A surprising name has reportedly entered the Pac-12 television negotiations: The E.W. Scripps Company.
According to a report from The Action Network’s Brett McMurphy, the company’s Ion network — which originally debuted as PAX in late-90s — has “emerged as a potential partner”.
In addition to owning Ion, Scripps owns 61 broadcast television stations in the nation, including stations in Pac-12 markets like Denver, Tucson, Phoenix, and Salt Lake City, as well as Las Vegas, Bakersfield, San Diego, and Santa Barbara. The company, however, doesn’t currently own any stations in the Bay Area, or in Washington or Oregon, where six of the remaining 10 Pac-12 schools are located.
The company launched Scripps Sports late last year as a potential vehicle for local sports rights, with the idea that broadcasts would air on Ion.
“We don’t have the complications that the big four networks have,” Scripps President and CEO Adam Symson said at the time of the division’s founding. “You promise the league and make a programming decision, you don’t have to turn around and then negotiate with affiliates to try to get the time. If I want to dedicate Saturdays to a franchise night for a sports league, that’s a decision we can make.”
According to a report from Variety, Ion was the 11th most-watched television network in 2022, behind HGTV and the Hallmark Channel, but above outlets like TNT, TBS, CNN, and The CW.
College football reporter Stewart Mandel, however, has refuted McMurphy’s report.
