NEW YORK—Madhavi Tadikonda has joined E.W. Scripps as senior director of network sales, tasked with spearheading advertising sales for its portfolio of networks across all platforms and brands.

A 25-year media veteran, she most recently was executive director and head of investment at global media agency EssenceMediacom, where she oversaw media investment and strategy partnerships with Coca-Cola, Adidas, Target, Airbnb, JPMorgan Chase, Indeed, Bayer, Ally Bank, Nationwide and American Airlines, Scripps said.

“Madhavi brings an outstanding reputation and a proven track record from the agency side, where she built and led investment teams, negotiated high-value partnerships and delivered growth for many of the world’s most recognizable brands,” said Tony Song, head of network and advanced media sales at Scripps, to whom Tadikonda will report. “Her extensive experience and deep understanding of the media landscape make her a valuable addition to Scripps’ sales organization. We could not be more thrilled to have her on board.”

Tadikonda, who will be nased in New York, has negotiated and overseen traditional and media investments for more than 100 brands across all platforms, including linear, CTV, sports, streaming and social, Scripps said. Prior to EssenceMediacom, she held senior roles at Havas Media Group and Canvas Worldwide. She started her career at Bates Worldwide and McCann Erickson, moving on to management positions with The Martin Agency and Initative, Scripps said.

“Scripps’ diverse portfolio, commitment to innovation and being a leader in women’s sports create incredible opportunities to deliver value for marketing partners,” Tadikonda said. “I look forward to leveraging my experience to help drive growth and elevate the company’s position in the marketplace.”

A graduate of the University of Miami, Tadikonda was recognized as U.S. Campaign’s Media Buyer of the Year in 2021, as a member of The Drum’s 2020 Who’s Who in Marketing and as a 4A’s Vanguard executive sponsor.

E.W. Scripps has tapped Amira Lewally, a veteran cable TV programmer, as senior director of original programming.

Lewally will oversee all original content development for the broadcast group’s portfolio of national networks, including Ion, Bounce, Grit, Laff and Ion Mystery, and for its local TV stations from concept to execution, Scripps said. She’ll also lead efforts to align creative talent with network brand strategies, foster audience engagement and deliver compelling programming for viewers nationwide, the company said.

Lewally will be based in Washington, D.C.

“As Scripps advances its next chapter of original programming, Amira’s proven track record of cross-platform storytelling and creative vision, producing content across multiple genres and for different audiences, make her the right leader for this role,” said Scripps senior vice president of programming Adam Harman, to whom Lewally will report. “Amira’s history of creating programming with strong viewer affinity will enhance the value of content across our full portfolio and in what we deliver to our partners.”

Lewally most recently was a supervising producer at A+E Networks, managing more than 300 hours of live programming, original series and specials for cable network A&E. Her credits include “60 Days In,” “The Judd Family: Truth Be Told” and the “Secrets of…” franchise. Her work has been featured at such major festivals as the Tribeca Film Festival, the American Black Film Festival and the Martha’s Vineyard Film Festival, Scripps said. She has been nominated for the Critics Choice Awards, the NAACP Image Awards and the IDA Documentary Awards.

Lewally also co-created, produced and co-hosted the Lifetime podcast “The Table Is Ours.”

“Scripps’ diverse portfolio opens up incredible opportunities to innovate and tell stories that truly resonate,” Lewally said. “I’m excited to explore new ways to create compelling content, deepen our connection with viewers, and build on the company’s legacy of must-watch original programming that serves and reflects our communities.”

Lewally has a master’s degree in writing and producing for television from Long Island University and a bachelor’s in business with a minor in film from Baylor University. She was recognized as Baylor’s alumna of the year in 2022 and has been named to the Forbes 30 Under 30: Hollywood & Entertainment list and to Cablefax’s Thrivers Under 30.

CINCINNATI—The E.W. Scripps Co. has issued a statement saying that its board of directors has unanimously decided to reject an unsolicited proposal from Sinclair to acquire the company.

In November filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Sinclair reported that it had acquired a 9.9% stake in Scripps and was proposing to acquire the Cincinnati-based station group for about $7 per share in a mix of cash and stock.

On Nov. 26, Scripps responded with a limited-duration shareholder rights plan, a so-called poison pill that is often used to discourage takeovers.

On Dec. 16, the station group reported that after a “careful review and evaluation in consultation with its financial and legal advisors, that Sinclair’s offer is not in the best interests of the company and its shareholders.”

Kim Williams, the chair of Scripps’ board, said: “The board is committed to acting in the best interests of all Scripps shareholders as well as the company’s employees and the many communities and audiences it serves across the United States. After careful consideration, Scripps’ board determined that Sinclair’s unsolicited acquisition proposal is not in the best interests of Scripps and its shareholders. The board nonetheless remains open to evaluating opportunities to enhance shareholder value and will continue to consider any course of action, including any acquisition proposal, that is in the best interest of all shareholders.”

Sinclair issued a statement in response: “We are disappointed that despite Scripps encouraging Sinclair to make a proposal, Scripps’ board rejected the proposal without engaging. Our proposal was based on previous discussions and was responsive to concerns about Scripps’ communities, employees and shareholders. It delivers significant strategic and financial benefits for both companies and all shareholders, and represents a substantial premium over both Scripps’ unaffected and current share price. We call on Scripps to engage with us regarding our proposal. We believe Scripps’ shareholders deserve a full and fair evaluation of this opportunity.”

Scripps said Morgan Stanley & Co. is acting as its financial adviser and Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP as its legal adviser.

CINCINNATI—E.W. Scripps has issued a statement responding to news that Sinclair has acquired about 8.2% of the outstanding class A (nonvoting) shares in the company.

Sinclair has also disclosed that it has been talking to Scripps about a possible deal for several months.

Scripps’ shares spiked more than 40% on Nov. 17 after Sinclair disclosed the stake in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. They were trading at $4.34 on Tuesday at 11:15 a.m. ET, up from $3.06 on Friday, Nov. 14, at 4 p.m. ET.

In a statement, Scripps stressed that its “board of directors and management are focused on driving value for all of the company’s shareholders through the continued execution of its strategic plan. The board and management are aligned on doing only what is in the best interest of all of the company’s shareholders as well as its employees and the many communities and audiences it serves across the United States. The company’s board has and will continue to evaluate any transactions and other alternatives that would enhance the value of the company and would be in the best interest of all company shareholders.”

However, the company’s response also said “the board will take all steps appropriate to protect the company and the company’s shareholders from the opportunistic actions of Sinclair or anyone else.”

Scripps operates a portfolio of more than 60 stations in 40-plus markets. It also owns Scripps News, Court TV, Ion, Bounce, Grit, Ion Mystery, Ion Plus and Laff.

Sinclair acquired its 8.2% stake for about $15.6 million. Those shares are however non-voting shares. The Scripps family controls about 93% of the voting shares, according to Seeking Alpha.

The four broadcast groups behind ATSC 3.0-based datacasting company EdgeBeam Wireless this week named Conrad Clemson to serve as its CEO.

Clemson takes the reins of the new joint venture company having led EditShare as CEO. Prior to EditShare, he founded and was CEO of BNI Video, which was acquired by Cisco Systems in 2011. At Cisco, he held senior leadership positions.

E.W. Scripps, Gray Media, Nexstar Media Group and Sinclair, which formed the joint venture, are optimistic about EdgeBeam’s prospects. The new company will leverage a portion of the broadcasters’ spectrum to deliver data via an ATSC 3.0, one-to-many, over-the-air broadcast network.

Ultimately, datacasting via 3.0 could generate an entirely new revenue stream for the partners that boosts earnings and the value of their TV spectrum.

In this interview, the new EdgeBeam CEO discusses his priorities, when the company expects to begin generating revenue, its sales strategy, the competitive landscape and more. (An edited transcript follows.)

TV Tech: What are your top priorities as you take the reins at EdgeBeam Wireless?

Conrad Clemson: The first thing anybody does walking in is assess what the situation is. I'm a technologist by background, so I think of things oftentimes in a techie way.

As I was going through the process of getting to know the EdgeBeam team, I laid out the concepts of running the company in two-week sprints and then I laid out a six-month path.

The key place to start is really assessing where we are. As we come out with that assessment, the No. 2 thing is going out and building the team.

What I found with companies is that you really have three important elements that must come together: the team, the technology and the market.

