Backchannelmedia

Business Wire

Scripps Networks (NYSE: SSP) has tapped music industry veteran Ed Hardy to guide the transition and ongoing operation of Great American Country (GAC), the most recent television brand to join Scripps Networks when the acquisition is finalized in late November.

Hardy, who has 36 years of experience as a radio industry executive, will serve as senior vice president of Scripps Networks. Jeff Wayne will remain as president of GAC, reporting to Hardy.

"Ed has an in-depth knowledge of the music industry and a proven record as a savvy media executive," Scripps Networks Executive Vice President John Lansing said in making the announcement at GAC's Denver headquarters on Wednesday. "He is the ideal person to jump-start the integration of GAC into Scripps Networks and to create new opportunities for growth for the network."

The appointment marks a return to Scripps after a distinguished career that began as a successful local general manager at stations in Louisville, Denver and the Scripps-owned Portland property. Hardy then spent much of the mid-1990s expanding Deschutes River Broadcasting from a single AM/FM radio combination in Tri-Cities, Wash., to a collection of 19 stations operating in markets in the Pacific Northwest. With the subsequent merger of Deschutes with Citadel Broadcasting, Hardy continued to play a key role in the company's growth to 200-plus stations in more than 40 markets.

Most recently, Hardy served as CEO and President of MeasureCast, the leading internet- streaming broadcast audience measurement company in the United States. He also has been a consultant to MediaBlue/Nox Solutions, the top provider of website design, hosting and fulfillment products for nationally syndicated and network radio talk show hosts such as Bill O'Reilly, Laura Ingraham, Mike Gallagher and others.

Wayne, a current board member of the Country Music Association, has been president of GAC since 1999, when he was promoted from the position of president within the cable programming unit for Jones Media. Prior to joining Jones Media, Wayne served as vice president of programming for the Providence Journal Company's broadcast division, which included the company's interest in America's Health Network and Food Network, now a part of Scripps Networks. Wayne also spent 17 years with Providence Journal's cable television unit, Colony Communications, overseeing its programming, marketing and ad sales programs.

"The executive experience that both Ed and Jeff offer with their combined backgrounds across the broadcasting, music and cable industries make them a powerful combination to lead GAC, while providing the value and continuity that we desire for the network," said Lansing.

About Scripps Networks

Scripps Networks is comprised of the lifestyle television brands Home & Garden Television, Food Network, DIY-Do It Yourself Network, Fine Living, and electronic retailer Shop At Home. Scripps is the leading developer of lifestyle-oriented content for television and the Internet, where on-air programming is complemented with online content. In addition, Scripps Networks is aggressively developing its emerging media, including video on demand, broadband and Hispanic programming. Scripps Networks' brands collectively are available in more than 90 countries on six continents. They also are distributed to 1,000 outlets on U.S. military bases and U.S. embassies around the world on the American Armed Forces Radio and Television Service.

Headquartered in Knoxville, Tenn., with offices in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Detroit, Atlanta, and Nashville, Scripps Networks is owned by The E.W. Scripps Company (NYSE:SSP), a diverse media concern with interests in newspaper publishing, broadcast television, national television networks, interactive media, and television retailing. Scripps operates 21 daily newspapers, 10 broadcast TV stations, Scripps Howard News Service and United Media.

About GAC

Great American Country (GAC) is a 24-hour cable network with more than 34 million subscribers. GAC, which consists primarily of country-music videos, reaches many of the top country markets including Dallas, Atlanta, Cincinnati, Indianapolis, Knoxville, Chattanooga, Richmond, Baltimore, Detroit and Sacramento.