Natalie Cabieses has been appointed to the role of news director of Hearst Television’s local station in Des Moines, the company announced on Monday.

Cabieses succeeds Allison Smith as the news director of KCCI (Channel 8, CBS), with Smith departing the station in December. Cabieses has served in the KCCI newsroom since February of last year, when she joined as the station’s assistant news director. From 2021 to 2024, she worked as an executive producer at Hearst-owned WISN (Channel 12, ABC) in Milwaukee; before then, she was a producer at Cox Media’s WFTV (Channel 9, ABC) in Orlando and as a producer at WBBH (Channel 20, NBC) in Fort Myers.

“As a Latina woman I am incredibly humbled to be in this position to not only cover the news fairly and accurately, but also to empower young women who may be able to see themselves in my chair one day,” Cabieses said in a statement.

Cabieses reports to KCCI President and General Manager Brian Sather, who said she is “known for being able to make strong decisions, fast and keep a calm demeanor.”

“She was instrumental in developing our news and weather coverage before, during and after the Greenfield tornado,” Sather added. “Her compassion and news judgment is a big reason KCCI is Iowa’s News Leader.”