Stephanie Gailhard is joining KMSP, the Fox O&O in Minneapolis, as a general assignment reporter for the morning newscasts.

“Stephanie knows how to work a story and get the very best information for the viewers. She will be a great addition providing constant updates on the biggest local stories of the morning,” KMSP vice president and news director Bill Dallman said in a statement.

Most recently, Gailhard was a reporter at WINK, the CBS affiliate in Fort Myers. She has previously worked at WPEC and WPBF in West Palm Beach and WTIC in Hartford.

Cody Matz is joining KMSP in Minneapolis as weekend morning meteorologist. He begins at the Fox O&O on June 10.

Matz comes from Sioux Falls, where he was the chief meteorologist for NBC affiliate KDLT. He has also worked as a web meteorologist for the MSU Geosciences website and as an intern at KPHO in Phoenix.

“As a Chief Meteorologist in the Midwest, Cody brings experience covering severe weather and forecasting in our region to the FOX 9 Weather Team. We’re thrilled to have Cody join us on-air and look forward to the excellent presence he’s established already online and via social media,” KMSP vice president and news director Bill Dallman said in a statement.

Minneapolis FOX owned station KMSP debuted a new set this week.

The set which was designed Devlin Design Group, features a monitor array behind the anchors that shows a wide shot of the city skyline but can display any type of graphic. Newscast Studio also says the set has color changing technology and a large interview couch.

The station showed off the set on its 5:00 p.m. newscast with anchors Dawn Mitchell, Jeff Passolt and Randy Meier. “There’s a reason we gave you that nice wide shot of our studio here,” said Passolt after coming back from break. Meier added, “We’re showing off.” They then tossed to a timelapse of the set construction. You can see the video after the jump. Read more

KMSP morning anchor Jason Matheson is leaving the Minneapolis FOX affiliate for his radio show.

According the StarTribune, the convergence of Matheson and FOX not being able to reach a deal and a better time slot for his radio show prompted the move.

While working at KMSP, Matheson has been co-host of “The Jason & Alexis Show” on 107.1 FM weekdays from Noon to 3:00 p.m. for the last four years. The show is moving to the morning drive time of 5:30 to 9:00 a.m. on Monday, March 4.

Matheson, who has been at KMSP for 12 years, started with the station as executive producer of the entertainment show “The Buzz” which he now hosts.

His last day with KMSP will be Thursday, February 28.

[Bring Me The News][Minneapolis St. Paul Business Journal]

Jonathan Choe is joining KMSP, the Fox O&O in Minneapolis-St. Paul, as a general assignment reporter.

Choe begins on February 24 as a reporter for the 5, 9 and 10 p.m. newscasts. He is a former general assignment reporter at WCIA in Champaign, Ill., and has also worked as a news writer at WFLD in Chicago and WHDH in Boston. Most recently, he was an adjunct professor for Columbia College Chicago’s journalism department.

“I am eager to get started and continue my growth as a journalist. I am looking forward to building new relationships in the Twin Cities and serving the community by telling stories that matter,” Choe said in a statement.

FOX Television Stations has announced “TMZ Live,” a one hour show that takes viewers inside the TMZ newsroom, will now air on all of its FOX stations.

FOX has been slowly adding the show to its station group since March 2012.  After a test run in the Los Angeles market on KTTV, it soon expanded into Phoenix (KSAZ), Boston (WFXT) Chicago (WFLD), Dallas (KDFW), Detroit (WJBK) and Minneapolis (KMSP). Beginning next Fall, FOX will air the show on its remaining stations including New York (WNYW), Philadelphia (WTXF), Washington, D.C (WTTG), Atlanta (WAGA), Houston (KRIV), Tampa (WTVT) and Orlando (WOFL).

“The distribution roll-out of “TMZ Live” is as unconventional and unique as the show itself,” said Ken Werner, president of Warner Bros. Domestic Television Distribution. “This slow approach has translated into a strong and loyal daily audience, time period increases and younger demos.  It’s also created a demand in the markets where the series does not yet air.” Read more

Iris Perez is joining Minneapolis Fox O&O KMSP as a general assignment reporter.

Perez will report for the 9 and 10 p.m. newscasts. She will begin in Minneapolis on November 26.

“Iris is an award-winning reporter, with a dynamic personality and compelling style. Her no-nonsense reporting and ability to seek out stories that are of concern to viewers made her the ideal candidate for this position,” KMSP vice president and news director Bill Dallman said in a statement.

Perez most recently was the host of “Vital Signs” on Detroit’s public television station, DPTV. She has also worked as a reporter and writer for WBJK, the Fox O&O in Detroit.

KMSP reporter Jeff Goldberg is leaving Minneapolis for WJLA in Washington, DC.

Goldberg announced the news on Twitter yesterday, which was his last day at the Minneapolis Fox O&O. “Moving on to WJLA in DC, which is home,” he wrote. “Thank you to Fox 9 & the Twin Cities for an incredible 6 years.”

Goldberg joined KMSP in 2006. During his time at the station, he won two Emmys.

Following a poor performance by Detroit Tigers pitcher Justin Verlander in last week’s All Star Game, Minneapolis-St. Paul Fox station KMSP decided to run an extended clip of Kate Upton dancing in a bikini instead of sports highlights. Verlander and Upton are reportedly dating.

“I think you chose the right highlight,” KMSP anchor Randy Meier said, following the clip.

The video that KMSP used of Upton doing the “Cat Daddy” is from Terry Richardson.

Broadcasting & Cable reports on a new partnership between Fox Television Stations and AccuWeather that will launch this summer:

Fox said its stations “will offer their local viewers a 24/7 live streaming video weather channel provided by AccuWeather,” while jointly produced and branded content will extend across “virtually all of the stations’ media platforms,” including mobile.

“Weather is one of the most important services our stations provide to their communities and has long been a major focus for FTS,” said Ron Stitt, the group’s vice president of digital media and internet operations. Read more