The E.W. Scripps Company (SSP) 8-K 16 Oct 20 Other Events Financial data

Cover

Cover	Oct. 16, 2020
Document Information [Line Items]
Document Type	8-K
Document Period End Date	Oct. 16, 2020
Entity File Number	001-10701
Entity Registrant Name	THE E.W. SCRIPPS COMPANY
Entity Incorporation, State or Country Code	OH
Entity Tax Identification Number	31-1223339
Entity Address, Address Line One	312 Walnut Street
Entity Address, City or Town	Cincinnati,
Entity Address, State or Province	OH
Entity Address, Postal Zip Code	45202
City Area Code	513
Local Phone Number	977-3000
Title of 12(b) Security	Class A Common Stock, par value $0.01 per share
Trading Symbol	SSP
Security Exchange Name	NASDAQ
Entity Emerging Growth Company	false
Entity Central Index Key	0000832428
Amendment Flag	false
Written Communications	false
Soliciting Material	false
Pre-commencement Tender Offer	false
Pre-commencement Issuer Tender Offer	false

Consolidated Statements of Oper

Consolidated Statements of Operations - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, shares in Thousands, $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended								12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Sep. 30, 2019	Jun. 30, 2019	Mar. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Sep. 30, 2018	Jun. 30, 2018	Mar. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Operating Revenues:
Total operating revenues	$ 423,055	$ 330,857	$ 320,428	$ 277,059	$ 351,397	$ 289,334	$ 273,425	$ 243,206	$ 1,351,399	$ 1,157,362	$ 845,773
Costs and Expenses:
Employee compensation and benefits									476,968	376,436	357,022
Programming									398,314	314,586	211,612
Impairment of programming assets									0	8,920	0
Other expenses									276,432	233,936	179,772
Acquisition and related integration costs									26,304	4,124	0
Restructuring costs									3,370	8,911	4,422
Total costs and expenses	351,080	303,652	272,351	254,305	261,280	228,632	231,594	225,407	1,181,388	946,913	752,828
Depreciation, Amortization, and (Gains) Losses:
Depreciation									39,998	34,385	34,049
Amortization of intangible assets									44,346	26,326	18,857
Impairment of goodwill and intangible assets									0	0	35,732
(Gains) losses, net on disposal of property and equipment	(1,998)	(11)	144	173	1,105	(501)	(66)	717	(1,692)	1,255	169
Net depreciation, amortization, and (gains) losses									82,652	61,966	88,807
Operating income									87,359	148,483	4,138
Interest expense	(27,120)	(26,537)	(18,023)	(8,916)	(9,143)	(9,003)	(9,279)	(8,759)	(80,596)	(36,184)	(26,552)
Defined benefit pension plan expense	(1,746)	(2,071)	(1,564)	(1,572)	(13,446)	(3,529)	(1,389)	(1,388)	(6,953)	(19,752)	(14,112)
Miscellaneous, net	(417)	2,042	369	(800)	687	(546)	(156)	138	1,194	123	7,436
Income (loss) from continuing operations before income taxes	18,545	(21,011)	9,183	(5,713)	50,280	33,285	16,579	(7,474)	1,004	92,670	(29,090)
Provision (benefit) for income taxes	5,602	(3,677)	3,385	(2,393)	11,077	8,695	4,219	(1,210)	2,917	22,781	(18,912)
Income (loss) from continuing operations, net of tax									(1,913)	69,889	(10,178)
Loss from discontinued operations, net of tax	(2,378)	(4,429)	(6,164)	(3,494)	(17,224)	(5,459)	(6,640)	(20,817)	(16,465)	(50,140)	(4,439)
Net income (loss)	10,565	(21,763)	(366)	(6,814)	21,979	19,131	5,720	(27,081)	(18,378)	19,749	(14,617)
Loss attributable to noncontrolling interest	(166)	166	0	0	0	0	0	(632)	0	(632)	(1,511)
Net income (loss) attributable to the shareholders of The E.W. Scripps Company	$ 10,731	$ (21,929)	$ (366)	$ (6,814)	$ 21,979	$ 19,131	$ 5,720	$ (26,449)	$ (18,378)	$ 20,381	$ (13,106)
Net income (loss) per basic share of common stock attributable to the shareholders of The E.W. Scripps Company:
Income (loss) from continuing operations, per basic share	$ 0.16	$ (0.22)	$ 0.07	$ (0.04)	$ 0.48	$ 0.30	$ 0.15	$ (0.07)	$ (0.02)	$ 0.85	$ (0.11)
Loss from discontinued operations, per basic share					(0.21)	(0.07)	(0.08)	(0.26)	(0.20)	(0.61)	(0.05)
Net income (loss) per basic share of common stock (USD per share)									(0.23)	0.25	(0.16)
Net income (loss) per diluted share of common stock attributable to the shareholders of The E.W. Scripps Company:
Income (loss) from continuing operations, per diluted share	$ 0.16	$ (0.22)	$ 0.07	$ (0.04)	0.47	0.29	0.15	(0.07)	(0.02)	0.85	(0.11)
Loss from discontinued operations, per diluted share					$ (0.21)	$ (0.07)	$ (0.08)	$ (0.26)	(0.20)	(0.60)	(0.05)
Net income (loss) per diluted share of common stock (USD per share)									$ (0.23)	$ 0.24	$ (0.16)
Weighted average shares outstanding:
Basic (in shares)	80,927	80,877	80,822	80,673	80,669	81,452	81,824	81,554	80,826	81,369	82,052
Diluted (in shares)	81,322	80,877	81,196	80,673	81,348	82,084	81,852	81,554	80,826	81,927	82,052
Advertising
Operating Revenues:
Total operating revenues									$ 884,649	$ 825,829	$ 557,108
Retransmission and carriage
Operating Revenues:
Total operating revenues									390,043	304,402	259,712
Other
Operating Revenues:
Total operating revenues									$ 76,707	$ 27,131	$ 28,953

Recently Adopted Standards and

Recently Adopted Standards and Issued Accounting Standards	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
New Accounting Pronouncements and Changes in Accounting Principles [Abstract]
Recently Adopted Standards and Issued Accounting Standards	Recently Adopted and Issued Accounting Standards Recently Adopted Accounting Standards — In August 2018, the SEC issued a final rule that amended certain of its disclosure requirements that were redundant, duplicative, overlapping, outdated or superseded. In addition, the amendments expanded the disclosure requirements on the analysis of shareholders' equity for interim financial statements. Under the amendments, an analysis of changes in each caption of shareholders' equity presented in the balance sheet must be provided in a note or separate statement. The analysis should present a reconciliation of the beginning balance to the ending balance of each period for which a statement of comprehensive income is required to be filed. This rule was effective for us in 2019. In February 2016, the Financial Accounting Standards Board ("FASB") issued new guidance on the accounting for leases. Under this guidance, lessees are required to recognize a lease liability and a right-of-use asset for all leases at the commencement date. In July 2018, the FASB approved amendments to create an optional transition method. The amendments provided an option to implement the new leasing standard through a cumulative-effect adjustment to opening retained earnings in the period of adoption without having to restate the comparative periods presented. We adopted the standard on January 1, 2019 using this optional transition method that does not restate the comparative prior periods. The new guidance provides a number of optional practical expedients in transition. We elected the transition package of three practical expedients permitted within the standard, which eliminates the requirements to reassess prior conclusions about lease identification, lease classification and initial direct costs. We did not elect the hindsight practical expedient, which permits the use of hindsight when determining lease term and impairment of right-of-use assets. We have utilized the practical expedient to not separate lease and non-lease components. Further, we elected a short-term lease exception policy, permitting us to not apply the recognition requirements of this standard to short-term leases (i.e. leases with terms of 12 months or less). Implementation of the standard resulted in the recognition of $33.9 million of right-of-use assets and $37.3 million of lease liabilities, which included the impact of prepaid and deferred rent and lease incentives, on our consolidated balance sheet. No cumulative-effect adjustment was recognized as the amount was not material, and adoption of the standard had no impact on our consolidated statements of operations. Recently Issued Accounting Standards — In March 2019, the FASB issued new guidance to align the accounting for the costs of producing films and episodic television series in response to changes in production and distribution models in the media and entertainment industry. The new guidance amends the capitalization, amortization, impairment, presentation and disclosure requirements for entities that produce and own content, and also aligns the impairment guidance for licensed content to the owned content fair value model. This guidance applies to broadcasters and entities that produce and distribute films and episodic television series through both traditional mediums and digital mediums. It is effective for fiscal years, and interim periods within those years, beginning after December 15, 2019, with early adoption permitted. Upon adoption, all programming assets (licensed and produced by us) will be recorded as non-current assets in our consolidated balance sheet. We do not expect a material impact to our consolidated statement of operations. In August 2018, the FASB issued new guidance to address a customer's accounting for implementation costs incurred in a cloud computing arrangement ("CCA") that is a service contract. The new guidance aligns the accounting for costs incurred to implement a CCA that is a service arrangement with the guidance on capitalizing costs associated with developing or obtaining internal-use software. The guidance is effective for fiscal years, and interim periods within those years, beginning after December 15, 2019, with early adoption permitted. The adoption of this guidance is not expected to have a material impact on our consolidated financial statements in 2020. In August 2018, the FASB issued new guidance to add, remove and clarify annual disclosure requirements related to defined benefit pension and other postretirement plans. The guidance is effective for fiscal years ending after December 15, 2020 with early adoption permitted, and it should be applied on a retrospective basis. We believe the main impact of this guidance will be to no longer disclose the amount in accumulated other comprehensive income that is expected to be recognized as part of net periodic benefit cost over the next year. Additionally, we will have to add a narrative description for any significant gains and losses affecting the benefit obligation for the period. We are currently evaluating the impact of this guidance on our disclosures. In June 2016, the FASB issued new guidance that changes the impairment model for most financial assets and certain other instruments. For trade and other receivables, held-to-maturity debt securities, loans and other instruments, entities will be required to use a new forward-looking “expected loss” model that will replace today’s “incurred loss” model, which generally will result in the earlier recognition of allowances for losses. For available-for-sale debt securities with unrealized losses, entities will measure credit losses in a manner similar to current practice, except that the losses will be recognized as an allowance. The guidance is effective in 2020 with early adoption permitted in 2019. We are currently evaluating the impact of this guidance, specifically as it relates to our allowances for accounts receivable, but do not expect a material impact to our consolidated financial statements and related disclosure on adoption.

