Scripps Bets on Women’s Sports to Boost ION
variety.comBrian Steinberg Senior TV Editor E.W. Scripps hopes the recent surge of interest in Caitlin Clark and JuJu Watkins will serve it well in a different sort of match-up, the one that takes place every year between TV networks and advertisers.
Scripps is highlighting recent rights deals that help its ION broadcast network serve up both a Friday-night WNBA showcase as well as Saturday-night doubleheaders from the National Women’s Soccer League.
The company is, like other TV entities, getting ready for the industry’s annual “upfront,” when TV networks try to sell the bulk of their commercial inventory ahead of their next programming cycle.
A new WNBA season that ION will cover starting May 17 features weekly studio shows — the first time in the league’s history that a linear network has devoted such coverage.
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