• by Ray Schultz , December 17, 2022

Media conglomerate E.W. Scripps Company is launching a division to pursue partnerships with sports leagues, conferences and teams.

The new division, Scripps Sports, will leverage the company’s national broadcast reach. Last year, Scripps acquired ION Media, providing it with national reach through over-the-air broadcast, pay TV and connected TV. ION offers market depth of 61 local stations, and the fifth-largest national broadcast viewership, the company says. 

 “There is no better way to reach every generation of sports fan than through live broadcast television,” states Adam Symson, president and CEO of Scripps. “Scripps is working with the leagues and teams that recognize the role our assets can play in increasing reach and visibility for audience engagement.”

Brian Lawlor will serve as president of the new division. Lawlor, who has led the company’s Local Media division since 2009, has “transformed our local media business – building the division from 10 TV stations in 2009 to 61 today,” Symson adds. “For the last year, he has already been leading the Scripps sports plan, bringing the same commitment to entrepreneurship and creativity for the company.”  

Lawlor notes that “the sports viewing marketplace has become extremely fragmented. Cable subscriptions are down, and regional sports networks are challenged, keeping fans from watching their home teams.” 

In contrast, Scripps offers a “vast number of local stations and ION, a national network that can be customized in many markets,” Lawlor continues. 

Scripps had its origin in 1878 when founder Edward W. Scripps started his first newspaper, the PennyPress, in Cleveland.