Consolidated Balance Sheets

Consolidated Balance Sheets - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Current assets:
Cash and cash equivalents	$ 32,968	$ 107,114
Accounts receivable (less allowances — $3,346 and $4,221)	387,847	261,852
Programming	52,699	34,432
FCC repack receivable	29,651	19,242
Miscellaneous	39,486	24,585
Assets held for sale	101,266	23,792
Total current assets	643,917	471,017
Investments	8,375	7,162
Property and equipment	370,378	231,501
Operating lease right-of-use assets	128,192	0
Goodwill	1,224,679	786,837
Other intangible assets	1,060,675	475,906
Programming (less current portion)	96,256	75,333
Deferred income taxes	12,306	9,427
Miscellaneous	17,079	14,687
Assets held for sale — noncurrent	0	58,477
Total Assets	3,561,857	2,130,347
Current liabilities:
Accounts payable	28,441	25,919
Unearned revenue	10,704	10,346
Current portion of long-term debt	10,612	3,000
Accrued liabilities:
Employee compensation and benefits	43,259	42,124
Miscellaneous	96,682	40,301
Accrued interest	15,352	2,626
Programming liability	41,694	38,957
Other current liabilities	42,561	25,339
Total current liabilities	312,032	198,059
Long-term debt (less current portion)	1,904,418	685,764
Deferred income taxes	17,876	24,473
Operating lease liabilities	113,648	0
Other liabilities (less current portion)	315,948	294,542
Liabilities, Held-For-Sale, Noncurrent	0	1,344
Commitments and contingencies (Note 17)
Equity:
Preferred stock, $0.01 par — authorized: 25,000,000 shares; none outstanding	0	0
Common stock, $.01 par: Class A - authorized: 240,000,000 shares; issued and outstanding; 2019 - 69,027,524 shares; 2018 - 68,736,867 shares. Voting - authorized: 60,000,000 shares; issued and outstanding; 2019 - 11,932,722 shares; 2018 - 11,932,722 shares	810	807
Additional paid-in capital	1,117,095	1,106,984
Accumulated deficit	(120,981)	(86,229)
Accumulated other comprehensive loss, net of income taxes	(98,989)	(95,397)
Total equity	897,935	926,165
Total Liabilities and Equity	3,561,857	2,130,347
Liabilities, Held-For-Sale	22,727	9,447
Common stock, Class A
Equity:
Common stock, $.01 par: Class A - authorized: 240,000,000 shares; issued and outstanding; 2019 - 69,027,524 shares; 2018 - 68,736,867 shares. Voting - authorized: 60,000,000 shares; issued and outstanding; 2019 - 11,932,722 shares; 2018 - 11,932,722 shares	691	688
Voting common stock
Equity:
Common stock, $.01 par: Class A - authorized: 240,000,000 shares; issued and outstanding; 2019 - 69,027,524 shares; 2018 - 68,736,867 shares. Voting - authorized: 60,000,000 shares; issued and outstanding; 2019 - 11,932,722 shares; 2018 - 11,932,722 shares	$ 119	$ 119

Consolidated Balance Sheets (Pa

Consolidated Balance Sheets (Parenthetical) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Allowances for accounts and notes receivable	$ 3,346	$ 4,221
Preferred stock, par value (USD per share)	$ 0.01	$ 0.01
Preferred stock, shares authorized	25,000,000	25,000,000
Preferred stock, shares outstanding	0	0
Common stock, par value (USD per share)	$ 0.01	$ 0.01
Common stock, Class A
Common stock, shares authorized	240,000,000	240,000,000
Common stock, shares issued	69,027,524	68,736,867
Common stock, shares outstanding	69,027,524	68,736,867
Voting common stock
Common stock, shares authorized	60,000,000	60,000,000
Common stock, shares issued	11,932,722	11,932,722
Common stock, shares outstanding	11,932,722	11,932,722

Consolidated Statements of Comp

Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income (Loss) - USD ($)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Statement of Comprehensive Income [Abstract]
Net income (loss)	$ (18,378,000)	$ 19,749,000	$ (14,617,000)
Changes in defined benefit pension plans, net of tax of $(1,156), $2,557, and $4,152	(3,369,000)	7,590,000	10,150,000
Other, net of tax of $(77), $(22) and $(136)	(223,000)	(65,000)	(355,000)
Total comprehensive income (loss)	(21,970,000)	27,274,000	(4,822,000)
Comprehensive loss attributable to noncontrolling interest	0	(632,000)	(1,511,000)
Total comprehensive income (loss) attributable to the shareholders of The E.W. Scripps Company	(21,970,000)	27,906,000	(3,311,000)
Other Comprehensive (Income) Loss, Defined Benefit Plan, after Reclassification Adjustment, Tax	(1,156,000)	2,557,000	4,152,000
Changes in other, tax amount	$ (77,000)	$ (22,000)	$ (136,000)

Consolidated Statements of Co_2

Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income (Loss) (Parenthetical) - USD ($)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Statement of Comprehensive Income [Abstract]
Changes in defined benefit pension plans, tax amount	$ (1,156,000)	$ 2,557,000	$ 4,152,000
Changes in other, tax amount	$ (77,000)	$ (22,000)	$ (136,000)

Consolidated Statements of Cash

Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Statement of Cash Flows [Abstract]
Net income (loss)	$ (18,378)	$ 19,749	$ (14,617)
Loss from discontinued operations, net of tax	(16,465)	(50,140)	(4,439)
Income (loss) from continuing operations, net of tax	(1,913)	69,889	(10,178)
Adjustments to reconcile net income (loss) from continuing operations to net cash flows from operating activities:
Depreciation and amortization	84,344	60,711	52,906
Impairment of goodwill and intangible assets	0	0	35,732
Impairment of programming assets	0	8,920	0
Loss (gain) on disposition of investments	(930)	251	(6,106)
(Gains) losses on sale of property and equipment	(1,692)	1,255	169
Programming assets and liabilities	21,194	(12,788)	(9,172)
Deferred income taxes	(5,782)	18,241	(16,311)
Stock and deferred compensation plans	14,697	10,500	15,691
Pension expense, net of contributions	(13,066)	(4,052)	(6,738)
Other changes in certain working capital accounts, net	(109,530)	(11,446)	(10,860)
Miscellaneous, net	8,194	4,243	(5,631)
Net cash provided by (used in) operating activities from continuing operations	(4,484)	145,724	39,502
Net cash provided by (used in) operating activities from discontinued operations	(22,968)	(4,813)	1,350
Net operating activities	(27,452)	140,911	40,852
Cash Flows from Investing Activities:
Acquisitions, net of cash acquired	(1,190,422)	(149,469)	(280,940)
Additions to property and equipment	(60,935)	(47,093)	(17,429)
Acquisition of intangible assets	(24,864)	(7,229)	(9,745)
Purchase of investments	(1,636)	(558)	(836)
Proceeds from FCC repack	6,959	1,530	0
Miscellaneous, net	6,734	2,307	12,886
Net cash used in investing activities from continuing operations	(1,264,164)	(200,512)	(296,064)
Net cash provided by (used in) investing activities from discontinued operations	(343)	73,028	(3,003)
Net investing activities	(1,264,507)	(127,484)	(299,067)
Cash Flows from Financing Activities:
Proceeds from issuance of long-term debt	1,261,175	0	700,000
Payments on long-term debt	(8,728)	(5,656)	(393,927)
Deferred financing costs	(31,295)	0	(9,671)
Dividends paid	(16,374)	(16,395)	0
Repurchase of Class A Common shares	(584)	(32,323)	(17,885)
Proceeds from exercise of stock options	0	1,857	1,461
Tax payments related to shares withheld for vested stock and RSUs	(3,831)	(3,796)	(4,576)
Miscellaneous, net	17,463	1,316	(226)
Net cash provided by (used in) financing activities from continuing operations	1,217,826	(54,997)	275,176
Cash Provided by (Used in) Financing Activities, Discontinued Operations	0	0	(2,614)
Net Cash Provided by (Used in) Financing Activities, Continuing Operations	1,217,826	(54,997)	272,562
Effect of foreign exchange rates on cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash	(13)	(15)	0
Increase (decrease) in cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash	(74,146)	(41,585)	14,347
Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash:
Beginning of year	107,114	148,699	134,352
End of year	32,968	107,114	148,699
Interest paid	61,299	33,673	18,956
Income taxes paid	13,183	3,729	1,756
Capital expenditures included in accounts payable	$ 983	$ 693	$ 286

Consolidated Statements of Equi

Consolidated Statements of Equity - USD ($) $ in Thousands		Total		Common Stock	Additional Paid-in Capital	Retained Earnings (Accumulated Deficit)	Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss) ("AOCI")	Noncontrolling Interest
Balance at Dec. 31, 2016		$ 945,935		$ 819	$ 1,132,540	$ (94,077)	$ (93,347)	$ 0
Increase (Decrease) in Stockholders' Equity [Roll Forward]
Minority interest contribution to subsidiary		2,143						2,143
Comprehensive income (loss)		(4,822)				(13,106)	9,795	(1,511)
Repurchase of Class A Common shares		(17,885)	[1]	(10)	(15,627)	(2,248)
Compensation plans: net share issued	[1]	12,114		7	12,107		0
Reclassification of disproportionate tax effects from AOCI						19,370	(19,370)
Balance at Dec. 31, 2017		$ 937,485		816	1,129,020	(90,061)	(102,922)	632
Increase (Decrease) in Stockholders' Equity [Roll Forward]
Shares Issued, Shares, Share-based Payment Arrangement, after Forfeiture		661,256
Stock Repurchased During Period, Shares		1,004,451
Comprehensive income (loss)		$ 27,274				20,381	7,525	(632)
Cash dividends: declared and paid		(16,395)				(16,395)
Repurchase of Class A Common shares		(32,323)		(18)	(32,151)	(154)
Compensation plans: net share issued	[1]	10,124		9	10,115
Balance at Dec. 31, 2018		$ 926,165		807	1,106,984	(86,229)	(95,397)	0
Increase (Decrease) in Stockholders' Equity [Roll Forward]
Shares Issued, Shares, Share-based Payment Arrangement, after Forfeiture		851,011
Stock Repurchased During Period, Shares		1,813,249
Common Stock, Dividends, Per Share, Declared		$ 0.20
Cash dividends per share of common stock (USD per share)		$ 0.20
Comprehensive income (loss)		$ (21,970)				(18,378)	(3,592)	0
Cash dividends: declared and paid		(16,374)				16,374
Repurchase of Class A Common shares		(584)		(2)	(582)	0
Compensation plans: net share issued		10,698	[1]	5	10,693
Balance at Dec. 31, 2019		$ 897,935		$ 810	$ 1,117,095	$ (120,981)	$ (98,989)	$ 0
Increase (Decrease) in Stockholders' Equity [Roll Forward]
Shares Issued, Shares, Share-based Payment Arrangement, after Forfeiture		471,198
Stock Repurchased During Period, Shares		180,541
Common Stock, Dividends, Per Share, Declared		$ 0.20
Cash dividends per share of common stock (USD per share)		$ 0.20
[1]	* Net of tax payments related to shares withheld for vested stock and RSUs of $3,831 in 2019, $3,796 in 2018 and $4,576 in 2017.

Consolidated Statements of Eq_2

Consolidated Statements of Equity (Parenthetical) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Statement of Stockholders' Equity [Abstract]
Shares issued on compensation plan	471,198	851,011	661,256
Repurchase of Class A Common shares	180,541	1,813,249	1,004,451
Common Stock, Dividends, Per Share, Declared	$ 0.20	$ 0.20
Cash dividends per share of common stock (USD per share)	$ 0.20	$ 0.20
Tax payments related to shares withheld for vested stock and RSUs	$ 3,831	$ 3,796	$ 4,576

