Burton Jablin & Kenneth W. Lowe
Ken Lowe
Title: President, Chairman & CEO, Scripps Networks Interactive
Years in Cable: 21
Education: BA, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
Best Advice in 7 Words or Less: It’s the people.
Burton Jablin
Title: President, Scripps Networks
Years in Cable: 21
Education: BA, Harvard University
Best Advice in 7 Words or Less: Stay focused on what matters.
There soon may be no more homes left to renovate, but the Scripps lifestyle machine just continues to gain momentum each year. The success of media brands HGTV, Food Network, DIY, Cooking Channel, Travel Channel and Great American Country largely flows from the top down. Jablin has been with the company since back in 1994, so it was particularly sweet when HGTV celebrated its 20th anniversary in 2014 with its highest yearly cable ranking, ending as a top 10 channel. He also guided the launch of Food Network in Brazil and HGTV Asia in Singapore, with additional expansion in Asia planned for 2015. Lowe continues to keep Scripps’ nets in step with—if not ahead of—the technology curve both in viewership and ad dollars. Aside from HGTV’s success, Food ended the year as a top 5 cable network for women. This year, look for Lowe to help woo more advertisers to Travel Channel as he institutes his plan to bring more consistent, upscale programming to the network.
Lowe
Favorite screen: Television
Favorite TV show as a kid: “The Andy Griffith Show”
Jablin
Favorite Cable Show memory: HGTV’s first appearance at a Cable Show in 1994, working with the entire HGTV staff (about 15 of us) to set up and work the booth.
Favorite vacation spot: New Zealand
Favorite business/motivational book: Moneyball