iHeartMedia vs Scripps

iHeart Podcasters Share 5 Lessons for Enduring Franchises

At Adweek's Brandweek event, hosts of the iHeartMedia podcast 'Stuff They Don't Want You to Know' (Ben Bowlin, Noel Brown, Matt Frederick) and iHeart CEO Conal Byrne shared five lessons for building an enduring podcast franchise. They emphasized considering all ideas, leveraging audience contributions, balancing metrics with intuition, adapting across formats, and prioritizing human content over AI-generated content. The podcast, originating from How Stuff Works, was acquired by iHeartMedia in 2018 for $55 million. The discussion highlights the evolving landscape of podcasting and the importance of organic, human conversations in engaging audiences.

• iHeartMedia acquired Stuff Media LLC in 2018 for $55 million.
• The podcast 'Stuff They Don't Want You to Know' ranks in the top 100 podcasts in the U.S.
• 90% of listeners prefer content not created by AI.

Legal Woes at Holdco Could Affect Clients

This Media Buying Briefing (Digiday+) examines how legal troubles and court filings tied to WPP and its leadership could affect client relationships and perceptions of holding companies. The piece highlights WPP CEO Cindy Rose — approaching her first anniversary — and notes that transparency about internal transformation can be used in litigation. The briefing is part of Digiday’s Media Buying Briefing series for Digiday+ members and references related agency and media-buying coverage on the site.

• Article authors: Michael Bürgi and Seb Joseph; published August 24, 2026.
• Cindy Rose is identified in the article as WPP’s CEO, approaching her one-year anniversary leading the company.
• The article discusses new court filings and a whistleblower case involving WPP and how internal transparency could be used in legal proceedings.

Butler/Till pilots AI media buying for audio with iHeart

Independent agency Butler/Till and iHeartMedia ran a four-week pilot in July–August 2026 testing agentic AI media-buying agents on streaming audio and podcast inventory for an unnamed U.S. agricultural client. The pilot used two matched AI agents (one from Butler/Till, one from iHeartMedia) connected via an MCP server and executed just under $10,000 in media buys via a direct agency-to-publisher purchase. Butler/Till reported a 42% reduction in campaign CPMs versus the client’s direct-buy benchmark and a higher share of premium non-skippable mid-roll podcast placements (48% vs an estimated 33% in the traditional plan). iHeartMedia said it will expand inventory availability — including broadcast radio later in 2026 — and make its Audiograph solution available through Amazon’s DSP from mid-September.

• Butler/Till and iHeartMedia piloted agentic AI media buying on streaming audio and podcast inventory during a four-week campaign in July–August 2026 for an unnamed U.S. agricultural client.
• The pilot activated media buys totaling just under $10,000 using two AI agents (one from Butler/Till and one from iHeartMedia) connected via an MCP server.
• Butler/Till reported the test cut campaign CPMs by 42% compared with the client’s benchmark for direct buying.

Scripps announces new regional leadership structure for Local Media

Scripps announces new regional leadership structure for Local Media (Sept. 9, 2026); PWHL and Scripps Sports announce national U.S. television partnership for 2026-27 season (Sept. 9, 2026); ESPN & ION to bring WTGL, the new women's team golf league from TMRW Sports and LPGA, to fans across the U.S. (Sept. 2, 2026); Scripps taps NBCU sales veteran to lead small and medium business growth and direct response advertising (Aug. 27, 2026); Inaugural Scripps Sports Women's Basketball Showcase headed to Mortgage Matchup Center on December 16 (Aug. 14, 2026); Scripps' KRTV wins National Murrow Award for 'Excellence in Innovation' (Aug. 14, 2026); Scripps reports Q2 2026 financial results (Aug. 6, 2026); Scripps completes acquisition of WTVQ in Lexington (Aug. 1, 2026); Scripps unites television operations under Dean Littleton's leadership (July 22, 2026); Scripps to release second-quarter 2026 operating results on Aug. 6 (July 15, 2026); Scripps Sports and ION score U.S. media rights for the 2027 FIVB Women's Volleyball World Cup (July 14, 2026); Scripps reaches third major retransmission deal of 2026 with DIRECTV renewal (July 13, 2026).

Scripps Uses AI to Streamline Local Newsrooms

E.W. Scripps has integrated artificial intelligence as an assistive tool across its local television newsrooms to automate routine production tasks and free journalists to focus on original reporting. AI is used to convert broadcast scripts into web articles, scan and surface highlights from lengthy public documents, and flag potential accuracy or bias issues according to internal ethics rules. The company enforces human oversight: editors and news managers review all AI-assisted content, disclosures note AI involvement, and policies prohibit generative AI from writing stories or creating photorealistic images from scratch. Scripps operates an internal platform called the Engine Room, created AI-focused roles, and convenes an AI governance committee. Recent workforce reductions of several hundred positions and centralized digital production hubs have accelerated automation in production and technical roles while the company expands market-specific 24-hour streams and emphasizes transparency and editorial control.

• E.W. Scripps uses AI across local TV newsrooms to assist with routine tasks and production workflows.
• AI systems convert television broadcast scripts into written website stories, with editors reviewing and approving all content.
• Scripps prohibits using generative AI to write stories or scripts from scratch or to produce photorealistic images.

Scripps Pivots to 24/7 Local Streaming, Cuts 268 Jobs

The E.W. Scripps Company will cut 268 positions and restructure its local news operations to prioritize continuous 24/7 local streaming. The company plans to launch nonstop local news streams in roughly a dozen smaller markets before expanding across its station group, while maintaining linear broadcasts for traditional viewers. Non-local digital work will be centralized into hub teams, and Scripps will accelerate use of internal AI and automation to streamline production workflows. Leadership will provide further details on the upcoming quarterly earnings call and an all-employee town hall on August 7, 2026. The strategy aims to reduce duplicated effort, reallocate resources to field reporting, and adapt to shifting audience habits toward streaming and social platforms.

• The E.W. Scripps Company is eliminating 268 positions as part of a strategic overhaul.
• Scripps plans to launch continuous 24/7 local news streams beginning in about one dozen smaller markets before broader rollout.
• Non-local digital production work will be consolidated into centralized hub teams to standardize practice and drive efficiency.