We’ve got a great market out there. Everybody needs data. Technology, we understand what it is. We’re going to have to do some work to make sure we’re ready to commercialize it.

Then the real key is going out, understanding the team we have in place and what we’re going to do to supplement that to create the kind of team that’s going to build a multi-$100 million or billion-dollar company.

TVT: When do you think you will have your executive and sales teams in place?

CC: My hope is within three months, we'll have an executive team and the sales team in place.

We really need to understand where in the commercialization phase we are to understand how much we are looking at order-driving, execution-oriented sales teams vs. kind of the Marines storming the beach—business-development resources—that help us establish that initial beachhead.

My feeling is that early on, we're going to be doing more business development than sales as we’re out there establishing the market, establishing who EdgeBeam is and then driving forward.

But make no mistake about it. The most important thing we want to do is to commercialize the technology, and that will drive on the sales team.

This is going to be a very technically oriented sale to begin with. That means you have both a sales organization, but also the sales engineers that go with that. That’s a critical piece as well.

The other thing that will be very important for us to do is to really validate and build two key elements: our core culture and our senior leadership team. Then we can develop our strategy.

With those three pieces in place, it will be time to turn the crank and get the job done.

TVT: It’s a frequent refrain in the TV industry that some younger folks don’t recognize television is transmitted over the air. Others might have a vague understanding, but think of it as something grandma watches. I wonder if that extends into the boardrooms of your potential clients. If so, how do you change those perceptions and demonstrate 3.0 datacasting is a viable alternative to other wireless services?

CC: One of the things that really attracted me to EdgeBeam is there are a lot of wireless service providers out there and the sales program always goes the same way: “Hey, I’m faster; I’m cheaper and I have more coverage than the other guy.”

This is the first time in a long time that I think a company has a chance to come out and say, “We have something different to offer.”

We're not here to surf the web. We’re here because we have a differentiated wireless offering. If that offering aligns with the kinds of services you're trying to put out into the marketplace, we can just do it better.

We have unique strengths. The first thing is this is a network that is naturally a broadcast network, a point-to-multipoint network. What are the applications for one-to-many? There are a lot of those.

There are easy ones like [streaming offload for] high-value live events, be they sports, news or otherwise.

There’s downloading software to stuff and by the way, in the case of interesting things like automobiles, there’s a ton of downloads. Those are great point-to-multipoint applications. But then you look and ask what about stock tickers? What about betting tickers?

Then there’s the core strength of having a very powerful transmitter. If you’re in the middle of a city with buildings and parking garages, we are unique in our ability to put our signal through to your endpoint.

If you’re offering a 5G signal, it’s really good and it’s really fast, but it ain’t going to go through concrete.

Then there’s timing, which goes to positioning opportunities. We look at those three things that make us different from the other guys.

We can come and do something that, quite frankly, is better—not just a little bit of a minor difference [compared to wireless companies’ offerings].

TVT: I think the thing most people in this industry want to know is when EdgeBeam will earn its first 3.0-based datacasting dollar.

CC: Let me be like a classic entrepreneur. When are you going to sell one? When are you going to sell 100 and when are you going to sell a million?

I think the company remains hopeful that between now and the end of the year, we’ll sell one.

We don’t light up $10 million, or $100 million, or pick a number of revenue. That’s not the plan. I think we want our objective to be as quick as possible.

And don't hold me to December. It might be January. The point is in the near term, we should see first customer revenue.

How that grows is both driven by internal constraints—our ability to invest and go get that revenue—and the external constraints of EdgeBeam as a company, looking back to our spectrum granters and showing them we can do something meaningful with this spectrum. We want to earn the right to have more spectrum.

TVT: A few months ago, the National Association of Broadcasters petitioned the Federal Communications Commission to move forward on a plan to sunset ATSC 1.0. Will EdgeBeam remain viable if there's no movement on that sunset? If the sunset is established, what will that do for EdgeBeam’s business?

CC: We're going to make sure we’re ready to go, and we’ve got a great service. We know we can see some early wins, but we're going to be really thoughtful about not stepping on the gas ahead of where the real revenue—revenue with a capital R—is coming from.

TVT: Does that mean that if the industry remains stuck in the dual-standard DTV world, that you’ll be able to make a go of it with the 7 to 8 Megabits per second that are available today for 3.0 datacasting in transition markets?

CC: Absolutely. But we need to challenge ourselves with how we get creative. If the demand for our services is outstripping the capacity to provide them, that’s an opportunity for us to be smart technologists and go figure it out.

We’ll take the highest-value pieces and put them on the limited bandwidth that we have, and we will figure out how to go create some more bandwidth and be good engineers, innovators and entrepreneurs to do that.

TVT: When EdgeBeam was announced, the joint partner companies said there would be an opportunity for other broadcasters to profit from allocating some spectrum for EdgeBeam datacasting. Do you have any other details about how that will work or what it will look like?

CC: So, day one was Monday. It’s a little early to be having conversations with potential other partners.

Having said that, we intend to be an open environment. Our assumption is as we start to show success other broadcasters will look around and want to be a part of that.

I'll be excited to see that, but I would step back and say the first thing we have to prove is that the dog will eat the dog food. That will create the energy and the excitement in other broadcasters to want to be a part of this, too.

TVT: At the risk of mixing metaphors, what low-hanging fruit are you targeting to demonstrate the dog food is tasty?

CC: We’re seeing a lot of traction in e-GPS [enhanced GPS], and I think the IoT [Internet of Things] market is ripe. I think those are all markets we can start exploiting quickly with fast turnarounds.

But some of the markets we are going to attack are multiyear engagements. It’s time to get those started, as well, with a clear understanding that we need to balance the risk-reward [ratio] and make sure that as a small company we’re focusing our limited resources in the right place.

TVT: Do you have any idea about how your rates will stack up against your wireless competitors?

CC: Good question. And to be honest with you, I don’t know the answer to that at the moment.

Having said that, I think one of the things that we can really strive for is to provide very deterministic costs for customers out there trying to bring those things [their data] onto our network.

As a young company coming into this environment, I think we have the opportunity to look at what our end customers are trying to accomplish and create pricing models that line up with that and have a great advantage.

The question for our end clients is, what kind of an economic value proposition can we bring to them? One in which they look at us and say, “this is a great opportunity,” because they know exactly what it is going to cost, independent of how many people watch it [or how many end points receive the datacast].

TVT: Among the four joint venture partners, two different broadcast core network solutions were in use as three of the four deployed their previous iterations of 3.0-based datacasting. I was told in previous interviews that the one chosen for EdgeBeam would be up to the new CEO. What have you chosen?

CC: The easy answer would be great. That would be there’s a single one that everybody has that’s fully deployed, and we only have to operate with one element out there.

The last time I checked, there were at least two of these things that were deployed out in the network. If you look into an IP network and ask whose routers are being used, well, they use multiple people’s routers.

When you’re building a mobile network, whose packet core gets used? There are four or five of them out there. So, I wouldn't want to preclude [any of them] and say: “The answer has to be A, or B or A and B.”

We’re going to have to look and see what's in there and what has the capabilities needed. My guess is, in all likelihood, we’ll have to go through a process of both rationalizing that and understanding what makes sense and what we should do out there. Then, we’ll make that decision over time.

TVT: Is there anything else you’d like to share about EdgeBeam?

CC: A couple of things. First, what a great time it is to be standing up a company. I’ve been working with the teams here for a couple of months, and I will tell you this is a world-class set of companies and investors to be working with.

The other thing is this is ground zero. This is the fourth company I’ve been a part of in a very early stage of growth and development.

I think this is a really interesting time in the industry to start taking advantage of AI tools that are coming online. Not stuff that we’re building into the product, but rather AI technologies and new capabilities that will help us as we think about the internal workings of the company in a native-AI fashion.

More information about EdgeBeam Wireless is available on the company’s website.

NEW YORK—The Broadcasters Foundation of America said that Scripps Sports President Brian Lawlor will receive its 2025 Golden Mic Award, presented at the group’s annual black-tie fundraiser at the Plaza Hotel here on March 10.

Lawlor has been president of Scripps Sports since December of 2022, spearheading E.W. Scripps Co.’s ambitious addition of national and local live sports content to its Ion Media network and its local stations. Before that, Lawlor led the Scripps Local Media division for 14 years, a period of rapid growth that saw the station group expand from 10 to 61 local TV stations.