Summary of Significant Accounti

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Accounting Policies [Abstract]
Summary of Significant Accounting Policies	Summary of Significant Accounting Policies As used in the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements, the terms “Scripps,” “Company,” “we,” “our,” or “us” may, depending on the context, refer to The E.W. Scripps Company, to one or more of its consolidated subsidiary companies or to all of them taken as a whole. Nature of Operations — We are a diverse media enterprise, serving audiences and businesses through a portfolio of local television stations and national media brands. All of our businesses provide content and services via digital platforms, including the Internet, smartphones and tablets. Our media businesses are organized into the following reportable business segments: Local Media, National Media and Other. Basis of Presentation — Certain amounts in prior periods have been reclassified to conform to the current period's presentation. Concentration Risks — Our operations are geographically dispersed and we have a diverse customer base. We believe bad debt losses resulting from default by a single customer, or defaults by customers in any depressed region or business sector, would not have a material effect on our financial position, results of operations or cash flows. We derive approximately 65% of our operating revenues from advertising. Changes in the demand for such services, both nationally and in individual markets, can affect operating results. Use of Estimates — Preparing financial statements in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America requires us to make a variety of decisions that affect the reported amounts and the related disclosures. Such decisions include the selection of accounting principles that reflect the economic substance of the underlying transactions and the assumptions on which to base accounting estimates. In reaching such decisions, we apply judgment based on our understanding and analysis of the relevant circumstances, including our historical experience, actuarial studies and other assumptions. Our financial statements include estimates and assumptions used in accounting for our defined benefit pension plans; the periods over which long-lived assets are depreciated or amortized; the fair value of long-lived assets, goodwill and indefinite lived assets; the liability for uncertain tax positions and valuation allowances against deferred income tax assets; the fair value of assets acquired and liabilities assumed in business combinations; and self-insured risks. While we re-evaluate our estimates and assumptions on an ongoing basis, actual results could differ from those estimated at the time of preparation of the financial statements. Consolidation — The consolidated financial statements include our accounts and those of our wholly-owned and majority-owned subsidiaries and variable interest entities (VIEs) for which we are the primary beneficiary. We are the primary beneficiary of a VIE when we have the power to direct the activities of the VIE that most significantly impact the economic performance of the VIE and have the obligation to absorb losses or the right to receive returns that would be significant to the VIE. Noncontrolling interest represents an owner’s share of the equity in certain of our consolidated entities. All intercompany transactions and account balances have been eliminated in consolidation. Investments in entities over which we have significant influence but not control are accounted for using the equity method of accounting. Income from equity method investments represents our proportionate share of net income generated by equity method investees. Nature of Products and Services — The following is a description of principal activities from which we generate revenue. Core Advertising — Core advertising is comprised of sales to local and national customers. The advertising includes a combination of broadcast air time, as well as digital advertising. Pricing of advertising time is based on audience size and share, the demographic of our audiences and the demand for our limited inventory of commercial time. Advertising time is sold through a combination of local sales staff and national sales representative firms. Digital revenues are primarily generated from the sale of advertising to local and national customers on our local television websites, smartphone apps, tablet apps and other platforms. Political Advertising — Political advertising is generally sold through our Washington D.C. sales office. Advertising is sold to presidential, gubernatorial, Senate and House of Representative candidates, as well as for state and local issues. It is also sold to political action groups (PACs) or other advocacy groups. Retransmission Revenues — We earn revenue from retransmission consent agreements with multi-channel video programming distributors (“MVPDs”) in our markets. The MVPDs are cable operators and satellite carriers who pay us to offer our programming to their customers. We also receive fees from over-the-top virtual MVPDs such as Hulu, YouTubeTV and AT&T Now. The fees we receive are typically based on the number of subscribers in our local market and the contracted rate per subscriber. Other Products and Services — We derive revenue from sponsorships and community events through our Local Media segment. Our National Media segment offers subscription services for access to premium content to its customers. Our Triton business earns revenue from monthly fees charged to audio publishers for converting their content into digital audio streams and inserting digital advertising into those audio streams and providing statistical measurement information about their listening audience. Refer to Note 16. Segment Information for further information, including revenue by significant product and service offering. Revenue Recognition — Revenue is measured based on the consideration we expect to be entitled to in exchange for promised goods or services provided to customers, and excludes any amounts collected on behalf of third parties. Revenue is recognized upon transfer of control of promised products or services to customers. Advertising — Advertising revenue is recognized, net of agency commissions, over time primarily as ads are aired or impressions are delivered and any contracted audience guarantees are met. We apply the practical expedient to recognize revenue at the amount we have the right to invoice, which corresponds directly to the value a customer has received relative to our performance. For advertising sold based on audience guarantees, audience deficiency may result in an obligation to deliver additional advertisements to the customer. To the extent that we do not satisfy contracted audience ratings, we record deferred revenue until such time that the audience guarantee has been satisfied. Retransmission — Retransmission revenues are considered licenses of functional intellectual property and are recognized at the point in time the content is transferred to the customer. MVPDs report their subscriber numbers to us generally on a 30- to 90-day lag. Prior to receiving the MVPD reporting, we record revenue based on estimates of the number of subscribers, utilizing historical levels and trends of subscribers for each MVPD. Other — Revenues generated by our Triton business are recognized on a ratable basis over the contract term as the monthly service is provided to the customer. Transaction Price Allocated to Remaining Performance Obligations — As of December 31, 2019, we had an aggregate transaction price of $59.6 million allocated to unsatisfied performance obligations related to contracts within our Triton business, all of which are expected to be recognized into revenue over the next 24 months. We did not disclose the value of unsatisfied performance obligations on any other contracts with customers because they are either (i) contracts with an original expected term of one year or less, (ii) contracts for which the sales- or usage-based royalty exception was applied, or (iii) contracts for which we recognize revenue at the amount to which we have the right to invoice for services performed. Cash Equivalents — Cash equivalents represent highly liquid investments with maturity of less than three months when acquired. Contract Balances — Timing of revenue recognition may differ from the timing of invoicing to customers. We record a receivable when revenue is recognized prior to invoicing, or unearned revenue when revenue is recognized subsequent to invoicing. We extend credit to customers based upon our assessment of the customer’s financial condition. Collateral is generally not required from customers. Payment terms may vary by contract type, although our terms generally include a requirement of payment within 30 to 90 days. In instances where the timing of revenue recognition differs from the timing of invoicing, we have determined our contracts do not include a significant financing component. The primary purpose of our invoicing terms is to provide customers with simplified and predictable ways of purchasing our products and services, not to receive financing from our customers. The allowance for doubtful accounts reflects our best estimate of probable losses inherent in the accounts receivable balance. We determine the allowance based on known troubled accounts, historical experience and other currently available evidence. A rollforward of the allowance for doubtful accounts is as follows: (in thousands) January 1, 2017 $ 1,490 Charged to costs and expenses 1,314 Amounts charged off, net (855) Balance as of December 31, 2017 1,949 Charged to costs and expenses 3,378 Amounts charged off, net (1,106) Balance as of December 31, 2018 4,221 Charged to costs and expenses 1,823 Amounts charged off, net (2,698) Balance as of December 31, 2019 $ 3,346 We record unearned revenue when cash payments are received in advance of our performance. We generally require advance payment for advertising contracts with political advertising customers. Unearned revenue totaled $10.7 million at December 31, 2019 and is expected to be recognized within revenue over the next 12 months. Unearned revenue totaled $10.3 million at December 31, 2018. We recorded $8.9 million of revenue in 2019 that was included in unearned revenue at December 31, 2018. Assets Recognized from the Costs to Obtain a Contract with a Customer — We recognize an asset for the incremental costs of obtaining a contract with a customer if we expect the benefit of those costs to be longer than one year. We apply and use the practical expedient in the revenue guidance to expense costs as incurred for costs to obtain a contract when the amortization period is one year or less. This expedient applies to advertising sales commissions since advertising contracts are short-term in nature. In addition, we also may provide inducement payments to secure carriage agreements with distributors of our content. These inducement payments are capitalized and amortized to expense over the term of the distribution contract. Capitalized costs to obtain a contract with a customer totaled $9.3 million at December 31, 2019 and $9.7 million at December 31, 2018 and are included within miscellaneous assets on our Consolidated Balance Sheets. Amortization of these costs totaled $4.2 million and $1.0 million in 2019 and 2018, respectively. Investments — From time to time, we make investments in private companies. Investment securities can be impacted by various market risks, including interest rate risk, credit risk and overall market volatility. Due to the level of risk associated with certain investment securities, it is reasonably possible that changes in the values of investment securities will occur in the near term. Such changes could materially affect the amounts reported in our financial statements. We record investments in private companies not accounted for under the equity method at cost, net of impairment write-downs, because no readily determinable market price is available. We regularly review our investments to determine if there has been any other-than-temporary decline in value. These reviews require management judgments that often include estimating the outcome of future events and determining whether factors exist that indicate impairment has occurred. We evaluate, among other factors, the extent to which cost exceeds fair value; the duration of the decline in fair value below cost; and the current cash position, earnings and cash forecasts and near-term prospects of the investee. We reduce the cost basis when a decline in fair value below cost is determined to be other than temporary, with the resulting adjustment charged against earnings. Property and Equipment — Property and equipment is carried at cost less depreciation. We compute depreciation using the straight-line method over estimated useful lives as follows: Buildings and improvements 15 to 45 years Leasehold improvements Shorter of term of lease or useful life Broadcast transmission towers and related equipment 15 to 35 years Other broadcast and program production equipment 3 to 15 years Computer hardware 3 to 5 years Office and other equipment 3 to 10 years Programming — Programming includes the cost of national television network programming, programming produced by us or for us by independent production companies and programs licensed under agreements with independent producers. Our network affiliation agreements require the payment of affiliation fees to the network. Network affiliation fees consist of pre-determined fixed fees in all cases and variable payments based on a share of retransmission revenues above the fixed fees for some of our agreements. Program licenses principally consist of television series and films. Program licenses generally have fixed terms, limit the number of times we can air the programs and require payments over the terms of the licenses. We record licensed program assets and liabilities when the license period has commenced and the programs are available for broadcast. We do not discount program licenses for imputed interest. We amortize program licenses based upon expected cash flows over the term of the license agreement. We classify the portion of the unamortized balance expected to be amortized within one year as a current asset. The costs of programming produced by us or for us by independent production companies is charged to expense over estimated useful lives based upon expected future cash flows. The realizable value of internal costs incurred for trial footage at Court TV, including employee compensation and benefits, are capitalized and amortized based upon expected future cash flows. All other internal costs to produce daily or live broadcast shows, such as news, sports or daily magazine shows, are expensed as incurred and are not classified in our Consolidated Statements of Operations as program costs, but are classified based on the type of cost incurred. Progress payments on programs not yet available for broadcast are recorded as deposits within programming assets. We review the net realizable value of program assets for impairment using a day-part methodology if the programming is for our local broadcast stations, whereby programs broadcast during a particular time period, such as prime time, are evaluated on an aggregate basis. Programming for our over-the-air broadcast network is reviewed for impairment using the individual network methodology. For our program assets available for broadcast, estimated amortization for each of the next five years is $59.4 million in 2020, $44.1 million in 2021, $25.9 million in 2022, $7.4 million in 2023, $3.1 million in 2024 and $3.3 million thereafter. Actual amortization in each of the next five years will exceed the amounts currently recorded as program assets available for broadcast, as we will continue to produce and license additional programs. Program rights liabilities payable within the next twelve months are included as current liabilities and noncurrent program rights liabilities are included in other noncurrent liabilities. FCC Repack — In April 2017, the Federal Communications Commission (the “FCC”) began a process of reallocating the broadcast spectrum (the “repack”). Specifically, the FCC is requiring certain television stations to change channels and/or modify their transmission facilities. The U.S. Congress passed legislation which provides the FCC with a fund to reimburse all reasonable costs incurred by stations operating under a full power license and a portion of the costs incurred by stations operating under a low power license that are reassigned to new channels. We record an FCC repack receivable for the amount of reimbursable costs due from the FCC, which totaled $29.7 million at December 31, 2019 and $19.2 million at December 31, 2018. The total amount of consideration currently due or that has been collected from the FCC is recorded as a deferred liability and will be recognized against depreciation expense in the same manner that the underlying FCC repack fixed assets are depreciated. Deferred FCC repack income totaled $36.8 million at December 31, 2019 and $20.6 million at December 31, 2018. Leases — We determine if an arrangement is a lease at inception. Operating leases are included in operating lease right-of-use (“ROU”) assets, other current liabilities and operating lease liabilities in our Consolidated Balance Sheets. ROU assets represent our right to use an underlying asset for the lease term and lease liabilities represent our obligation to make lease payments arising from the lease. Operating lease ROU assets and liabilities are recognized at the commencement date based on the present value of lease payments over the lease term. As the implicit rate is not readily determinable for most of our leases, we use our incremental borrowing rate when determining the present value of lease payments. The incremental borrowing rate represents an estimate of the interest rate we would incur at lease commencement to borrow an amount equal to the lease payments on a collateralized basis over the term of the lease. The operating lease ROU asset also includes any payments made at or before commencement and is reduced by any lease incentives. Our lease terms may include options to extend or terminate the lease when it is reasonably certain that we will exercise that option. Lease expense for lease payments is recognized on a straight-line basis over the lease term. Goodwill and Other Indefinite-Lived Intangible Assets — Goodwill represents the cost of acquisitions in excess of the acquired businesses’ tangible assets and identifiable intangible assets. FCC licenses represent the value assigned to the broadcast licenses of acquired broadcast television stations. Broadcast television stations are subject to the jurisdiction of the Federal Communications Commission (“FCC”) which prohibits the operation of stations except in accordance with an FCC license. FCC licenses stipulate each station’s operating parameters as defined by channels, effective radiated power and antenna height. FCC licenses are granted for a term of up to eight We do not amortize goodwill or our FCC licenses, but we review them for impairment at least annually or any time events occur or conditions change that would indicate it is more likely than not the fair value of a reporting unit is below its carrying value. We perform our annual impairment review during the fourth quarter of each year in conjunction with our annual planning cycle. We also assess, at least annually, whether our FCC licenses, classified as indefinite-lived intangible assets, continue to have indefinite lives. We review goodwill for impairment based upon our reporting units, which are defined as operating segments or groupings of businesses one level below the operating segment level. Reporting units with similar economic characteristics are aggregated into a single unit when testing goodwill for impairment. Our reporting units are our Local Media group, Katz, Stitcher, Triton and Newsy. Amortizable Intangible Assets — Television network affiliations represents the value assigned to an acquired broadcast television station’s relationship with a national television network. Television stations affiliated with national television networks typically have greater profit margins than independent television stations, primarily due to audience recognition of the television station as a network affiliate. We amortize these network affiliation relationships on a straight-line basis over estimated useful lives of 20 years. We amortize customer lists and other intangible assets in relation to their expected future cash flows over estimated useful lives of up to 20 years. Impairment of Long-Lived Assets — We review long-lived assets (primarily property and equipment and amortizable intangible assets) for impairment whenever events or circumstances indicate the carrying amounts of the assets may not be recoverable. Recoverability is determined by comparing the aggregate forecasted undiscounted cash flows derived from the operation of the assets to the carrying amount of the assets. If the aggregate undiscounted cash flow is less than the carrying amount of the assets, then amortizable intangible assets are written down first, followed by other long-lived assets, to fair value. We determine fair value based on discounted cash flows or appraisals. We report long-lived assets to be disposed of at the lower of carrying amount or fair value less costs to sell. Self-Insured Risks — We are self-insured, up to certain limits, for general and automobile liability, employee health, disability and workers’ compensation claims and certain other risks. Estimated liabilities for unpaid claims totaled $9.1 million at December 31, 2019 and $9.8 million at December 31, 2018. We estimate liabilities for unpaid claims using actuarial methodologies and our historical claims experience. While we re-evaluate our assumptions and review our claims experience on an ongoing basis, actual claims paid could vary significantly from estimated claims, which would require adjustments to expense. Based on the terms of the Master Transaction Agreement with Journal Media Group ("Journal"), Scripps remains the primary obligor for newspaper insurance claims incurred prior to April 1, 2015. We recorded the liabilities related to these claims on our Consolidated Balance Sheets with an offsetting receivable of $1.3 million, which will be paid by Journal. Income Taxes — We recognize deferred income taxes for temporary differences between the tax basis and reported amounts of assets and liabilities that will result in taxable or deductible amounts in future years. We establish a valuation allowance if we believe that it is more likely than not that we will not realize some or all of the deferred tax assets. We record a liability for unrecognized tax benefits resulting from uncertain tax positions taken or that we expect to take in a tax return. Interest and penalties associated with such tax positions are included in the tax provision. The liability for additional taxes and interest is included in other liabilities in the Consolidated Balance Sheets. Risk Management Contracts — We do not hold derivative financial instruments for trading or speculative purposes and we do not hold leveraged contracts. From time to time, we may use derivative financial instruments to limit the impact of interest rate fluctuations on our earnings and cash flows. Stock-Based Compensation — We have a Long-Term Incentive Plan (the “Plan”) which is described more fully in Note 18. The Plan provides for the award of incentive and nonqualified stock options, stock appreciation rights, restricted stock units (RSUs) and unrestricted Class A Common shares and performance units to key employees and non-employee directors. We recognize compensation cost based on the grant-date fair value of the award. We determine the fair value of awards that grant the employee the underlying shares by the fair value of a Class A Common share on the date of the award. Certain awards of RSUs have performance conditions under which the number of shares granted is determined by the extent to which such performance conditions are met (“Performance Shares”). Compensation costs for such awards are measured by the grant-date fair value of a Class A Common share and the number of shares earned. In periods prior to completion of the performance period, compensation costs are based upon estimates of the number of shares that will be earned. Compensation costs are recognized on a straight-line basis over the requisite service period of the award. The impact of forfeitures is recognized as they occur. The requisite service period is generally the vesting period stated in the award. Grants to retirement-eligible employees are expensed immediately and grants to employees who will become retirement eligible prior to the end of the stated vesting period are expensed over such shorter period because stock compensation grants vest upon the retirement eligibility of the employee. Earnings Per Share (“EPS”) — Unvested awards of share-based payments with rights to receive dividends or dividend equivalents, such as our RSUs, are considered participating securities for purposes of calculating EPS. Under the two-class method, we allocate a portion of net income to these participating securities and therefore exclude that income from the calculation of EPS for common stock. We do not allocate losses to the participating securities. The following table presents information about basic and diluted weighted-average shares outstanding: For the years ended December 31, (in thousands) 2019 2018 2017 Numerator (for basic and diluted earnings per share) Income (loss) from continuing operations, net of tax $ (1,913) $ 69,889 $ (10,178) Loss attributable to noncontrolling interest — 632 1,511 Less income allocated to RSUs — (1,129) — Numerator for basic and diluted earnings per share from continuing operations attributable to the shareholders of The E.W. Scripps Company $ (1,913) $ 69,392 $ (8,667) Denominator Basic weighted-average shares outstanding 80,826 81,369 82,052 Effect of dilutive securities: Stock options and restricted stock units — 558 — Diluted weighted-average shares outstanding 80,826 81,927 82,052 For the years ended December 31, 2019 and 2017, we incurred a net loss and the inclusion of RSUs and stock options would have been anti-dilutive. Accordingly, the diluted EPS calculations exclude the effect from 1.4 million and 1.2 million of outstanding RSUs as of December 31, 2019 and 2017, respectively.

