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.