The Broadcasters Foundation Golden Mic Award is presented annually to an individual for their excellence in and commitment to broadcasting, and their ongoing service to the community at large. The BFOA is the only charity devoted exclusively to helping broadcasters in need from illness or tragedy.

“I am honored at this recognition from the Broadcasters Foundation, a charity that brings much-needed help to our colleagues,” Lawlor said. “I have been a supporter of the Foundation and serve on their Board, and I know first-hand the heartbreaking stories of those who we help.”

Lawlor was named B+C Broadcaster of the Year in 2011, as well as one of the “80 Most Influential People in Television.” He was named “Broadcast Television’s Best Leader” by Radio * Television Business Report. He was the driving force behind Scripps’ launches of such national series as “Right This Minute” and “The List.”

He serves on the boards of the Broadcasters Foundation and the National Association of Broadcasters Leadership Foundation.

“Brian is a leader in broadcasting, who guided Scripps to expand their portfolio of stations and become one of the largest television groups in America,” BOFA chairman Scott Herman said. “His hard work at advancing the mission of the Broadcasters Foundation, as well as his contributions to the television industry, makes him a perfect candidate to receive the Golden Mic Award.”

Added foundation President Tim McCarthy: “Brian is a highly respected member of the television broadcasting community and a staunch supporter of the Broadcasters Foundation. We are delighted to bestow on him this well-deserved honor.”

For more information about the Broadcasters Foundation, including how to apply for aid or make a donation, visit broadcastersfoundation.org, or contact (212) 373-8250 or info@thebfoa.org.

CINCINNATI—The E.W. Scripps Co. has promoted veteran local television leader Lyn Plantinga to senior vice president of local media, effective immediately. In this role, Plantinga will lead local media operations, overseeing Scripps’ team of regional vice presidents.

Plantinga will also continue to serve as general manager for WTVF, Nashville, Tennessee’s CBS-affiliated local television station owned by Scripps.

She has served as regional vice president and general manager for the last year, overseeing Scripps’ local television stations in Nashville, Lexington, Cleveland, Buffalo and Cincinnati.

Plantinga will report to Dean Littleton, who was promoted to executive vice president of media broadcast operations last month.

“Lyn is a seasoned local media leader, committed to operational excellence, strong financial performance and leading teams to deliver quality, objective journalism,” Littleton said. “This new role will allow her to work closely with all of Scripps’ local stations, our employees and the communities Scripps serves.”

Plantinga got her start in broadcast television as an intern at WTVF more than 30 years ago. She held a number of leadership roles at the station—including assistant news director, national sales manager and station manager—before being named the station’s vice president and general manager in 2015.

WTVF, known on-air as NewsChannel 5, is Nashville’s top-rated station in every local daypart and has generated strong connections in the community, Scripps said. For example, Plantinga’s team has raised money to give more than 40,000 books to children in Title One low-income schools in the area. In addition, after reporting on medical costs and their impact, the station purchased and eliminated more than $1.8 million in medical debt for its neighbors.

NewsChannel 5’s “Safe Places” initiative also led the way for new storm shelters in 48 Middle Tennessee counties.

Under her leadership, WTVF has been honored with the most prestigious awards in journalism, including national Peabody Awards; Alfred I. duPont-Columbia University awards; the National Headliner Award; the National Edward R. Murrow Award; and several regional Murrow and Emmy awards.

Plantinga serves on the boards of the Scripps Howard Fund and the General Hospital Foundation, where she is past board chair. She is past board president of the Tennessee Association of Broadcasters, past news committee chair of the CBS Affiliates Board and has held board leadership positions with Second Harvest Food Bank, Adventure Science Center and Leadership Nashville. She holds a bachelor’s degree from Vanderbilt University.

Four of the country’s largest station groups have formed a joint venture to deliver wireless data via ATSC 3.0 transmission for businesses and industries throughout the nation.

The E.W. Scripps Co., Gray Media, Nexstar Media Group and Sinclair have formed EdgeBeam Wireless to provide expansive, reliable and secure data delivery services. Leveraging the one-to-many nature of broadcasting and ATSC 3.0’s inherent internet protocol-based transport, the new venture is taking aim at industries that need to send data to multiple customers, often in real time, EdgeBeam Wireless said.

“The launch of EdgeBeam Wireless is the culmination of many years of technological advancement, market development and, importantly, recognition by government regulators of the expanded services local broadcasters can provide through ATSC 3.0 technology,” Scripps president and CEO Adam Symson said. “Scripps is pleased to join forces with its peer companies to create not just a new company but a marketplace that will allow us to more deeply serve our local communities while providing a wide variety of industries with efficient data-transmission services nationwide.”

Wireless data delivery via 3.0 offers data customers a notably cost-effective solution that complements and enhances current wireless solutions. EdgeBeam will be able to deliver data across the country to any civilian, military or industrial device with an ATSC 3.0 receiver, such as cars and trucks, drones, marine vessels, phones, tablets or television sets, it said.

“With adoption of ATSC 3.0 receivers in television sets continuing to increase with more models available and sets sold every year, Gray Media is eager to join EdgeBeam Wireless to expand the user base for our broadcast signals to a new category of businesses and to spur the wider deployment of receiver chips in an expanded range of handheld units and vehicles,” Gray Media Executive Chairman and CEO Hilton Howell said.

In automotive applications, EdgeBeam could deliver software updates, infotainment, precision navigation and safety enhancements. An internal estimate pegs the annual value of the addressable market for automotive connectivity services as $3.7 billion, EdgeBeam said.

Providing reliable wireless data transport in content delivery network applications, EdgeBeam can improve the experience of customers that stream content without buffering or lag, especially during high-profile live events with large audiences like sports events. The total addressable market for CDN services is estimated at up to $3.65 billion per year, it said.

In enhanced GPS applications, 3.0 can improve location information accuracy from meters today to a few centimeters. EdgeBeam estimates the addressable market for enhanced GPS services at $220 million per year, it said.

“Our long-held belief is that the transmission of high-speed data via our broadcast infrastructure represents a new way forward for the broadcast industry and a new stream of potentially significant revenue,” Nexstar Chairman and CEO Perry Sook said. “Nexstar is pleased that these four broadcast groups have come together to create this important new venture.”

By bringing together the spectrum footprints of Scripps, Gray, Nexstar and Sinclair, EdgeBeam achieves coverage no broadcaster could on its own, bringing the possibility of nationwide 3.0 coverage for data delivery within grasp, it said.

EdgeBeam anticipates partnering with other broadcasters for additional capacity to offer truly nationwide services. A national ATSC 3.0 footprint would enable broadcasters to provide a complementary backup to the existing GPS system, offering a reliable failover in the event GPS satellites experienced interference and helping to secure the U.S. economy, EdgeBeam said.

“This is a groundbreaking development for the broadcast industry,” said Sinclair president and CEO Chris Ripley. “We’re thrilled to partner with other leaders in our industry to chart a new path forward and develop new revenue opportunities. EdgeBeam Wireless will have benefits for the entire wireless ecosystem, helping to relieve congestion while also offering competitive pricing for wide-area data distribution.”

Financial details of the joint venture were not disclosed.

More information is available on the Scripps, Gray Media, Nexstar and Sinclair websites.

CINCINNATI—The E.W. Scripps Company has named Robin Davis as its senior vice president, chief distribution officer. 

In the new role, she oversees the team responsible for managing distribution across numerous platforms, including cable, satellite and virtual carriers as well as multicast spectrum. Davis has been serving as the interim head of distribution since February.

Davis has been with Scripps since 2005, holding a variety of strategy and finance leadership positions. Her most recent role was senior vice president for strategy, planning and development, where she was responsible for implementing growth strategies across the business as well as overseeing program management and change management. She also has led corporate development for Scripps.

"Robin is an outstanding media executive with all of the skills to lead our distribution strategy," said Adam Symson, Scripps president and CEO. "Her thorough grasp of our business, the evolving television marketplace and the opportunities we see ahead give me great confidence that she will maximize the value of our distribution platforms."

Davis began her Scripps career as controller for the former newspaper division, then became vice president of finance and development for the division before moving into strategy and corporate development.

