Vegas Station Owner in Second Cancer Battle

KSNV (Las Vegas) owner Jim Rogers says he is another battle against cancer but told station employees “whatever happens, the station will not be put up for sale.”

The Las Vegas Review Journal reports that Rogers declined to comment on the type of cancer he has or his prognosis.

He battled bladder cancer about seven years ago.

“Just say this is my second go-round with cancer,” Rogers told the paper.

“I assume I’ll come out of this all right. I did the last time,” he added.

He revealed the development to his employees at a town hall-like meeting in the KSNV newsroom.

“I think you owe your employees an explanation,” he said. “They needed to know. They needed to know for several reasons — first of all, just as a matter of knowing, and secondly, with what’s going to happen with the station.

“So I went in to say this is what I got but I can assure you that whatever happens, the station will not be put up for sale. That’s never been part of the plan and so they are rest assured that their jobs are intact,” he said.

Several KSNV employees who attended the meeting said Rogers got emotional during the half-hour address.

“He got a little choked up talking about the future of Channel 3,” said Lisa Howfield, vice president and general manager.

“Primarily, he wanted to assure everybody at the station (No. 1), he wanted to tell people what was going on with his health, then assure everyone that the station is not going anywhere, that he’s putting his resources into expanding everything that we’re doing at the station. He was just wanting the employees to feel comfortable knowing the station isn’t going anywhere.

“He’s not stepping away, he’ll work until ... who knows,” she said.

Howfield clarified that it was not a case of his bladder cancer returning.

Rogers said, “It’s debilitating, the treatment is debilitating and it’s scary. All you can do is do this: thank God I have a place to go to work every day and thank God I’m active in my community. Because I really feel sorry for those who really have to sit around and think about it all the time because there’s no fun to that.”

Despite those treatments, he said he’s continued his long tradition of arriving at the station about 6:30 a.m.

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