Acquisitions

Acquisitions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Business Combinations [Abstract]
Acquisitions	Acquisitions Television Stations Acquisitions On September 19, 2019, we closed on the previously announced acquisition of eight television stations in seven markets from the Nexstar Media Group, Inc. ("Nexstar") transaction with Tribune Media Company ("Tribune"). Cash consideration for the transaction totaled $582 million. Seven of the stations were operated by Tribune, and its subsidiaries, and one was operated by Nexstar. Nexstar was required to divest these stations in order to complete its acquisition of Tribune. The purchase price and other related costs associated with the transaction were financed from a combination of incremental term loan B proceeds and a portion of the $500 million of senior unsecured notes issued on July 26, 2019. From the acquisition date of September 19, 2019 through December 31, 2019, revenue from the Nexstar-Tribune stations was $79.8 million. On May 1, 2019, we acquired 15 television stations in 10 markets from Cordillera Communications, LLC ("Cordillera"), for $521 million in cash, plus a working capital adjustment of $23.9 million. We financed the acquisition with a $765 million term loan B, of which $240 million was segregated into a separate account for financing a portion of the Nexstar transaction. From the acquisition date of May 1, 2019 through December 31, 2019, revenue from the Cordillera stations was $105.2 million. Effective January 1, 2019, we acquired three television stations owned by Raycom Media ("Raycom") — Waco, Texas ABC affiliate KXXV/KRHD and Tallahassee, Florida ABC affiliate WTXL — for $55 million in cash. These stations were being divested as part of Gray Television's acquisition of Raycom. From the acquisition date of January 1, 2019 through December 31, 2019, revenue from the Raycom stations was $23.4 million. The following table summarizes the fair values of the Raycom, Cordillera and Nexstar-Tribune assets acquired and liabilities assumed at the closing dates. The allocation of purchase price for the Cordillera and Nexstar-Tribune acquisitions reflect preliminary fair values. (in thousands) Raycom Cordillera Nexstar- Tribune Total Accounts receivable $ — $ 26,264 $ — $ 26,264 Current portion of programming — — 11,997 11,997 Other current assets — 986 3,541 4,527 Property and equipment 11,721 53,734 61,864 127,319 Operating lease right-of-use assets 296 4,667 82,447 87,410 Programming (less current portion) — — 9,830 9,830 Goodwill 18,349 252,920 164,457 435,726 Indefinite-lived intangible assets - FCC licenses 6,800 26,700 176,000 209,500 Amortizable intangible assets: Television network affiliation relationships 17,400 169,400 181,000 367,800 Advertiser relationships 700 5,900 7,100 13,700 Other intangible assets — 13,000 — 13,000 Accounts payable — (15) — (15) Accrued expenses — (3,983) (1,820) (5,803) Current portion of programming liabilities — — (16,211) (16,211) Other current liabilities — (280) (3,035) (3,315) Programming liabilities — — (15,079) (15,079) Operating lease liabilities (296) (4,387) (79,766) (84,449) Net purchase price $ 54,970 $ 544,906 $ 582,325 $ 1,182,201 Of the value allocated to amortizable intangible assets, television network affiliation relationships have an estimated amortization period of 20 years, advertiser relationships have estimated amortization periods of 5-10 years and the value allocated to a shared services agreement has an estimated amortization period of 20 years. The goodwill of $436 million arising from the transactions consists largely of synergies, economies of scale and other benefits of a larger broadcast footprint. We allocated the goodwill to our Local Media segment. We treated the transactions as asset acquisitions for income tax purposes resulting in a step-up in the assets acquired. The goodwill is deductible for income tax purposes. Omny Studio On June 10, 2019, we completed the acquisition of Omny Studio ("Omny") for a cash purchase price of $8.3 million. Omny is a Melbourne, Australia-based podcasting software-as-a-service company operating as a part of Triton in our National Media segment. Omny is an audio-on-demand platform built specifically for professional audio publishers. The platform enables audio publishers to seamlessly record, edit, distribute, monetize and analyze podcast content; replace static ads with dynamically inserted, highly targeted ads; and automates key aspects of campaign management, such as industry separation, frequency capping and volume normalization. The preliminary purchase price allocation assigned $5.3 million to goodwill, $3.8 million to a developed technology intangible asset and the remainder was allocated to various working capital and deferred tax liability accounts. The developed technology intangible asset has an estimated amortization period of 10 years. The goodwill arising from the transaction consists largely of the fact that the addition of Omny's podcast and on-demand audio publishing platform to Triton's portfolio of streaming, advertising and measurement technologies provides audio publishers around the world with a full-stack enterprise solution to increase reach and revenue. Triton On November 30, 2018, we acquired Triton Digital Canada, Inc. ("Triton") for total cash consideration of $160 million. Assets acquired in the transaction included approximately $10.5 million of cash. The transaction was funded with cash on hand at time of closing. Triton is a leading global digital audio infrastructure and audience measurement services company. Triton’s infrastructure and ad-serving solutions deliver live and on-demand audio streams and insert advertisements into those streams. Triton’s data and measurement service is recognized as the currency by which publishers sell digital audio advertising. The following table summarizes the final fair values of the Triton assets acquired and liabilities assumed at the closing date. (in thousands) Cash $ 10,515 Accounts receivable 8,879 Other current assets 679 Property and equipment 705 Goodwill 80,656 Other intangible assets 75,000 Accounts payable (1,895) Accrued expenses (3,332) Other current liabilities (18) Deferred tax liability (10,976) Total purchase price $ 160,213 The acquisition date fair value of goodwill was revised in 2019. Goodwill was decreased by $3.2 million as a result of adjustments to assumed tax liability balances in the opening balance sheet. Adjustment to decrease the fair value of the deferred tax liability by $3.6 million was partially offset by adjustments to various working capital accounts. Of the $75 million allocated to intangible assets, $39 million was assigned to various developed technologies for audience measurement, content delivery and advertising with lives ranging from 8-12 years, $31 million was assigned to customer relationships with a life of 12 years and $5 million was assigned to trade names with a life of 10 years. The goodwill of $81 million arises from being able to capitalize on the growth of the streaming audio industry and further improve our position in the global digital audio marketplace. The goodwill is allocated to our National Media segment. The transaction is accounted for as a stock acquisition which applies carryover tax basis to the assets and liabilities acquired. The goodwill is not deductible for income tax purposes. Katz On October 2, 2017 we acquired the Katz networks for $292 million, which was net of a 5.33% non-controlling interest we owned prior to the acquisition date. At the time of acquisition, Katz owned and operated four national television networks — Bounce, Grit, Escape and Laff. The acquisition was funded through the issuance of a new term loan B. Katz is included as part of our National Media segment. The following table summarizes the final fair values of the Katz assets acquired and liabilities assumed at the closing date. (in thousands) Cash $ 21,372 Accounts receivable 44,306 Current portion of programming 36,218 Intangible assets 32,300 Goodwill 203,760 Programming (less current portion) 52,908 Other assets 11,356 Accounts payable and accrued liabilities (29,339) Current portion of programming liabilities (32,877) Programming liabilities (37,692) Net purchase price $ 302,312 The acquisition date fair value of goodwill was revised in 2018. Goodwill was decreased by $5.8 million. Adjustments to increase the fair value of property and equipment by $9.9 million were partially offset by adjustments to decrease the fair value of program assets by $4.1 million. Additionally, these changes to the acquired value of assets in 2018 resulted in an increase to previously reported depreciation expense of $0.3 million and a decrease to previously reported programming costs of $0.3 million. Of the $32 million allocated to intangible assets, $8 million was assigned to trade names with a life of 10 years and $24 million was assigned to advertiser relationships with a life of 5 years. The goodwill of $204 million arises from being able to enter into the market for established over-the-air networks. The goodwill was allocated to our National Media segment. We treated the transaction as an asset acquisition for income tax purposes with a step-up in the assets acquired. The goodwill is deductible for income tax purposes. Prior to the acquisition of Katz, we owned a 5.33% noncontrolling interest of the company. Upon obtaining a controlling interest in Katz in 2017, we recorded a $5.4 million gain from the fair value remeasurement of our 5.33% interest. This gain was included in Miscellaneous, net in our Consolidated Statements of Operations for the year ended December 31, 2017. Pro forma results of operations Pro forma results of operations, assuming the Cordillera and Nexstar-Tribune acquisitions had taken place at the beginning of 2018, are presented in the following table. The pro forma results do not include Raycom or Omny Studio, as the impact of these acquisitions, individually or in the aggregate, is not material to prior year results of operations. The pro forma information includes the historical results of operations of Scripps, Cordillera and Nexstar-Tribune, as well as adjustments for additional depreciation and amortization of the assets acquired, additional interest expense related to the financing of the transaction and other transactional adjustments. The pro forma results exclude the $19.9 million of transaction related costs that were expensed in conjunction with the acquisitions and do not include efficiencies, cost reductions or synergies expected to result from the acquisitions. The unaudited pro forma financial information is not necessarily indicative of the results that actually would have occurred had the acquisitions been completed at the beginning of the period. For the years ended December 31, (in thousands, except per share data) (unaudited) 2019 2018 Operating revenues $ 1,572,493 $ 1,568,360 Income (loss) from continuing operations attributable to the shareholders of The E.W. Scripps Company (18,657) 42,426 Income (loss) per share from continuing operations attributable to the shareholders of The E.W. Scripps Company Basic $ (0.23) $ 0.51 Diluted (0.23) 0.51

