After Split, Lowe To Chair New Scripps Network -- While Burleigh Stays With E.W. Scripps

By: E&P Staff E.W. Scripps veteran William R. Burleigh will remain chairman of the board when the Cincinnati media giant splits into two publicly traded companies, with E.W. Scripps concentrating on local media including its newspapers, syndication and licensing businesses, and broadcast TV stations, Scripps said late Thursday.

Kenneth W. Lowe, 57, will become the chairman, president and CEO of the newly created Scripps Networks Interactive, which will consist of the company's "national lifestyle media brands," including its cable networks HGTV, Food Network, DIY Network, the Fine Living Television Network, and Great American Country plus online ventures such as the comparison shopping sites Shopzilla and uSwitch.

Lowe has been president and chief executive officer of The E. W. Scripps Company since 2000.

Scripps Networks Interactive business have combined annual revenue of approximately $1.4 billion and 2,100 employees.

Scripps said Nicholas B. Paumgarten, 62, will be the lead independent director of Scripps Networks Interactive.

Burleigh, 72, who served as president and chief executive officer of the company for five years, has been chairman of the board of E.W. Scripps since 1999.

After the split, expected in mid-2008, E. W. Scripps will include daily and community newspapers in 17 U.S. markets; 10 broadcast television stations clustered among the nation's largest 50 markets, including six ABC affiliates, three NBC affiliates and one independent station; the character licensing and feature syndication businesses operated by United Media; and Scripps Media Center in Washington D.C, which includes the Scripps Howard News Service.

The businesses have combined annual revenue of about $1.1 billion and employ about 7,100 people, Scripps said.

Scripps has previously announced that Richard A. Boehne, 51, will become E.W. Scripps president and CEO.

Scripps said the company's divisional leaders -- Mark Contreras, senior vice president of newspapers, Bill Peterson, senior vice president of the television station group, John Lansing, president of Scripps Networks, and Doug Stern, president of United Media -- will continue in their current roles at E.W. Scripps.

E.W. Scripps management team will include the following:

Mary Denise Kuprionis, 51, will be vice president/corporate secretary and will take on additional responsibilities as the company's chief ethics and compliance officer.

Lisa A. Knutson, 42, currently vice president of human resources operations, will become senior vice president of human resources.

Douglas F. Lyons, 50, currently vice president of finance and administration for the Scripps Interactive Media division, will become vice president and controller.

Robert A. Carson, 51, now serving as executive director of enterprise information systems, will become vice president and chief information officer.

Michael T. Hales, 43, currently director of controls and compliance, will become vice president of audit and compliance.