Dallas forecaster announces departure from station

Scott Padgett, the chief meteorologist at KTVT in Dallas/Ft. Worth, Texas, announced he’s leaving the station after 12 years.

He shared the news on LinkedIn, calling it “bittersweet.”

“I am very happy living and working here in North Texas but I have an exciting career opportunity that I’ve been working on for many years that has my time at KTVT coming to an end,” he continued.

Other than that hint that he does have a new gig lined up, few details about where he might be headed are included. The fact he mentioned living and working in North Texas could be seen as a suggestion he’s leaving the area. He also mentioned the next phase having been in progress for several years, which could suggest it’s a more prominent role, perhaps either a jump to a bigger market or network. 

None of those possibilities have been confirmed, however.

Padgett currently appears on the station’s morning newscasts, making him one of a handful of TV forecasters with the “chief” title who don’t work the weekday evening shift.

KTVT did not make an immediate announcement about his replacement. Jeff Ray currently holds the title of “senior meteorologist” and works a variety of shifts, according to his station bio. 

The station hired McKenna King in January 2025. She currently holds down the weeknight evening shift. Brittany Rainey is also part of the team. 

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Before KTVT, Padgett worked at WPLG in Miami, Florida, and KOKH in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. He was also part of Sinclair Broadcast Group’s “NewsCentral” efforts from 2002 to 2006, and worked at a series of stations in various Kentucky markets — WLEX, WPSD and WBKO — after starting out at KFXA in Iowa, in 1996, after graduating from Western Illinois University.