Asset Write-Downs and Other Cha

Asset Write-Downs and Other Charges and Credits	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Asset Write-Downs and Other Charges and Credits [Abstract]
Asset Write-Downs and Other Charges and Credits	Asset Write-Downs and Other Charges and Credits Income (loss) from continuing operations before income taxes was affected by the following: 2019 — Acquisition and related integration costs of $26.3 million reflect investment banking and legal fees incurred to complete the current year acquisitions, as well as professional service costs incurred to integrate Triton and the Raycom, Cordillera and Nexstar-Tribune television stations. 2018 — Costs associated with our previously announced restructuring totaled $8.9 million. Acquisition and related integration costs of $4.1 million reflect professional service costs incurred to integrate Triton and the former Raycom stations, as well as costs related to the 2019 Cordillera acquisition. In the fourth quarter of 2018, we incurred a non-cash impairment charge of $8.9 million related to our original programming show, Pickler & Ben, which was not renewed for a third season. 2017 — In the second quarter, we sold our newspaper syndication business, resulting in a gain of $3.0 million. Restructuring includes $3.5 million of severance associated with a change in senior management and employees, as well as outside consulting fees associated with changes in our management and operating structure. In the third quarter of 2017, we recorded a $29.4 million non-cash charge to reduce the carrying value of goodwill and $6.3 million to reduce the value of intangible assets related to Cracked. For more information around the impairment of goodwill and intangible assets, see Note 10. We recognized a $5.4 million gain on our investment in Katz when we completed the acquisition in the fourth quarter.

Income Taxes

Income Taxes	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract]
Income Taxes	Income Taxes We file a consolidated federal income tax return, consolidated unitary returns in certain states, other separate state income tax returns for certain of our subsidiary companies, and applicable foreign returns. The provision for income taxes from continuing operations consisted of the following: For the years ended December 31, (in thousands) 2019 2018 2017 Current: Federal $ 6,653 $ 3,865 $ 1,431 State and local 2,235 2,331 (790) Foreign (6) 1 — Total current income tax provision (benefit) 8,882 6,197 641 Deferred: Federal (6,346) 15,588 (16,828) State and local 206 1,000 (2,725) Foreign 175 (4) — Total deferred income tax provision (benefit) (5,965) 16,584 (19,553) Provision (benefit) for income taxes $ 2,917 $ 22,781 $ (18,912) The difference between the statutory rate for federal income tax and the effective income tax rate was as follows: For the years ended December 31, 2019 2018 2017 Statutory rate 21.0 % 21.0 % 35.0 % Effect of: State and local income taxes, net of federal tax benefit 212.7 3.7 1.8 Excess tax benefits from stock-based compensation (60.4) 0.7 7.8 Nondeductible expenses 118.7 1.2 (5.0) Reserve for uncertain tax positions (13.7) (0.1) 4.0 U.S. federal statutory rate change — — 14.5 Other 12.2 (1.9) 6.9 Effective income tax rate 290.5 % 24.6 % 65.0 % The approximate effect of the temporary differences giving rise to deferred income tax assets (liabilities) were as follows: As of December 31, (in thousands) 2019 2018 Temporary differences: Property and equipment $ (33,802) $ (14,503) Goodwill and other intangible assets (100,841) (80,590) Investments, primarily gains and losses not yet recognized for tax purposes 3,176 3,067 Accrued expenses not deductible until paid 7,694 8,763 Deferred compensation and retiree benefits not deductible until paid 54,258 56,902 Operating lease right-of-use assets (31,039) — Operating lease liabilities 32,632 — Interest limitation carryforward 12,527 — Other temporary differences, net 3,422 3,616 Total temporary differences (51,973) (22,745) Federal and state net operating loss carryforwards 51,308 12,800 Valuation allowance for state deferred tax assets (4,905) (5,101) Net deferred tax liability $ (5,570) $ (15,046) Total federal operating loss carryforwards were $176 million and state operating loss carryforwards were $353 million at December 31, 2019. Our state tax loss carryforwards expire through 2039. Because we file separate state income tax returns for certain of our subsidiary companies, we are not able to use state tax losses of a subsidiary company to offset state taxable income of another subsidiary company. Deferred tax assets related to our state jurisdictions totaled $12 million at December 31, 2019. We recognize state net operating loss carryforwards as deferred tax assets, subject to valuation allowances. At each balance sheet date, we estimate the amount of carryforwards that are not expected to be used prior to expiration of the carryforward period. The tax effect of the carryforwards that are not expected to be used prior to their expiration is included in the valuation allowance. The Company has not provided for income taxes, including withholding tax, U.S. state taxes, or tax on foreign exchange rate changes, associated with the undistributed earnings of our non-U.S. subsidiaries because we plan to indefinitely reinvest the unremitted earnings in these entities. On December 22, 2017, the U.S. government enacted comprehensive tax legislation referred to as the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (the “Tax Act”). The Tax Act significantly revised the future ongoing U.S. corporate income tax by, among other things, lowering U.S. corporate income tax rates. The reduction of the U.S. corporate tax rate caused the Company to adjust its federal deferred tax assets and liabilities to the lower base rate of 21%. The change in the rate resulted in a provisional estimated benefit of $4.2 million for the year ended December 31, 2017. This amount includes the benefit related to the rate change on the deferred tax liabilities included in the radio net assets that are classified as held for sale (see Note 21) as such benefit is required by GAAP to be included in income taxes from continuing operations. The SEC provided guidance in SAB 118 that would allow for a measurement period of up to one year after the enactment date of the Tax Act to finalize the recording of the related income tax impacts. In accordance with that guidance, the income tax effects recorded in 2017 were provisional, including those related to our revaluation of federal deferred tax assets and liabilities. The accounting for the income tax effects could have been adjusted during 2018 as a result of continuing analysis of the Tax Act, or additional implementation guidance from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), state tax authorities, the SEC, the FASB, or the Joint Committee on Taxation. We had no material adjustments to our accounting for the Tax Act during 2018. A reconciliation of the beginning and ending balances of the total amounts of gross unrecognized tax benefits is as follows: For the years ended December 31, (in thousands) 2019 2018 2017 Gross unrecognized tax benefits at beginning of year $ 1,112 $ 1,088 $ 2,665 Increases in tax positions for prior years 87 130 16 Decreases in tax positions for prior years (387) (33) (390) Increases in tax positions for current years — 182 — Decreases in tax positions for current years (167) — (54) Decreases from lapse in statute of limitations (69) (255) (1,149) Gross unrecognized tax benefits at end of year $ 576 $ 1,112 $ 1,088 The total amount of net unrecognized tax benefits that, if recognized, would affect the effective tax rate was $0.2 million at December 31, 2019. We accrue interest and penalties related to unrecognized tax benefits in our provision for income taxes. At December 31, 2019 and 2018, we had accrued interest related to unrecognized tax benefits of less than $0.1 million. We file income tax returns in the U.S. and in various state and local jurisdictions. We are routinely examined by tax authorities in these jurisdictions. At December 31, 2019, we are no longer subject to federal income tax examinations for years prior to 2016. For state and local jurisdictions, we are generally no longer subject to income tax examinations for years prior to 2015. Due to the potential for resolution of federal and state examinations, and the expiration of various statutes of limitation, it is reasonably possible that our gross unrecognized tax benefits balance may change within the next twelve months by as much as $0.1 million.

Restricted Cash

Restricted Cash	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Cash and Cash Equivalents [Abstract]
Restricted Cash	Restricted Cash At December 31, 2018, our cash and cash equivalents included $5.1 million held in a restricted cash account on deposit with our insurance carrier. This account served as collateral, in place of an irrevocable stand-by letter of credit, to provide financial assurance that we will fulfill our obligations with respect to cash requirements associated with our workers' compensation self-insurance. This cash was to remain on deposit with the carrier until all claims have been paid or we provided a letter of credit in lieu of the cash deposit. At December 31, 2019, no deposits were held in a restricted cash account as we provided a letter of credit in lieu of the cash deposit.