Her work leading mergers and acquisitions helped to grow Scripps' local television station portfolio from 10 stations in nine markets in 2010 to its current size of more than 60 stations in 40+ markets. She also helped lead the acquisitions of Newsy in 2014, Journal Communications in 2015, Katz Networks in 2017 and ION in 2021. Following the ION acquisition, she helped establish the Scripps Networks division as its vice president of strategy, planning and development.  

Before joining Scripps, Davis was vice president and CFO of Pulitzer Newspapers, Inc., and manager of financial reporting for Sigma-Aldrich Corporation. She began her career at Deloitte.

She holds a bachelor's degree in business administration from Saint Louis University and is a certified public accountant. She is a past board member of the Inland Press Association, the Inland Press Foundation, the International FOP Association, the Scripps Howard Foundation, 4C for Children and Pioneer News Group. 

Davis serves on the Selection Advisory Council of GreenLight Fund Cincinnati and was recently elected to serve as a director of Highlights for Children, a mission-driven company focused on helping children become their best selves.

WASHINGTON—Several broadcast station groups have formed an advocacy to invest and promote the advancement of RUN3TV, a software suite for ATSC 3.0 that takes advantage of the format’s IP architecture to offer a wide range of advanced options, including DVR-type features as well as emergency alerts and ad personalization. 

The companies—Gray Television, Sinclair Broadcast Group, Hearst Television, Tegna and The E.W. Scripps Company—are members of Pearl TV, a consortium of broadcasters, manufacturers and NGOs that was formed at the dawn of the ATSC 3.0 transition when it launched six years ago and have been among the most proactive station groups in deploying and promoting ATSC 3.0. Specific financial terms of the investment were not disclosed. 

ATSC 3.0 has been launched by more than 91 stations in 40 markets, bringing the advanced broadcast standard to within reach of more than 75% of U.S. households. Pearl says it expects that number to grow to more than 200 stations in 53 markets by the end of 2024.

The broadcast group investors will lead the funding to accelerate the commercial launch of the ATSC 3.0 Framework Authority (A3FA), the driving force behind the RUN3TV platform. Pearl TV says it expects additional broadcast groups to become involved in the future. Progress Partners is the exclusive financial adviser for Pearl TV and A3FA initiative.

Pearl TV says the move unites broadcasters to offer new services and unlock the full potential of the convergence of broadcast and broadband that ATSC 3.0 enables.  The effort provides a common method for viewers to take advantage of NextGen TV broadcasting by standardizing broadcast application capabilities across manufacturers to provide interactive services and the convergence of over-the-air with over-the-top (broadcast + broadband) connectivity. 

For viewers, RUN3TV introduces an innovative suite of features designed to elevate the NEXTGEN TV experience, enabling functionalities like “Start Over” and advanced emergency alerts for broadcaster’s applications. This platform not only enriches the viewing experience with enhanced access to local news, weather, and on-demand content including VOD and streaming services but also provides viewers with immediate access to essential information and their favorite entertainment. With RUN3TV, viewers benefit from a more interactive, engaging, and modern viewing experience.

For broadcasters, RUN3TV makes it easy to integrate essential and advanced features across various platforms, while also allowing for the customization of unique services and content. This platform enhances broadcasters' ability to gather detailed viewership data, offering insights that help tailor content directly to viewer preferences, according to Pearl TV. With RUN3TV, broadcasters can not only provide seamless access to applications like “Start Over” and advanced emergency alerts but also significantly improve content discovery and viewer engagement.

"Our investment in RUN3TV and ATSC 3.0 is a strategic endeavor for local broadcasters like Gray, bringing additional, measurable value to local stations by providing more choices for our viewers.  RUN3TV improves over the air viewership measurement, but it also gives our viewers more options at the touch of a button to engage deeper with their local stations,” said Pat LaPlatney, CEO of Gray Television.

"By integrating our applications into the RUN3TV platform, we're committed to uniting the industry toward enriching the viewer experience, including offering more interactive services and essential public services like emergency alerts," stated Chris Ripley, CEO of Sinclair Broadcast Group.

Also critical to this effort is the collaboration with media measurement companies, including Nielsen and Comscore, Pearl said. Nielsen and Pearl TV have worked closely since 2018 and Nielsen watermarking success was confirmed during early ATSC 3.0 transmission trials. More recently, Pearl TV and Nielsen have further engaged as the NextGen TV rollout has now reached 75% of U.S. TV households.

“Nielsen is pleased to evolve our longstanding relationship with Pearl TV as we jointly explore the use of OTA ‘big data’ in our local TV measurement. OTA households have been a critical element of our local TV service for decades, and this latest development around RUN3TV is an exciting step in potentially being able to harness the power of OTA broadcasting data sources, which will only enhance our local TV measurement,” said Paul LeFort, Managing Director of Nielsen’s Local TV business.

Pearl TV engaged Comscore in 2018 to draw from Comscore’s long-term expertise with ‘big data’ as an industry leader validating, aggregating and providing solutions from return path data from virtually every Multichannel Video Programming Distributor (MVPD) in the ecosystem, the group said.  Comscore partnered with Pearl TV on the ATSC 3.0 trials and now brings more than two decades of expertise to the new RUN3TV platform.

"Our partnership aims to enhance audience measurement precision with big data capabilities for over-the-air, contributing to the industry's growth and innovation. Comscore eagerly anticipates the rollout of RUN3TV by broadcasters as it will allow enhanced return path data capabilities increasing the customer satisfaction and value of measurement," commented Brian Pugh, Chief Information Officer, Comscore.

WASHINGTON, D.C.—This year’s fourth annual National News Literacy Week, from Jan. 23-27, will explore the public’s declining trust in the news media and encourage news consumers to stop the flood of misinformation by learning how to identify trustworthy news. 

The week, which includes events and resources that will explore the complex issues relating to declining trust in national news media, will highlight successful efforts to help rebuild credibility. The National News Literacy Week is being co-presented by the News Literacy Project and The E.W. Scripps Company

In the runup to the event, the backers cited the Edelman Trust Barometer, which shows that faith in the media is falling across the globe, and particularly in the United States. Only 39% of American adults said they trust the media in 2022, down six points from 2021. At the same time, concern about false and misleading information is at an all-time high. This year’s news literacy event tackles these challenges with free tips, tools and conversations, both online and in-person, the News Literacy Project and Scripps said. 

“The American public is struggling to make sense of the crush of news and information they are confronted with daily, as misinformation surges on social media and local news outlets shrink,” said Charles Salter, president and CEO of NLP. “News literacy skills help media consumers understand what makes news trustworthy, and National News Literacy Week will help ensure that more people can confidently navigate the news.”

To help bolster public trust in the news, this year’s theme will examine past missteps made by newsroom decision makers and help demystify how the news gets made at credible outlets.

“A healthy democracy depends on an informed and educated citizenry and a trustworthy journalism industry,” said Adam Symson, president and CEO of Scripps. “For this year’s National News Literacy Week, we’re shining a light on the news gathering and reporting process to further enhance openness and transparency with our local and national news audiences across the country.”

Two of this year’s events will be livestreamed and in-person:

• We regret the error: Public trust and media accountability: 6 p.m. ET on Monday, Jan. 23, at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. National newsroom leaders from the Washington Post, NPR, Axios, Scripps and more discuss the lessons they’ve learned from past mistakes – editorial, business, staffing and otherwise.
• Trust issues: How Chicago news outlets build credibility in their communities: 6 p.m. ET on Tuesday, Jan. 24, at the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University in Evanston, IL. Innovative journalists from the Chicago Sun-Times, Block Club, City Bureau and Northwestern will explain how they are earning trust by involving their audiences in the editorial process.

For educators, NLP and NBCUniversal News Group will host on Jan. 27 a virtual NewsLitCamp, a professional learning experience that connects teachers with practicing journalists. Sessions are designed to help educators build news literacy expertise they can bring back to their classrooms.

Other livestreamed discussions will include participants from the American Psychological Association, KQED, San Francisco’s NPR-member station; Teens for Press Freedom, a national youth-led organization; EduColor, an educator advocacy group that supports communities of color; and misinformation experts from NLP. 

Visit here for a full listing of events, participants and supporting organizations.

CINCINNATI—The E.W. Scripps Company (NASDAQ: SSP) has appointed Dave German vice president and general manager for KXXV/KHRD, the Scripps ABC affiliates in the Waco/Temple/Bryan, Texas, market, effective Monday, June 20.

