CINCINNATI – Edward W. Scripps Jr. has notified The E. W. Scripps Company’s board of directors that he is retiring as a trustee of the Edward W. Scripps Trust and as a director of the company.
Scripps, 49, a great-grandson of the company’s founder, has served as a corporate director since 1998. The Edward W. Scripps Trust, the company’s controlling shareholder, will select a successor for Ed Scripps.
Scripps said he is retiring to devote more time to his family and to pursue long-delayed personal interests.
“Ed Scripps has conscientiously served the company and its shareholders with integrity and vision,” said William R. Burleigh, chairman of The E. W. Scripps Company’s board of directors. “We wish to express our admiration and appreciation to him for his dedicated and insightful contributions to this organization and extend to him and his family warmest wishes for a fulfilling retirement.”
Commenting on his retirement, Scripps said, “I have been honored to serve the shareholders of The E. W. Scripps Company as a board member during the past 10 years. Looking ahead, I believe the company’s prospects are brighter than ever as it approaches its division into two focused enterprises.”
Ed Scripps also has served as a trustee, vice president and member of the executive committee of the Scripps Howard Foundation, the philanthropic arm of The E. W. Scripps Company. Scripps is a trustee emeritus of the foundation. From 1983 to 1993, Scripps worked for KJRH-TV, the company-owned television station in Tulsa, Okla. Scripps worked on the editorial side of the businesses, rising to the post of news director.
The company announced in October 2007 that its board of directors had unanimously authorized management to pursue a separation of Scripps into two publicly traded companies, one focused on national brands and the other focused on local media. The transaction is expected to be completed by July 1.