Investments

Investments	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Investments [Abstract]
Investments	Investments Investments consisted of the following: As of December 31, (in thousands) 2019 2018 Investments held at cost $ 4,405 $ 4,114 Equity method investments 3,970 3,048 Total investments $ 8,375 $ 7,162

Property and Equipment

Property and Equipment	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Property, Plant and Equipment [Abstract]
Property and Equipment	Property and Equipment Property and equipment consisted of the following: As of December 31, (in thousands) 2019 2018 Land and improvements $ 62,712 $ 47,054 Buildings and improvements 187,830 144,389 Equipment 452,239 344,909 Computer software 20,047 17,492 Total 722,828 553,844 Accumulated depreciation 352,450 322,343 Net property and equipment $ 370,378 $ 231,501

Leases

Leases	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Leases [Abstract]
Leases	Leases We have operating leases for office space, data centers and certain equipment. Our leases have remaining lease terms of 1 year to 20 years, some of which may include options to extend the leases for up to 5 years, and some of which may include options to terminate the leases within 1 year. Operating lease costs recognized in our consolidated statements of operations for the year ended December 31, 2019 totaled $14.7 million, including short-term lease costs of $0.3 million. Other information related to our operating leases was as follows: (in thousands, except lease term and discount rate) As of December 31, 2019 Balance Sheet Information Right-of-use assets $ 128,192 Other current liabilities 15,051 Operating lease liabilities 113,648 Weighted Average Remaining Lease Term Operating leases 12.59 years Weighted Average Discount Rate Operating leases 5.19 % (in thousands) As of December 31, 2019 Supplemental Cash Flows Information Cash paid for amounts included in the measurement of lease liabilities $ 14,022 Right-of-use assets obtained in exchange for lease obligations 9,612 Future minimum lease payments under non-cancellable operating leases as of December 31, 2019 were as follows: (in thousands) Operating 2020 $ 20,445 2021 11,263 2022 14,625 2023 14,703 2024 13,444 Thereafter 102,711 Total future minimum lease payments 177,191 Less: Imputed interest (48,492) Total $ 128,699 Future minimum lease payments under non-cancellable operating leases as of December 31, 2018 (1) were as follows: (in thousands) Operating 2019 $ 9,214 2020 7,204 2021 4,577 2022 4,393 2023 4,179 Thereafter 14,878 Total future minimum lease payments $ 44,445 (1) Amounts included for comparability and accounted for in accordance with ASC 840, "Leases".

Goodwill and Other Intangible A

Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Goodwill and Intangible Assets Disclosure [Abstract]
Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets	Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets Goodwill by business segment was as follows: (in thousands) Local Media National Media Total Gross balance as of December 31, 2016 $ 708,133 $ 58,385 $ 766,518 Accumulated impairment losses (216,914) (21,000) (237,914) Net balance as of December 31, 2016 491,219 37,385 528,604 Cracked impairment charge — (29,403) (29,403) Katz acquisition — 209,572 209,572 Balance as of December 31, 2017 $ 491,219 $ 217,554 $ 708,773 Gross balance as of December 31, 2017 $ 708,133 $ 267,957 $ 976,090 Accumulated impairment losses (216,914) (50,403) (267,317) Net balance as of December 31, 2017 491,219 217,554 708,773 Katz acquisition adjustments — (5,812) (5,812) Triton acquisition — 83,876 83,876 Balance as of December 31, 2018 $ 491,219 $ 295,618 $ 786,837 Gross balance as of December 31, 2018 $ 708,133 $ 346,021 $ 1,054,154 Accumulated impairment losses (216,914) (50,403) (267,317) Net balance as of December 31, 2018 491,219 295,618 786,837 Television stations acquisitions 435,726 — 435,726 Omny acquisition — 5,336 5,336 Triton acquisition adjustment — (3,220) (3,220) Balance as of December 31, 2019 $ 926,945 $ 297,734 $ 1,224,679 Gross balance as of December 31, 2019 $ 1,143,859 $ 348,137 $ 1,491,996 Accumulated impairment losses (216,914) (50,403) (267,317) Net balance as of December 31, 2019 $ 926,945 $ 297,734 $ 1,224,679 Other intangible assets consisted of the following: As of December 31, (in thousands) 2019 2018 Amortizable intangible assets: Carrying amount: Television network affiliation relationships $ 616,244 $ 248,444 Customer lists and advertiser relationships 104,300 93,100 Other 102,956 82,193 Total carrying amount 823,500 423,737 Accumulated amortization: Television network affiliation relationships (82,917) (62,020) Customer lists and advertiser relationships (42,012) (31,323) Other (23,811) (11,703) Total accumulated amortization (148,740) (105,046) Net amortizable intangible assets 674,760 318,691 Indefinite-lived intangible assets — FCC licenses 385,915 157,215 Total other intangible assets $ 1,060,675 $ 475,906 On April 4, 2019, we acquired assets from an independent station in Stuart, Florida, for $23.6 million in cash. The value attributed to the acquired FCC license totaled $19.2 million and $4.1 million of value was attributed to other intangible assets. In 2018, we recognized other intangible assets of $5.8 million related to the acquisition of cable and satellite carriage rights for the launch of our Newsy cable network. These rights are amortized over the life of the respective carriage agreement. Estimated amortization expense of intangible assets for each of the next five years is $56.9 million in 2020, $54.8 million in 2021, $49.8 million in 2022, $44.7 million in 2023, $42.9 million in 2024 and $425.7 million in later years. Goodwill and indefinite-lived intangible assets are tested for impairment annually and any time events occur or conditions change that would indicate it is more likely than not the fair value of a reporting unit is below its carrying value. Such indicators of impairment include, but are not limited to, changes in business climate or other factors resulting in low cash flow related to such assets. If the fair value is less than the carrying value of the reporting unit then an impairment of goodwill exists and an impairment charge is recorded for the difference between the carrying value of the reporting unit and its estimated fair value, not to exceed the carrying value of the goodwill. The slower development of our original operating model created indications of impairment of goodwill as of September 30, 2017 for Cracked. Under the process required by GAAP, we estimated the fair value of Cracked. The fair value was determined using a combination of discounted cash flow approach, which estimated fair value based upon future revenues, expenses and cash flows discounted to their present value, and a market approach, which estimated fair value using market multiples of various financial measures compared to a set of comparable public companies. The discounted cash flow approach utilized unobservable factors, such as projected revenues and expenses and a discount rate applied to the estimated cash flows. The determination of the discount rate was based on a cost of capital model, using a risk-free rate, adjusted by a stock-beta adjusted risk premium and a size premium. The inputs to the nonrecurring fair value determination of our reporting units are classified as Level 3 fair value measurements under GAAP. The valuation methodology and underlying financial information used to determine fair value requires significant judgments to be made by management. These judgments include, but are not limited to, long-term projections of future financial performance and the selection of appropriate discount rates used to determine the present value of future cash flows. Changes in such estimates or the application of alternative assumptions could produce significantly different results.

Long-Term Debt

Long-Term Debt	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Debt Disclosure [Abstract]
Long-Term Debt	Long-Term Debt Long-term debt consisted of the following: As of December 31, (in thousands) 2019 2018 Revolving credit facility $ — $ — Senior unsecured notes, due in 2025 400,000 400,000 Senior unsecured notes, due in 2027 500,000 — Term loan, due in 2024 293,250 296,250 Term loan, due in 2026 759,272 — Total outstanding principal 1,952,522 696,250 Less: Debt issuance costs and issuance discounts (37,492) (7,486) Less: Current portion (10,612) (3,000) Net carrying value of long-term debt 1,904,418 685,764 Fair value of long-term debt * $ 1,991,164 $ 662,844 * Fair values of the 2025 and 2027 Senior Notes are estimated based on quoted private market transactions and are classified as Level 1 in the fair value hierarchy. The fair values of the term loans are based on observable estimates provided by third party financial professionals, and as such, are classified within Level 2 of the fair value hierarchy. 2025 Senior Unsecured Notes On April 28, 2017, we issued $400 million of senior unsecured notes (the "2025 Senior Notes"), which bear interest at a rate of 5.125% per annum and mature on May 15, 2025. The proceeds of the 2025 Senior Notes were used to repay an old term loan, for the payment of the related issuance costs and for general corporate purposes. The 2025 Senior Notes were priced at 100% of par value and interest is payable semi-annually on May 15 and November 15. Prior to May 15, 2020, we may redeem the 2025 Senior Notes, in whole or in part, at any time, or from time to time, at a price equal to 100% of the principal amount of the 2025 Senior Notes, plus accrued and unpaid interest, if any, to the date of redemption, plus a “make-whole” premium, as set forth in the 2025 Senior Notes indenture. In addition, on or prior to May 15, 2020, we may redeem up to 40% of the Senior Notes, using proceeds of equity offerings. If we sell certain of our assets or have a change of control, the holders of the 2025 Senior Notes may require us to repurchase some or all of the notes. The 2025 Senior Notes are also guaranteed by us and the majority our subsidiaries. The 2025 Senior Notes contain covenants with which we must comply that are typical for borrowing transactions of this nature. We incurred approximately $7.0 million of deferred financing costs in connection with the issuance of the 2025 Senior Notes, which are being amortized over the life of the notes. Additionally, in the second quarter of 2017, we wrote off $2.4 million of deferred financing costs associated with an old term loan. 2027 Senior Unsecured Notes On July 26, 2019, our wholly-owned subsidiary, Scripps Escrow, Inc. ("Scripps Escrow"), issued $500 million of senior unsecured notes, which bear interest at a rate of 5.875% per annum and mature on July 15, 2027 ("the 2027 Senior Notes"). The 2027 Senior Notes were released from Escrow on September 19, 2019 upon closing the acquisition of eight television stations from Nexstar. A portion of the proceeds from these 2027 Senior Notes and the incremental term loan B proceeds were used to finance these stations acquired from Nexstar. The 2027 Senior Notes were priced at 100% of par value and interest is payable semi-annually on July 15 and January 15, commencing on January 15, 2020. Prior to July 15, 2022, we may redeem up to 40% of the aggregate principal amount of the 2027 Senior Notes at a redemption price of 105.875% of the principal amount plus accrued and unpaid interest, if any, to the date of redemption. We may also redeem some or all of the notes before 2022 at a redemption price of 100% of the principal amount, plus accrued and unpaid interest, if any, to the redemption date. If we sell certain of our assets or have a change of control, the holders of the 2027 Senior Notes may require us to repurchase some or all of the notes. The 2027 Senior Notes are fully and unconditionally guaranteed on a senior unsecured basis by certain of our existing and future domestic restricted subsidiaries. The 2027 Senior Notes contain covenants with which we must comply that are typical for borrowing transactions of this nature. There are no registration rights associated with the 2027 Senior Notes. We incurred approximately $10.7 million of deferred financing costs in connection with the issuance of the 2027 Senior Notes, which are being amortized over the life of the notes. Scripps Senior Secured Credit Agreement On October 2, 2017, we issued a $300 million term loan B which matures in October 2024 ("2024 term loan"). We amended this term loan on April 4, 2018, reducing the interest rate by 25 basis points. Following the amendment, interest is payable on the 2024 term loan at a rate based on LIBOR, plus a fixed margin of 2.00%. Interest will reduce to a rate of LIBOR plus a fixed margin of 1.75% if the Company's total net leverage, as defined by the amended agreement, is below 2.75. The 2024 term loan requires annual principal payments of $3 million. As of December 31, 2019 and 2018, the interest rate on the 2024 term loan was 3.80% and 4.34%, respectively. The weighted-average interest rate was 3.88% and 4.30% in 2019 and 2018, respectively. On May 1, 2019, we entered into a Fourth Amendment to the Third Amended and Restated Credit Agreement ("Fourth Amendment"). Under the Fourth Amendment, we issued a $765 million term loan B ("2026 term loan") that matures in May 2026 with interest payable at rates based on LIBOR, plus a fixed margin of 2.75%. We amended this term loan on December 18, 2019, reducing the interest rate by 25 basis points. Following the amendment, interest is payable on the 2026 term loan at a rate based on LIBOR, plus a fixed margin of 2.50%. The 2026 term loan requires annual principal payments of $7.6 million. Deferred financing costs and original issuance discount totaled approximately $23.0 million with this term loan, which are being amortized over the life of the loan. Of the $765 million raised under the 2026 term loan, $525 million of the proceeds were used to fund the Cordillera acquisition and pay related fees and expenses, which closed on May 1, 2019. The remaining proceeds financed a portion of the acquisition of eight broadcast television stations from the Nexstar transaction with Tribune Media Company, which closed on September 19, 2019. As of December 31, 2019, the interest rate on the 2026 term loan was 4.30%. The weighted-average interest rate on the 2026 term loan was 4.56% for the months it was outstanding during 2019. Our credit agreement also includes a provision that in certain circumstances we must use a portion of excess cash flow to repay debt. As of December 31, 2019, we were not required to make any additional principal payments pursuant to this provision. We have a $210 million revolving credit facility ("Revolving Credit Facility") that expires in April 2022. Interest is payable on the Revolving Credit Facility at rates based on LIBOR, plus a margin, based on our leverage ratio, ranging from 1.75% to 2.50%. The weighted-average interest rate over the period we had a drawn revolver balance in 2019 was 4.18%. As of December 31, 2019, there were no borrowings under the revolving credit agreement. The Revolving Credit Facility includes the maintenance of a net leverage ratio when we have outstanding borrowings on the facility, as well as other restrictions on payments (dividends and share repurchases). Additionally, we can make acquisitions as long as the pro forma net leverage ratio is less than 5.5 to 1.0. Commitment fees of 0.30% to 0.50% per annum, based on our leverage ratio, of the total unused commitment are payable under the Revolving Credit Facility. As of December 31, 2019 and 2018, we had outstanding letters of credit totaling $6.0 million and $0.1 million, respectively, under the Revolving Credit Facility. Our credit agreement grants the lenders pledges of our equity interests in our subsidiaries and security interests in substantially all other personal property including cash, accounts receivables and equipment.

