No. 20.
"Maria is an innovative manager, having built ratings growth during an era of challenging times," said Lynn Beall, executive president at Gannett Broadcasting. "Maria has overseen eight hours of live news production every day. She has also leveraged a strong social media presence to help build brand loyalty and to drive traffic to the station's digital products and back to its core on-air newscasts."