German has been vice president and general manager for KMTV, the Scripps CBS affiliate in Omaha, Nebraska, since October. Prior to KMTV, German served as station manager of KPEJ in Odessa, Texas, and before that the general manager of an eight-station cluster in Anchorage, Alaska. He also spent several years in ascending positions at WJCL/WTGS in Savannah, Georgia.

“Dave is an outstanding leader and has consistently proven he can increase revenue and improve news coverage and station culture,” Scripps Local Media president Brian Lawlor said. “His experience leading multiple stations at once will help drive KXXV/KRHD’s success.”

German has more than 30 years of experience as a broadcast manager in every department of a television station, including sales, news and production. German is a native of Savannah, where he began his broadcasting career in the engineering department.

“I look forward to returning to Texas and working with the great teams at KXXV and KRHD,” said German. “Together, we will deepen our commitment to quality journalism and community involvement in the Central Texas and Brazos Valley region.”

German graduated from Georgia Southern University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Communication Arts/Broadcast Production. He is chairman of the Broadcast Advisory Board at Georgia Southern University and has served as a member of the Bryan County (Georgia) Chamber Executive Committee.

German replaces Andrés Chapparo, who was named vice president and general manager at Scripps’ WSFL in Miami, Florida.

CINCINNATI—The E.W. Scripps Co. has promoted Marcus Riley to senior director of content strategy and inclusive journalism for the Local Media division, a new role that will help all Scripps television stations better connect with their audiences.

Since 2019, Riley has served as senior director of content strategy for the Scripps Local Media’s northern region. He will continue to work with stations in that region on content strategy.

“As we continue to place more emphasis on inclusive journalism and representing all sectors of our audience in our newsrooms, having someone who is devoted to working closely with that effort is increasingly important,” said Sean McLaughlin, vice president of news for Local Media.

Scripps has been conducting field research to learn how to be more inclusive in its news coverage and connect better with the people who live in its communities.

McLaughlin said Riley will work with all Scripps local news teams to implement the company’s research findings, developing best practices and expertise.

“Content strategy is about more than how to cover news,” Riley said. “It’s about how to engage with a community and connect on new and important levels so we’re reflecting our audiences—how they look and how they feel.” He said both he and Scripps are committed to getting better at that.

CINCINNATI—E.W. Scripps has announced it is teaming up with Amazon Advertising to provide OTT ads to local businesses. Specifically, Scripps’ Octane OTT sales team will be working with Amazon Advertising.

Octane OTT is a platform for local advertisers to reach cord-cutting audiences across premium OTT video brands and services.

Together, Octane OTT and Amazon Advertising will sell Amazon OTT inventory across IMDb TV, Twitch, network and broadcaster apps and Amazon’s News apps to local businesses.

“Scripps’ collaboration with Amazon Advertising underscores our commitment to help local advertisers engage hard-to-reach consumers and extend the value of their media investment,” said Missy Evenson, vice president of sales for Scripps’ Local Media. “As television advertisers look for ways to reach cord-cutter and cord-never audiences, incremental reach becomes key to any campaign’s success. This initiative is consistent with our commitment to deliver the highest quality brand-safe inventory to our customers while helping them engage these essential audiences.”

For more information, visit www.scripps.com.  

CINCINNATI—E.W. Scripps has announced plans to take Newsy, its OTT news network, over the air, setting an Oct. 1 launch of an OTA Newsy network. According to Scripps, this will make Newsy the only American news TV network with ubiquitous OTT and OTA distribution.

The decision is designed to serve what Scripps calls “the growing OTA market of cord-cutting self-bundlers.” As of its launch, Newsy will be available over the air to at least 80% of U.S. TV homes, carried primarily by Scripps-owned ION stations and select Scripps local TV stations and those of other station groups, Scripps said.

“As TV viewers ‘self-bundle’ by combining free television with subscription video-on-demand services, Newsy will build on its success in OTT by joining the other Scripps Networks in the over-the-air marketplace to bring these viewers high-quality, free news programming,” said Lisa Knutson, Scripps Network president.

Newsy will be headquartered in Atlanta, with nearly a dozen bureaus across the country, including in Washington, D.C., Chicago, Denver and Phoenix. It will continue to use resources from Scripps Washington Bureau and Scripps’ local TV stations.

Kate O’Brian will serve as Newsy’s head of news.

For more information, visit www.scripps.com.  

CINCINNATI—Rich Boehne has announced he will step down as chair of the board of directors of The E.W. Scripps Co. and retire from the board when his term expires on May 3, 2021. Kim Williams will become chair of the board, effective the same date.

Adam Symson, Scripps president and CEO, said in a press statement that Boehne has had a hand in driving much of the company’s evolution and value creation over decades. “Rich has left a lasting imprint on our businesses and culture, from his belief in the journalist’s role in bringing light to the world’s injustice to the entrepreneurial mindset he instilled in his team and that remains core to who we are today. Rich’s leadership for over 30 years has been invaluable to our company’s success, and we wish him well as he steps away to pursue other interests and opportunities.”

A director for 13 years and chairman of the board for eight, Boehne served as Scripps’ president and CEO from 2008 to 2017.

“I’m pleased to complete my service to Scripps at a time when opportunities abound for the enterprise under the strong stewardship of CEO Adam Symson and soon-to-be board chair Kim Williams,” said Boehne.

Williams has served as a director of the board since 2008 and the board’s independent lead director—elected by public, Class A shareholders—since 2018.

“Since she joined the Scripps board, Kim has contributed to the company in so many ways, through her wealth of board experience, deep financial expertise and an innate sense of corporate stewardship – all of which has helped Scripps continue to capitalize on the changing media landscape,” said Symson. “I look forward to her leadership as we set our course as a full-scale television company.”

CINCINNATI—A number of E.W. Scripps Company multicast networks are set to move over to Ion stations. Per Scripps, Bounce, Court TV, Court TV Mystery, Gritt and Laff networks will be carried on Ion stations starting on March 1; rolling transition will continue as those networks’ affiliation agreements expire over the next five years.

Scripps recently finalized its acquisition of Ion, and this action with the multicast networks is one of its first efforts to combine the two sides’ operations.

“The distribution expansion of Scripps multicast networks through Ion’s broadcast spectrum is the first major step in our realizing the tremendous synergies of the Ion transaction,” said Adam Symson, Scripps president and CEO.

Related to the addition of Scripps’ multicast networks to Ion station, Ion multicast networks Ion Plus, Qubo and Shop Ion will cease operations on Feb. 28. Scripps will continue to operate the Ion Television network on its 48 Ion stations’ primary channels.

Other post-transaction moves that Scripps has announced is the cutting of 120 jobs across its national networks and corporate workforce.

Scripps estimates that it will exceed its initial estimates of $500 million in synergies, most of which it says are contractually based, over the next six years.

For more information, visit www.scripps.com.  

CINCINNATI & GREENWICH, Conn.—The E.W. Scripps Company has announced it has closed its acquisition of Ion Media Networks Inc. from Black Diamond Capital Management LLC. Scripps purchase of Ion for $2.65 billion was first announced in September 2020.

Scripps will now combine Ion with the Katz networks and Newsy to create a national television networks business. Scripps says that these combined networks will reach nearly every American through free over-the-air broadcast, cable/satellite, OTT and digital distribution, and feature multiple advertising-supported programing streams.

The new national networks business will be led by Lisa Knutson, president, national networks, and previously Scripps’ chief financial officer.

“This is a historic and transformational moment for Scripps that strengthens our leadership position in broadcasting and accelerates our multiplatform strategy to serve diverse audiences everywhere they seek to be informed and entertained,” said Scripps President and CEO Adam Symson. “Bringing our networks together with Ion will create a formidable national television business focused on connecting with audiences and advertisers in the rapidly evolving media landscape while fueling our company’s future growth.”

Ion Media reaches more than 100 million homes through over-the-air and pay-TV platforms, according to Scripss’ press release.

As part of the deal, Scripps has completed the sale of 23 Ion affiliated TV stations to INYO Broadcast Holdings.

CINCINNATI—The E.W. Scripps Company has appointed industry veteran Jonathan Katz as chief operating officer and head of entertainment for its new national television networks business. Katz will report to Lisa Knutson, whom Scripps previously announced will lead the newly combined businesses of ION Media, the Katz networks and Newsy. Both appointments will be effective upon the close of Scripps’ acquisition of ION Media.