Fair Value Measurement

Fair Value Measurement	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Fair Value Disclosures [Abstract]
Fair Value Measurement	Fair Value Measurement We measure certain financial assets and liabilities at fair value on a recurring basis, such as cash equivalents. The fair values of these financial assets were determined based on three levels of inputs, of which the first two are considered observable and the last unobservable, that may be used to measure fair value. These levels of input are as follows: • Level 1 — Quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities. • Level 2 — Inputs, other than quoted market prices in active markets, that are observable either directly or indirectly. • Level 3 — Unobservable inputs based on our own assumptions. The following tables set forth our assets that are measured at fair value on a recurring basis at December 31, 2019 and 2018: December 31, 2019 (in thousands) Total Level 1 Level 2 Level 3 Cash equivalents $ 8,948 $ 8,948 $ — $ — December 31, 2018 (in thousands) Total Level 1 Level 2 Level 3 Cash equivalents $ 1,007 $ 1,007 $ — $ —

Other Liabilities

Other Liabilities	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Other Liabilities Disclosure [Abstract]
Other Liabilities	Other Liabilities Other liabilities consisted of the following: As of December 31, (in thousands) 2019 2018 Employee compensation and benefits $ 21,403 $ 19,775 Deferred FCC repack income 36,770 20,620 Programming liability 57,291 43,825 Liability for pension benefits 190,219 198,444 Liabilities for uncertain tax positions 637 811 Other 9,628 11,067 Other liabilities (less current portion) $ 315,948 $ 294,542

Supplemental Cash Flow Informat

Supplemental Cash Flow Information	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Supplemental Cash Flow Elements [Abstract]
Supplemental Cash Flow Information	Supplemental Cash Flow Information The following table presents additional information about the change in certain working capital accounts: For the years ended December 31, (in thousands) 2019 2018 2017 Accounts receivable $ (98,714) $ (16,910) $ (17,181) Other current assets (11,056) (2,396) (5,775) Accounts payable 1,572 (35) (46) Accrued employee compensation and benefits 877 7,718 2,100 Accrued interest 12,726 6 465 Other accrued liabilities 4,239 (2,471) 8,591 Unearned revenue 358 2,037 708 Other, net (19,532) 605 278 Total $ (109,530) $ (11,446) $ (10,860)

Employee Benefit Plans

Employee Benefit Plans	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Retirement Benefits [Abstract]
Employee Benefit Plans	Employee Benefit Plans We sponsor a noncontributory defined benefit pension plan and non-qualified Supplemental Executive Retirement Plans ("SERPs"). Both the defined benefit plan and the SERPs have frozen the accrual of future benefits. We sponsor a defined contribution plan covering substantially all non-union and certain union employees. We match a portion of employees' voluntary contributions to this plan. Other union-represented employees are covered by defined benefit pension plans jointly sponsored by us and the union, or by union-sponsored multi-employer plans. We use a December 31 measurement date for our retirement plans. Retirement plans expense is based on valuations as of the beginning of each year. The components of the expense consisted of the following: For the years ended December 31, (in thousands) 2019 2018 2017 Interest cost $ 23,287 $ 23,836 $ 25,966 Expected return on plan assets, net of expenses (19,974) (22,232) (17,439) Amortization of actuarial loss and prior service cost 2,622 3,527 4,424 Settlement losses — 11,713 — Total for defined benefit plans 5,935 16,844 12,951 Multi-employer plans 132 190 253 SERPs 1,018 2,908 1,161 Defined contribution plan 10,494 8,619 9,183 Net periodic benefit cost 17,579 28,561 23,548 Allocated to discontinued operations (447) (789) (848) Net periodic benefit cost - continuing operations $ 17,132 $ 27,772 $ 22,700 In 2018, we recognized a $1.8 million non-cash settlement charge related to lump-sum distributions from our SERP. Settlement charges are recorded when total lump-sum distributions for a plan's year exceed the total projected service cost and interest cost for that plan year. In November of 2018, we merged $306 million of pension assets and $419 million of pension obligations from our Scripps Pension Plan ("SPP”) into the Journal Communications, Inc. Plan (“JCI Plan”) that we also sponsor. The SPP retained pension assets and pension obligations totaling $9 million. Following the merger, we terminated the SPP and purchased a single premium group annuity contract from an insurance company in the amount of $53.5 million for the terminating SPP participants and certain participants in the newly merged JCI Plan. Upon issuance of the group annuity contract, the insurance company assumed all investment risk associated with the assets that were delivered as the annuity contract premium and assumed the obligation to make future annuity payments to approximately 600 remaining retirees receiving pension benefits in the SPP and approximately 1,500 remaining retirees receiving pension benefits in the newly merged JCI Plan. There was no change to the pension benefits for any plan participants as a result of these transactions and the purchase of the group annuity contract was funded directly by assets of the SPP and JCI Plan. In the fourth quarter of 2018, we recognized a one-time non-cash settlement charge of $11.7 million in connection with these transactions. Other changes in plan assets and benefit obligations recognized in other comprehensive income (loss) were as follows: For the years ended December 31, (in thousands) 2019 2018 2017 Actuarial gain/(loss) $ (5,478) $ (7,765) $ 12,205 Prior service cost — (424) — Amortization of actuarial loss and prior service cost 2,622 3,527 4,424 Reclassification of actuarial loss related to settlement — 11,713 — Total $ (2,856) $ 7,051 $ 16,629 In addition to the amounts summarized above, amortization of actuarial losses related to our SERPs recognized through other comprehensive income was $0.2 million in 2019, $0.3 million in 2018 and $0.2 million in 2017, and settlement losses in 2018 totaled $1.8 million. We recognized actuarial losses for our SERPs of $1.9 million and $2.5 million in 2019 and 2017, respectively, and a gain of $1.0 million in 2018. Assumptions used in determining the annual retirement plans expense were as follows: 2019 2018 (1) 2017 (2) Discount rate 4.38 % 3.71%-4.58% 4.26 % Long-term rate of return on plan assets 5.50 % 5.10 % 4.20%-4.30% (1) Range presented for 2018 discount rate represents the rates used for various remeasurement periods during the year as well as differing rates used for Scripps Pension Plan and Journal Communications, Inc. Plan. (2) Range presented for long-term rate of return on plan assets for 2017 represents the rates used for Scripps Pension Plan and Journal Communications, Inc. Plan. The discount rate used to determine our future pension obligations is based on a dedicated bond portfolio approach that includes securities rated Aa or better with maturities matching our expected benefit payments from the plans. The expected long-term rate of return on plan assets is based upon the weighted-average expected rate of return and capital market forecasts for each asset class employed. Changes in other key actuarial assumptions affect the determination of the benefit obligations as of the measurement date and the calculation of net periodic benefit costs in subsequent periods. Obligations and Funded Status — The defined benefit pension plan obligations and funded status are actuarially valued as of the end of each year. The following table presents information about our employee benefit plan assets and obligations: Defined Benefit Plans SERPs For the years ended December 31, (in thousands) 2019 2018 2019 2018 Change in projected benefit obligation: Projected benefit obligation at beginning of year $ 544,581 $ 654,536 $ 16,985 $ 23,691 Interest cost 23,287 23,836 718 746 Benefits paid (35,186) (33,872) (1,019) (1,021) Actuarial (gains)/losses 60,909 (46,800) 1,857 (1,034) Plan Amendments — 424 — — Settlements — (53,543) — (5,397) Projected benefit obligation at end of year 593,591 544,581 18,541 16,985 Plan assets: Fair value at beginning of year 361,891 464,441 — — Actual return on plan assets 75,405 (32,334) — — Company contributions 18,589 17,199 1,019 6,418 Benefits paid (35,186) (33,872) (1,019) (1,021) Settlements — (53,543) — (5,397) Fair value at end of year 420,699 361,891 — — Funded status $ (172,892) $ (182,690) $ (18,541) $ (16,985) Amounts recognized in Consolidated Balance Sheets: Current liabilities $ — $ — $ (1,214) $ (1,231) Noncurrent liabilities (172,892) (182,690) (17,327) (15,754) Total $ (172,892) $ (182,690) $ (18,541) $ (16,985) Amounts recognized in accumulated other comprehensive loss consist of: Net actuarial loss $ 123,065 $ 120,191 $ 7,240 $ 5,571 Prior service cost 406 424 — — In 2020, we expect to recognize amortization of accumulated other comprehensive loss into net periodic benefit costs of $4.8 million (including $0.3 million for our SERPs). Information for pension plans with an accumulated benefit obligation and projected benefit obligation in excess of plan assets was as follows: Defined Benefit Plans SERPs As of December 31, (in thousands) 2019 2018 2019 2018 Accumulated benefit obligation $ 593,591 $ 544,581 $ 18,541 $ 16,985 Projected benefit obligation 593,591 544,581 18,541 16,985 Fair value of plan assets 420,699 361,891 — — Assumptions used to determine the defined benefit pension plans benefit obligations were as follows: 2019 2018 2017 Weighted average discount rate 3.40 % 4.38 % 3.70 % In 2020, we expect to contribute $1.2 million to fund our SERPs and $31.8 million to fund our qualified defined benefit pension plan. Estimated future benefit payments expected to be paid from the plans for the next ten years are $31.4 million in 2020, $31.9 million in 2021, $32.4 million in 2022, $33.0 million in 2023, $33.8 million in 2024 and a total of $175.0 million for the five years ending 2029. Plan Assets and Investment Strategy Our long-term investment strategy for pension assets is to earn a rate of return over time that minimizes future contributions to the plan while reducing the volatility of pension assets relative to pension liabilities. The strategy reflects the fact that we have frozen the accrual of service credits under our plans which cover the majority of employees. We evaluate our asset allocation target ranges for equity, fixed income and other investments annually. We monitor actual asset allocations quarterly and adjust as necessary. We control risk through diversification among multiple asset classes, managers and styles. Risk is further monitored at the manager and asset class level by evaluating performance against appropriate benchmarks. Information related to our pension plan asset allocations by asset category were as follows: Target Percentage of plan assets 2020 2019 2018 US equity securities 20 % 17 % 19 % Non-US equity securities 30 % 39 % 28 % Fixed-income securities 45 % 43 % 46 % Other 5 % 1 % 7 % Total 100 % 100 % 100 % U.S. equity securities include common stocks of large, medium and small capitalization companies, which are predominantly U.S. based. Non-U.S. equity securities include companies domiciled outside of the U.S. and American depository receipts. Fixed-income securities include securities issued or guaranteed by the U.S. government, mortgage backed securities and corporate debt obligations. Other investments include real estate funds and cash equivalents. Under our asset allocation strategy, approximately 45% of plan assets are invested in a portfolio of fixed income securities with a duration approximately that of the projected payment of benefit obligations. The remaining 55% of plan assets are invested in equity securities and other return-seeking assets. The expected long-term rate of return on plan assets is based primarily upon the target asset allocation for plan assets and capital markets forecasts for each asset class employed. The following table presents our plan assets as of December 31, 2019 and 2018: As of December 31, (in thousands) 2019 2018 Equity securities Common/collective trust funds $ 237,015 $ 168,547 Fixed income Common/collective trust funds 181,176 166,079 Real estate fund — 24,798 Cash equivalents 2,508 2,467 Fair value of plan assets $ 420,699 $ 361,891 Our investments are valued using net asset value as a practical expedient as allowed under U.S. GAAP and therefore are not valued using the fair value hierarchy. Equity securities-common/collective trust funds and fixed income-common/collective trust funds are comprised of shares or units in commingled funds that are not publicly traded. The underlying assets in these funds (equity securities and fixed income securities) are publicly traded on exchanges and price quotes for the assets held by these funds are readily available. Common/collective trust funds are typically valued at their net asset values that are calculated by the investment manager or sponsor of the fund and have daily or monthly liquidity. Real estate fund pertained to an investment in a real estate fund which invested in limited partnerships, limited liability

