NPG expands Palm Springs news force

NPG Co. recently welcomed more than 30 former KPSP-TV employees into its Gulf California Broadcast unit. The company also purchased non-licensed assets of Desert TV, including their studios and the transfer of the CBS affiliation.

The purchase and the addition of employees will allow Gulf California Broadcast to have the largest news-gathering organization in Palm Springs and will bring viewers more unique content. The new broadcast will be known as CBS Local News 2. It will be a separate and distinct brand from NPG’s existing stations and will continue Desert TV’s community programs, such as Eye on the Desert and the Community Advisory Board.

NPG’s existing Palm Springs television stations as well as radio stations KUNA-FM and KESQ-AM will move nearly 100 employees of those stations to the newly-purchased building in the next six months. The new location, in Thousand Palms, California, already has two studios and will be undergoing renovations to accommodate the combined staffs.

David Bradley, chairman and CEO of NPG Co., was happy to have the opportunity for growth in the Palm Springs market and feels the new employees will fit right in with NPG’s family-owned culture, as they are coming from a very similar structure at Desert TV.

“It’s going to be a good relationship,” Mr. Bradley said.