“Jonathan is a tremendous asset to Scripps as we bring our national networks businesses together to capture the momentum of over-the-air audience growth and multiplatform TV viewing,” said Knutson.

In his new role, Katz will be responsible for the networks’ entertainment brands including Bounce, Laff, Grit, Court TV Mystery and the ION networks as well as Brown Sugar and “The List.” He will have additional oversight of revenue, research, marketing and programming for the entire portfolio of Scripps’ national networks.

After starting the Bounce network in 2011, he founded the Katz networks in 2014. Currently, Katz is president and chief executive officer of the Katz networks, which Scripps acquired in 2017. In his current role, Katz has steered the multiplatform networks’ year-over-year growth, outperforming expectations and delivering over-the-air audience growth while spearheading strategic launches of new networks

Katz’s career includes leadership roles at some of the country’s top television networks including Turner Entertainment Networks and CNN Newsource.

CINCINNATI—The E.W. Scripps Co. has promoted Merri Hanson to vice president and general manager of KIVI, its ABC affiliate in Boise, Idaho. Her role is effective Jan. 1, 2021. Hanson has more than 25 years of sales and broadcast experience and most recently served as station manager at KIVI. She joined the station in 2016 as a local sales manager.

Local Media President Brian Lawlor said in a statement that the company was looking forward to Hanson stepping in the new leadership role. “Her decades of experience from journalist to business executive make her a great fit to lead KIVI as it serves the Boise community.”

Prior to joining Scripps, Hanson held roles including vice president of business development with Stevenson Advertising in Seattle; regional marketing executive with Tegna; anchor and producer with KTRV in Nampa, Idaho; and general manager for KSVT in Hailey, Idaho.

“I am incredibly grateful for the opportunity to lead the phenomenal group of people at Idaho News 6,” said Hanson. “During a time when our community has been challenged due to the pandemic, I am proud of how our people have come together, worked tirelessly to keep the public informed, created opportunities for businesses and helped organizations who work with the most vulnerable in our community.”

Hanson replaces Ken Ritchie, who is retiring from his role as vice president and general manager at the end of this year after a combined KIVI tenure of 40 years.

CINCINNATI—The E.W. Scripps Company has announced that it has acquired the national broadcast network Ion Media for a price of $2.65 billion. The deal will combine Ion with Scripps’ Katz networks and Newsy, creating a national television network business, according to Scripps announcement.

Berkshire Hathaway, which is owned by Warren Buffet, is supporting the deal by investing $600 million in Scripps.

Scripps is purchasing Ion from Black Diamond Capital Management. Ion Media is a national TV network offering primarily popular crime and justice procedural programming, with a reach of more than 100 million homes, per Scripps, with licensed TV stations in 62 markets that it owns as well as 124 affiliated TV stations. Ion elects government-mandated must-carry provisions for cable distribution rather than negotiating retransmission revenue.

With Katz, Newsy and Ion, Scripps says that its national networks business will reach nearly every American through free over-the-air broadcast, cable/satellite, OTT and digital distribution, with multiple advertising-supported programming streams.

“The evolution of Scripps’ national television network business, through the combination of Ion, the Katz networks and Newsy, repositions the company in the television landscape,” said Adam Symson, Scripps president and CEO.

“For more than 70 years, Scripps has been dedicated to local broadcasting and the markets we serve with an unparalleled commitment to quality objective journalism, community service and stewardship of the public’s airwaves,” continued Symson. “Now, with this national broadcasting acquisition, Scripps will be the largest holder of broadcast spectrum, poised to take an even greater leadership role in the development of future business models that leverage ATSC 3.0 and spectrum to benefit the American people.”

Wells Fargo analyst Steven Cahall told TVT’s sister publication B+C that this is “the deal of the year.”

“While we've historically liked Scripps management and assets, investors have found the portfolio too in between: not enough National (relative to the portfolio) to be a growthy stock thesis, and not enough Local scale to get the cash profile of its peers,” Cahall said.

“The Ion deal is undoubtedly transformative as it nearly doubles Scripps enterprise value and the mix of stations + a national net ties everything together like a media bow,” he said. “Bringing Berkshire Hathaway in is also about the best equity market seal of approval there is. We expect investor interest in Scripps to accelerate on the back of this deal and should push Scripps' strong operating performance and proactive strategy into the limelight.”

The Scripps-Ion deal is still subject to FCC approval. To meet requirements, Scripps has already said that it will divest 23 Ion stations, and that it has agreed to a transaction with a buyer, though no specific details were shared. Scripps expects the deal to close in the first quarter of 2021.

CINCINNATI—Dish has found itself in another retransmission dispute, this time with E.W. Scripps. Over the weekend, local TV stations in 42 markets owned by E.W. Scripps went dark for Dish subscribers as the two sides’ previous retransmission agreement expired without a new contract in place.

This is in addition to a separate retransmission dispute between Dish and Cox Media Group Stations.

According to Scripps, the impasse after five months of discussions is not centered on the rates that Dish pays, but “their inability to agree on other distribution terms.”

“Without an agreement in place, Dish subscribers are now missing out on our stations’ essential news, weather and entertainment programming,” said Brian Lawlor, president of Local Media for Scripps. “Dish’s refusal to negotiate to a fair agreement is preventing its customers from accessing pressing news during a global pandemic, a period of social unrest, an active political year and severe weather season for many parts of our country.”

Dish countered, saying that Scripps has been unwilling to negotiate and refused an offer to match the rates other pay-TV providers are paying for its stations before making a “take-it-or-leave-it” deal just prior to the contract’s expiration, Dish states.

“To be clear, Scripps chose to black out its own viewers,” said Andy LeCuyer, Dish senior vice president of programming. “We offered multiple extension options to keep the channels up while we continue to work toward reaching a deal during these unprecedented times, but they refused.”

Scripps claims that this is the first time since its founding in 1947 that their stations have gone dark with a pay-TV distributor.

CINCINNATI—E.W. Scripps has announced that its New York CW affiliate, WPIX, has been purchased for $75 million by Mission Broadcasting.

The deal happened as a result of some business trading. The option to purchase the station was transferred from Nexstar Media Group Inc. to Mission Broadcasting, which then exercised that option.

The option price is $75 million plus accrued interest, which will be calculated between the Sept. 19, 2019, purchase date of WPIX by Scripps and the option sale closing date.

Scripps originally purchased WPIX as part of its acquisition of eight TV stations in seven markets from Nexstar as the company needed to divest as a result of its acquisition of Tribune Media. The purchase agreement gave Nexstar the option to buy back WPIX between March 31, 2020, and the end of 2021. Nexstar subsequently assigned its option to Mission Broadcasting.

The transaction, pending a definitive purchase agreement and FCC approval, is expected to close later this year.

CINCINNATI—E.W. Scripps has announced that Ramon Pineda is joining the company to take over as vice president and general manager of Scripps’ NBC affiliate (KRIS), CW station and independent station (KDF) in Corpus Christi, Texas, effective June 29.

Pineda comes to Scripps after having most recently served as president and regional director for Univision Communications, where he led news and sales teams in Puerto Rico, Atlanta, Philadelphia and Raleigh, N.C. Before he was promoted to president and regional director roles, Pineda held senior leadership roles at several TV and radio stations for Univision.

“Ramon is a highly skilled broadcaster whose vast industry experience and dedication to serving the community make him an ideal candidate to lead our Corpus Christi operations, said Brian Lawlor, Scripps’ local media president.

Pineda added: “I am thrilled to bring my experience serving Hispanic America to the team at KRIS. I look forward to helping the station further expand its audience and deepen its commitment to the Corpus Christi community.”

For more information, visit www.scripps.com.  

NASHVILLE, Tenn.—NextGen TV is continuing its nationwide rollout, this time going live on five stations in Nashville. The ATSC 3.0 standard is now available on Nashville’s WTVF (CBS), WKRN-TV (ABC), WZTV (Fox), WUXP-TV (MyNet) and WNAB (CW).

WZTV and WUXP-TV are owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group; WKRN-TV is owned by Nexstar ; and WTVF and WNAB are E.W. Scripps stations.

Nashville joins other markets that include Las Vegas, Pittsburgh, Phoenix, Dallas, Boise, Idaho, and more that have deployed the ATSC 3.0 standard.

All of the participating stations in Nashville have cooperated to ensure that all existing programming remains available to all viewers regardless of service, be it satellite, cable or antenna—antenna users will have to rescan their TVs though to ensure full service.

