The Edward W Scripps Trust history

Sales for 1925 came to about $28 million.

In 1927 Scripps-Howard acquired The New York Telegram, which became the New York World-Telegram four years later, after Howard negotiated the purchase of The World.

The Buffalo Times of Buffalo, New York, was acquired in 1929.

In 1936 the Memphis radio station WMC was acquired, and that same year Scripps-Howard bought out its one remaining competing daily newspaper in Memphis, The Commercial Appeal.

In 1949 a new CBS affiliate started by Scripps, WCPO-TV, began operations in Cincinnati.

In 1950 Scripps-Howard purchased the Hearst Corporation’s New York Sun and merged it with the World-Telegram to form the New York World Telegram & Sun.

In 1953 E.W. Scripps’s grandson Charles E. Scripps became company chairman at the age of 33, and Roy Howard’s son Jack R. became company president at the age of 42.

The Cincinnati Enquirer--which had been acquired in 1956--was carefully kept separate from the other papers to diminish possible charges of a monopoly.

In 1958 UPA absorbed International News Service and became known as United Press International (UPI). The following year the Scripps-Howard and Hearst chains combined their evening San Francisco newspapers into the jointly owned San Francisco News-Call Bulletin.

Scripps-Howard Radio was renamed Scripps-Howard Broadcasting Company in 1961, and two years later went public.

Roy Howard remained head of the New York World Telegram & Sun until his death in 1964.

After numerous setbacks, the joint venture was suspended in 1967, and the newspapers all folded.

One year later the 51-year-old Washington Daily News was sold to a competitor, and in 1975 competition forced the closure of the Fort Worth Press.

In 1977 Scripps-Howard acquired its first two weeklies, and the following year the chain started its first weekly newspaper.

By 1979 Scripps-Howard had 23 weekly newspapers and 16 daily newspapers, with half of those dailies functioning under joint-operating agreements.

With financial uncertainty surrounding some of its larger news operations, E.W. Scripps increased its diversification in 1980 by acquiring Cordovan Corporation, publisher of business periodicals, trade magazines, and books.

In 1981 the E.W. Scripps Company began looking for a buyer for UPI. Estlow said that part of the reason was the possibility that the beneficiaries of the Scripps trust fund might bring legal action forcing the closing or selling of the wire service.

Pace, Eric, "U.P.I. Sold to New Company," New York Times, June 3, 1982.

Lawrence A. Leser, a former executive vice president, was named president and chief executive in 1985, succeeding Estlow who remained on the board.

In 1986 the company bought two television stations from Capital Cities Communications and the American Broadcasting Co.

Seven small cable television systems in the southeastern states were also acquired in 1987.

In 1988 the Sun-Tattler and some of the company’s business journals were sold.

In February 1989 it sold the six-day Florida Sun-Tattler for an undisclosed amount and bought Cable USA’s system in Carroll County, Georgia.

In 1990 Scripps began the Sportsouth Network to provide regional sports programming on cable-TV in six southern states.

In 1991, Scripps bought WMAR-TV in Baltimore for $125 million.

In March 1994 the E.W. Scripps Company purchased Cinetel Productions, a leading independent producer of cable-television programming.

Two years later, William R. Burleigh was named president and CEO. Meantime, the E.W. Scripps Company continued to deemphasize its broadcasting side when it sold its cable systems to Comcast Corporation in November 1995 for $1.58 billion.

In May 1998 the company sold Scripps Howard Productions, and later that year Cinetel Productions changed its name to Scripps Productions.

Nineteen percent of 2001 revenues came from broadcast television, 24 percent from category television, and the remaining six percent from licensing and other media.

Scripps' subsidiary, Shop At Home Network, LLC (acquired in whole in 2002), launched a web site during this time, allowing program viewers and Internet surfers to shop electronically.

In 2004, due largely to its cable programming operations, and the advertising dollars it generated, Scripps announced higher than predicted profits, prompting a two-for-one stock split for its shareholders.