E.W. Scripps may spin off newspapers
Cory Bergman January 10th, 2007
The parent company of The Rocky Mountain News, The Commercial Appeal and 18 other dailies said it’s considering separating its newspaper holdings from the company’s more profitable television ventures. Back in 2000, newspapers accounted for 55 percent of the company’s revenue. Last year, they made up just 25 percent. How averse are investors to newspapers? News that Scripps was thinking about the move sent its stock price up nearly 4 percent.
4 Comments Add your own
1. thephoenixchannel | January 11th, 2007 at 7:40 am
if timing is everything they got nothing.
not long ago mega-rich guys were buying these as a novelty.
can’t remember who said it best but it went something like: if folks with a lifetime of experience in the field can make a go of it then what makes a guy with a pocket full of coins think he can?
not one has figured out how to remove “papers” from newspapers yet.
2. Michael Rosenblum | January 11th, 2007 at 12:24 pm
It is interesting the The New York Times, which has never missed an opportunity to miss an opportunity, just sold off its TV stations. The Times also once owned cable franchises that it sold, and once it invented the fax machine, which it also failed to exploit. They did, however, spend a billion dollars to buy the Boston Globe. Go figure.
3. Anony Mouse | January 11th, 2007 at 12:33 pm
Newspapers are about as “yesterday’s news” as, well, the stories that are printed in them. They got a leg up on the internet thanks to their verticals, but that advantage is evaporating fast.
4. Walter Zweifler, ASA | January 24th, 2007 at 9:18 am
Employee ownersihp is the best way for a small local newspaper to survive. Our experience shows that local ownership is less expensive and more effective when the employees have a cut of the action. Local media lives! Where else will you find local sports, obituaries, social, civic and business news. We want to talk to anyone who agrees with us.
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