“The rollout of NextGen TV in Nashville represents another strong step forward in bringing a new and modern broadcasting experience to audiences across the country,” said Brian Lawlor, Scripps Local Media president. “With the technology enhancements of NextGen TV, Nashville broadcasters will be able to continue serving families with even greater storytelling capabilities.”

“Nashville is a strong community with a history of meeting challenges head-on and embracing innovation,” said Dennis Breckey, station manager at WNAB/Nashville Broadcasting LP. “We are proud to be a part of that by providing this new technology to help Middle Tennessee stay informed, entertained and connected in more ways than ever before.”

BitPath, a developer of new broadcasting services, led the planning and coordinating efforts for the five stations to launch ATSC 3.0. BitPath President John Hane said that the Nashville launch was the largest ATSC 3.0 deployment his company had worked on to date.

CINCINNATI—E.W. Scripps’ executives are taking pay cuts in an effort to help its employees affected by the coronavirus pandemic.

The company has announced that Scripps President and CEO Adam Symson will take a 15% salary reduction. Other named executives will take a 10% pay cut, each. This includes Lisa Knuston, chief financial officer; Brian Lawlor, local media president; Laura Tomlin, executive vice president, national media; Bill Appleton, general counsel; Doug Lyons, senior vice president, controller and treasurer; Carolyn Micheli, corporate communications and investor relations; and Julie McGehee, vice president, benefits and compensation.

In addition, 11 members of Scripps’ board of directors will take a 15% reduction in their annual cash compensation. Board chairman Rich Boehne will forgo the remainder of his 2020 chairman fees.

Scripps will donate an equal amount of the cuts to the Scripps Howard Foundation’s COVID-19 Employee Relief Fund to support its employees.

NEW YORK—Nielsen and E.W. Scripps have announced a new multi-year deal that will have Nielsen provide its suite of measurement services to Scripps' local television stations.

Nielsen’s offerings include Local TV Measurement, Nielsen Scarborough, NLTV, Ad Intel, Arianna and Nielsen Grabix.

The Scripps stations covered as part of the deal includes its newly acquired Raycom, Cordillera and Tribune stations.

“We are thrilled to continue our longstanding relationship with Scripps and to collaborate on how best to monetize its key audiences using our unique suite of solutions,” said Catherine Herkovic, managing director and executive vice president at Scripps.

CINCINNATI—Marcus Riley has been promoted to serve as senior director of content strategy for E.W. Scripps Company’s East Coast television stations, the company announced last week.

Riley will work with newsrooms at WKBW in Buffalo, N.Y.; WMAR in Baltimore; WXYZ in Detroit; WFTS in Tampa, Fla.; WLEX in Lexington, Ky.; WRTV in Indianapolis; WTVR in Richmond, Va.; WTKR in Norfolk, Va.; and KATC in Lafayette, La., to implement, evaluate, measure and refine the station group’s content strategy, Scripps said.

He is one of four directors of content strategy working with a group of Scripps stations on maintaining high-quality local coverage.

Before taking on the new post, Riley worked for four years as a digital director and editorial director at WTMJ, the station group’s NBC affiliate in Milwaukee.

“Marcus has been a stand-out newsroom leader in Milwaukee—bringing new ideas to the table and helping push our reporting to a high level of service for that community,” said Sean McLaughlin, vice president of news for Scripps’ Local Media division. “Now he brings his journalism expertise to a larger group of stations.”

Prior to working in Milwaukee, he spent 10 years at NBC 5 Chicago. There, he worked as a digital director and was promoted to various management and editorial positions. He worked as a correspondent for “24/7 Chicago,” a local entertainment show.

More information is available on the E.W. Scripps website.

CINCINNATI—Veteran media executive Marcellus Alexander is joining the board of directors for the E.W. Scripps Company, the company has announced. This will temporarily put 12 members on the company’s board, but Roger Ogden has informed the company that he will retire when his term expires on the date of Scripps’ shareholders meeting in 2020.

Alexander has been working in broadcasting, communications and government relations for more than 40 years, including previous positions as the executive vice president of the NAB and president of the National Association of Broadcasters Leadership Foundation. He had previous experience as vice president and general manager at local TV stations in Philadelphia and Baltimore.

“Marcellus is an established leader in broadcast media who will bring his experience and deep understanding of the continued evolution of our business to the boardroom as we further expand our footprint across the country,” said Adam Symson, Scripps president and CEO. “His passion for educating and teaching other young leaders in the industry resonates with Scripps’ longtime motto, ‘give light and the people will find their own way.’”

DETROIT—WMYD, The E.W. Scripps Company-owned MYNetworkTV affiliate in Detroit, will launch ATSC 3.0 service by the end of 2020 in collaboration with Graham Media Group and other local broadcasters, the station announced today.

“Scripps is a strong supporter of the development of ATSC 3.0 technology as a way to continue to improve the broadcast industry’s offerings for both consumers and advertisers,” said Brian Lawlor, president of Local Media for Scripps.

The Detroit launch of Next-Gen TV service offers the automotive industry an in-market test bed for IP-based broadcasting to deliver data to millions of receivers at the same time without concerns of wireless internet bottlenecks, according to the announcement.

“After our positive experience with KNXV as part of the test and learn initiatives in Phoenix, we are eager to launch this technology with WMYD in Detroit and help move the industry forward,” said Lawlor.

Graham Media Group is also participating in the 3.0 Detroit launch with its WDIV-TV NBC affiliate.

“The collaborative effort needed to launch this new technology requires that broadcasters work together for the benefit of our viewers,” said Emily Barr, president and CEO of Graham Media Group.

“Graham and WDIV look forward to launching the new Next Gen TV station and the eventual launch of our own advanced signals on this platform. The future of television insures a more expansive experience, with high dynamic range video and advanced audio features that will immerse viewers as never before,” she said.

The rollout of Next Gen TV service in Detroit is subject to final engineering and regulatory approvals as well as FCC license modifications. However, participating broadcasters have already identified WMYD as being among the first stations to convert to 3.0 as part of this rollout, the announcement said.

At the 2019 NAB Show in April, a group of broadcasters, including network O&Os and affiliates and public broadcasters, announced their plans to deploy Next Gen TV in the 40 largest TV markets in the United States by the end of next year.

For a comprehensive source of TV Technology’s ATSC 3.0 coverage, see ourATSC3 silo.

CINCINNATI—The E.W. Scripps Company’s roster of TV stations has increased after the company announced that it has closed its acquisition of 15 television stations across 10 markets from Cordillera Communications. These new stations bring Scripps’ total to 52 TV stations in 36 markets, reaching nearly 21% of U.S. TV households.

Here is the full list of stations Scripps acquired from Cordillera:

• WLEX (NBC), Lexington, Ky.
• KOAA (NBC), Colorado Springs, Colo.
• KATC (ABC), Lafayette, La.
• KSBY (NBC), Santa Barbara-San Luis Obispo, Calif.
• KRIS (NBC) and KAJA (Telemundo), Corpus Christi, Texas
• KPAX and KAJJ (CBS), Missoula, Mont.
• KTVQ (CBS), Billings, Mont.
• KXLF and KBZK (CBS), Butte-Bozeman, Mont.
• KRTV (CBS) and KTGF (NBC), Great Falls, Mont.
• KTVH (NBC) and KXLH (CBS), Helena, Mont.

Brian Lawlor, president of Local Media, says these acquisitions are part of Scripps’ strategy to increase financial durability and operating performance for the Scripps broadcast portfolio.

Scripps has another deal on the horizon, previously announcing the acquisition of eight TV station in seven markets from the Nexstar-Tribune merger divestitures.

CINCINNATI—In relation to the Nexstar Media Group and Tribune Media proposed merger, the E.W. Scripps Company has announced that it has acquired eight television stations in seven markets. The new stations include two CBS, two Fox and four CW stations, bringing Scripps total station footprint to 59 in 42 markets, giving the company a 30 percent reach to U.S. TV households.

Scripps acquired seven stations in six markets for $505 million, while also paying $75 million for WPIX, the CW affiliate in New York City. The other stations are KASW, the CW affiliate in Phoenix; WSFL, the CW affiliate in Miami-Fort Lauderdale; KSTU, the Fox affiliate in Salt Lake City; WTKR, the CBS affiliate, and WGNT, the CW affiliate in Norfolk, Va.; WTVR, the CBS affiliate in Richmond, Va.; and WXMI, the Fox affiliate in Grand Rapids, Mich.

Scripps now has nine markets were it operates more than one station. These are also the first stations for Scripps in Virginia and Utah.

The company says that it will finance the transaction with a combination of term loans and unsecured debt. In addition, it is giving Nexstar the option to buy back WPIX from March 31, 2020, through the end of 2021.

The deal is set to close at the same time as the Nexstar-Tribune merger.

“This acquisition represents another step in our plan to improve the depth, reach and durability of our broadcast television station portfolio while adding nicely to the company’s free cash flow operation,” said Adam Symson, president and CEO of Scripps, in the announcement.

MCLEAN, Va., and CINCINNATI — TEGNA this week announced it will acquire Gray Television stations in Toledo, Ohio, and Odessa-Midland, Texas, for $105 million in cash, and E.W. Scripps said it would buy stations in Waco, Texas, and Tallahassee, Fla., from Raycom Media for $55 million.

In June Gray and Raycom announced they were combining their broadcast groups and that as part of the deal Gray would sell WTOL, the CBS affiliate in Toledo, and KWES, the NBC affiliate in Odessa-Midland. TEGNA’s acquisition of the stations is contingent on the close of the Gray-Raycom merger, TEGNA said.

[Read: Gray, Raycom To Combine, Creating Third Biggest Station Group]

E.W. Scripps is buying Raycom’s KXXV/KRHD in Waco and WTXL in Tallahassee, which also are being divested as part of the merger. The stations are ABC affiliates.

“Scripps’ acquisition of these two stations is in line with the strategic vision we set out early this year: to strengthen our portfolio of local television stations while delivering value to shareholders,” said Scripps President and CEO Adam Symson.

TEGNA President and CEO Dave Lougee said WTOL and KWEX are “an excellent strategic and financial fit with our portfolio.”

“WTOL and KWES are strong, leading local media brands, with deep roots in their community,” said Lougee.

The acquisition of WTOL and KWES is structured as an asset purchase being paid for through the use of available cash and borrowing under TEGNA’s existing credit facility.

The acquisition has a purchase price multiple of 5 times expected average 2017/2018 EBITDA, including run rate synergies and net present value tax savings in the high-teen millions (or 5.9 times, prior to tax savings), the station group said.

The transaction is expected to be accretive to EPS in less than a year after close and immediately accretive to free cash flow, it added.

The acquisitions by Scripps will increase its holdings to 35 TV stations in 26 markets. The group’s reach will grow to 18.5% of U.S. TV households.

“Scripps’ acquisition of these two stations is in line with the strategic vision we set out early this year: to strengthen our portfolio of local television stations while delivering value to shareholders,” said Symson.

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PHOENIX — Five broadcast technology vendors, including Dielectric, Enensys, GatesAir, Harmonic and Triveni Digital, will help television broadcasters in Phoenix make the Pearl TV-led ATSC 3.0 Model Market Initiative a reality.

Stations owned by E.W. Scripps Co., Fox Television Stations, Meredith Local Media Group, Nexstar Media Group, Tegna, Telemundo Station Group and Univision are taking part in the initiative, which will test advanced business models made possible by Next Gen TV.

The initiative also will demonstrate that it is possible to transition to Next-Gen TV while maintaining legacy ATSC 1.0 DTV service.

“We are delighted to announce the first group of technology suppliers who will help make the Phoenix model market a reality,” said Pearl TV Managing Director Anne Schelle in a press release announcing the participation of the companies. “This is just [the] first round of key broadcast equipment vendors who are now at work to create an over-the-air ATSC 3.0 deployment.”

[Read: 2018 NAB Show Marks Next Gen TV’s Arrival]

The Phoenix model market will provide an open test bed for all of the stakeholders in the TV ecosystem, according to a press announcement. Several objectives are planned for the initiative, including: confirmation of basic TV service parameters and performance; determining the appeal of HDR and immersive audio to consumers; assessing TV application features and implementation requirements; testing interactive and addressable ad functionality; and determining consumer device and service appeal, the announcement said.

The initial technology deployment supporting the initiative includes:

• Dielectric UT8D7F-3K filter, a 3 kW low-loss, high-efficiency, eight-pole, UHF bandpass filter;
• Enensys ATSCheduler, an ATSC 3.0 broadcast gateway that encapsulated MMT and ROUTE IP streams into an ATSC 3.0 multiplex, allocating data to different sub-frame and physical layer pipes and managing SFN synchronization;
• GatesAir Maxiva AXTE-3 UHF air-cooled TV transmitter for ATSC 3.0 transmission in Phoenix;
• Harmonic Electra X ATSC 3.0 encoding and statistical multiplexer media processor to deliver multiple HEVC programs over DASH;
• Triveni Digital GuideBuilder XM signaling, announcement and transport generator and StreamScope XM advanced monitor and analysis system, both part of the company’s Broadcast Services Management Platform.

All participating vendors will be exhibiting at the 2018 NAB Show, April 7–12, in Las Vegas. Dielectric will be in booth C2613; Enensys will be in booth SU6521; GatesAir will be in booth N3703; Harmonic will be in booth SU610; and Triveni Digital will be in booth N1427.

For a comprehensive list of TV Technology’s ATSC 3.0 coverage, see our ATSC3 silo.

CINCINNATI—Newsy is moving in to more U.S. homes, as E.W. Scripps has signed distribution agreements with several cable companies for the multiplatform national news network. Closing deals with Comcast, AT&T, Spectrum and other services, Newsy currently covers nearly 26 million subscribers.

Newsy, which gained traction first on OTT service providers like Sling TV and YouTube TV, provides daily coverage of U.S. news and stories from around the world with an aim at reaching millennials.

Comcast transitioned approximately 6 million subscribers to Newsy in October. Scripps signed a long-term carriage agreement with Comcast that projects to bring Newsy to 10 million Comcast subscribers by the fourth quarter of 2018. In addition, Scripps renewed its broadcast television retransmission agreement with Comcast, which now includes seven Scripps legacy stations beginning Jan. 1, 2020.

According to Scripps, these deals put Newsy on track to reach about 40 million U.S. households by the end of 2018.

CINCINNATI—Newsy, the national news network focused toward millennial audiences, has been predominantly located on OTT services, but now it is expanding into the cable and satellite marketplace. E.W. Scripps, which owns Newsy, has announced the acquisition of carriage contracts from the Retirement Living Television cable network.

As a result of the deal, Scripps will take over RLTV’s carriage agreements for about 26 million subscribers and reprogram the network with Newsy’s lineup of shows. The transition from RLTV to Newsy is expected to take place over the next few months. Scripps forecasts that Newsy will be available to about 40 million cable and satellite subscribers by the end of 2018.

“Newsy has already made a name for itself among millennial news consumers who rely on over-the-top television,” said Adam Symson, president and CEO of Scripps. “Now we’ll be reaching Americans with cable and satellite service who are looking for a fresh approach to news coverage.”

The financials of the deal are not yet finalized. The acquisition’s purchase price will be based on the number of subscribers that come under contract with the cable companies and convert to Newsy, with the price being no more than 93 cents per subscriber. The final purchase price could go as high as $23 million.

CINCINNATI — Adam Symson will assume the role of president and CEO of The E.W. Scripps Co. Tuesday, Aug. 8. The company’s board of directors today set that date for the anticipated CEO transition to Symson from Rich Boehne, who will continue as Scripps chairman.

In November, Symson, 42, pictured at right, was promoted to chief operating officer, overseeing day-to-day operations of the company’s broadcast TV, digital media and radio divisions. He joined Scripps in 2002 and held a variety of roles in the television and interactive divisions before being tapped to lead digital operations in 2011.

“Adam is a terrific leader, motivated by an entrepreneurial drive and a mission-driven commitment to enterprise journalism,” Boehne said. “He steps up to the new role determined to continue — and accelerate — the success of this adventurous 140-year-old company.”

Boehne, 61, , pictured at left, began his career as a newspaper reporter and has played a significant role in the growth and evolution of Scripps over the past 29 years. In 2008, when the cable networks either built or acquired by Scripps were spun off into a separate publicly traded company, Scripps Networks Interactive, Boehne became president and CEO of the journalism-focused E.W. Scripps Co.