Segment Information

Segment Information	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Segment Reporting [Abstract]
Segment Information	Segment Information We determine our business segments based upon our management and internal reporting structure, as well as the basis that our chief operating decision maker makes resource allocation decisions. We report our financial performance based on the following segments: Local Media, National Media, Other. Our Local Media segment includes our 60 local broadcast stations and their related digital operations. It is comprised of 18 ABC affiliates, 11 NBC affiliates, nine CBS affiliates and four FOX affiliates. We also have 13 CW affiliates - five on full power stations and eight on multicast; two MyNetwork TV affiliates; two independent stations and nine additional low power stations. Our Local Media segment earns revenue primarily from the sale of advertising to local, national and political advertisers and retransmission fees received from cable operators, telecommunication companies and satellite carriers. We also receive retransmission fees from over-the-top virtual MVPDs such as Hulu, YouTubeTV and AT&T Now. Our National Media segment includes our collection of national brands. Our national media brands include Katz, Newsy, Triton and other national brands. These operations earn revenue primarily through the sale of advertising. We allocate a portion of certain corporate costs and expenses, including information technology, certain employee benefits and shared services, to our business segments. The allocations are generally amounts agreed upon by management, which may differ from an arms-length amount. Our chief operating decision maker evaluates the operating performance of our business segments and makes decisions about the allocation of resources to our business segments using a measure called segment profit. Segment profit excludes interest, defined benefit pension plan expense, income taxes, depreciation and amortization, impairment charges, divested operating units, restructuring activities, investment results and certain other items that are included in net income (loss) determined in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America. Information regarding our business segments is as follows: For the years ended December 31, (in thousands) 2019 2018 2017 Segment operating revenues: Local Media $ 1,022,805 $ 917,480 $ 778,376 National Media 323,674 235,107 61,942 Other 4,920 4,775 5,455 Total operating revenues $ 1,351,399 $ 1,157,362 $ 845,773 Segment profit (loss): Local Media $ 217,885 $ 251,119 $ 156,890 National Media 43,166 29,168 (6,656) Other (3,957) (3,680) (2,361) Shared services and corporate (57,409) (53,123) (50,506) Acquisition and related integration costs (26,304) (4,124) — Restructuring costs (3,370) (8,911) (4,422) Depreciation and amortization of intangible assets (84,344) (60,711) (52,906) Impairment of goodwill and intangible assets — — (35,732) Gains (losses), net on disposal of property and equipment 1,692 (1,255) (169) Interest expense (80,596) (36,184) (26,552) Defined benefit pension plan expense (6,953) (19,752) (14,112) Miscellaneous, net 1,194 123 7,436 Income (loss) from continuing operations before income taxes $ 1,004 $ 92,670 $ (29,090) Depreciation: Local Media $ 34,086 $ 30,467 $ 31,870 National Media 4,302 2,336 88 Other 148 150 208 Shared services and corporate 1,462 1,432 1,883 Total depreciation $ 39,998 $ 34,385 $ 34,049 Amortization of intangible assets: Local Media $ 26,283 $ 14,821 $ 15,084 National Media 16,710 10,152 2,419 Shared services and corporate 1,353 1,353 1,354 Total amortization of intangible assets $ 44,346 $ 26,326 $ 18,857 A disaggregation of the principal activities from which we generate revenue is as follows: For the years ended December 31, (in thousands) 2019 2018 2017 Operating revenues: Core advertising $ 861,386 $ 686,229 $ 548,457 Political 23,263 139,600 8,651 Retransmission and carriage 390,043 304,402 259,712 Other 76,707 27,131 28,953 Total operating revenues $ 1,351,399 $ 1,157,362 $ 845,773 The following table presents additions to property and equipment by segment: For the years ended December 31, (in thousands) 2019 2018 2017 Additions to property and equipment: Local Media $ 46,855 $ 37,773 $ 16,946 National Media 11,963 9,004 289 Other 529 — — Shared services and corporate 1,878 723 367 Total additions to property and equipment $ 61,225 $ 47,500 $ 17,602 Total assets by segment for the years ended December 31 were as follows: As of December 31, (in thousands) 2019 2018 2017 Assets: Local Media $ 2,694,667 $ 1,261,526 $ 1,273,735 National Media 680,764 655,718 459,694 Other 3,503 865 2,128 Shared services and corporate 81,657 129,969 189,433 Total assets of continuing operations 3,460,591 2,048,078 1,924,990 Discontinued operations 101,266 82,269 204,789 Total assets $ 3,561,857 $ 2,130,347 $ 2,129,779

Commitments and Contingencies

Commitments and Contingencies	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]
Commitments and Contingencies	Commitments and Contingencies In the ordinary course of business, we enter into contractual commitments for network affiliation agreements, the acquisition of programming and for other purchase and service agreements. Minimum payments on such contractual commitments at December 31, 2019 were: $597.0 million in 2020, $548.8 million in 2021, $281.3 million in 2022, $55.2 million in 2023, $33.4 million in 2024, and $0.2 million in later years. We expect these contracts will be replaced with similar contracts upon their expiration. We are involved in litigation arising in the ordinary course of business, such as defamation actions and governmental proceedings primarily relating to renewal of broadcast licenses, none of which is expected to result in material loss.

Capital Stock and Share Based C

Capital Stock and Share Based Compensation Plans	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Equity [Abstract]
Capital Stock and Share-Based Compensation Plans	Capital Stock and Share-Based Compensation Plans Capital Stock — We have two classes of common shares, Common Voting shares and Class A Common shares. The Class A Common shares are only entitled to vote on the election of the greater of three or one-third of the directors and other matters as required by Ohio law. Share Repurchase Plan — Shares may be repurchased from time to time at management's discretion. In November 2016, our Board of Directors authorized a share repurchase program of up to $100 million of our Class A Common shares. This authorization expires on March 1, 2020. Shares can be repurchased under the authorization via open market purchases or privately negotiated transactions, including accelerated stock repurchase transactions, block trades, or pursuant to trades intending to comply with Rule 10b5-1 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. As part of the share repurchase plan, the Company entered into an Accelerated Share Repurchase ("ASR") agreement with JP Morgan to repurchase $25 million of the Company's common stock. Under the ASR agreement, the Company paid $25 million to JP Morgan and received an initial delivery of 1.3 million shares in the third quarter of 2018, which represented 80% of the total shares the Company expected to receive based on the market price at the time of the initial delivery. The transaction was accounted for as an equity transaction. The par value of shares received was recorded as a reduction to common stock with the remainder recorded as a reduction to additional paid-in capital or retained earnings. Upon initial receipt of the shares, there was an immediate reduction in the weighted average common shares calculation for basic and diluted earnings per share. Upon final settlement of the ASR agreement in February 2019, the Company received additional deliveries totaling 147,164 shares of its common stock based on a weighted average cost per share of $16.70 over the term of the ASR agreement. As of December 31, 2019, we repurchased $0.6 million of shares at prices ranging from $15.54 to $18.72 per share. Excluding the shares repurchased under the ASR, during 2018 we repurchased $7.3 million of shares at prices ranging from $13.29 to $17.86 per share. As of December 31, 2019, $49.7 million was outstanding under this authorization. In February 2020, our Board of Directors authorized a new share repurchase program of up to $100 million of our Class A Common shares through March 1, 2022. Incentive Plans — The Company has a long-term incentive plan (the “Plan”) that permits the granting of incentive and nonqualified stock options, stock appreciation rights, restricted stock units (RSUs), restricted and unrestricted Class A Common shares and performance units to key employees and non-employee directors. We satisfy stock option exercises and vested stock awards with newly issued shares. As of December 31, 2019, approximately 5.1 million shares were available for future stock compensation awards. Stock Options — Stock options grant the recipient the right to purchase Class A Common shares at not less than 100% of the fair market value on the date the option is granted. We have not issued any new stock options since 2008. The following table summarizes our stock option activity: Number Weighted- Range of Outstanding at December 31, 2016 486,914 $ 6.81 $ 6-9 Exercised (235,407) 6.20 6-8 Outstanding at December 31, 2017 251,507 7.38 6-9 Exercised (251,507) 7.38 6-9 Outstanding at December 31, 2018 — The following table summarizes additional information about exercises of stock options: For the years ended December 31, (in thousands) 2019 2018 2017 Cash received upon exercise $ — $ 1,857 $ 1,461 Intrinsic value (market value on date of exercise less exercise price) — 1,266 3,919 Tax benefits realized — 315 1,497 Restricted Stock Units — Awards of restricted stock units (RSUs) generally require no payment by the employee. RSUs are converted into an equal number of Class A Common shares when vested. These awards generally vest over a three four Long-term incentive compensation includes performance share awards. Performance share awards represent the right to receive an award of RSUs if certain performance measures are met. Each award specifies a target number of shares to be issued and the specific performance criteria that must be met. The number of shares that an employee receives may be less or more than the target number of shares depending on the extent to which the specified performance measures are met or exceeded. The following table summarizes our RSU activity: Fair Value Number Weighted Range of Unvested at December 31, 2016 1,425,177 $ 17.05 $ 12-24 Awarded 653,522 22.51 17-24 Vested (581,920) 20.78 14-24 Forfeited (308,856) 17.20 14-24 Unvested at December 31, 2017 1,187,923 19.99 14-24 Awarded 816,771 13.28 11-17 Vested (771,904) 14.16 11-18 Forfeited (57,348) 16.68 13-23 Unvested at December 31, 2018 1,175,442 15.86 11-24 Awarded 758,557 22.12 13-23 Vested (536,064) 21.67 12-23 Forfeited (39,497) 17.89 13-24 Unvested at December 31, 2019 1,358,438 18.68 11-24 The following table summarizes additional information about RSU vesting: For the years ended December 31, (in thousands) 2019 2018 2017 Fair value of RSUs vested $ 11,618 $ 10,930 $ 12,090 Tax benefits realized on vesting 2,969 1,758 4,630 Share-based Compensation Costs Share-based compensation costs were as follows: For the years ended December 31, (in thousands) 2019 2018 2017 Total share-based compensation $ 13,308 $ 11,008 $ 12,960 Included in discontinued operations (215) (468) (646) Included in continuing operations $ 13,093 $ 10,540 $ 12,314 Share-based compensation, net of tax $ 9,747 $ 7,919 $ 7,605 As of December 31, 2019, $13.4 million of total unrecognized compensation costs related to RSUs and performance shares is expected to be recognized over a weighted-average period of 1.5 years.

Accumulated Other Comprehensive

Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss (Notes)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss), Net of Tax [Abstract]
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss	Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss) Changes in the accumulated other comprehensive income (loss) ("AOCI") balance by component consisted of the following for the respective years: (in thousands) Defined Benefit Pension Items Other Total As of December 31, 2017 $ (102,955) $ 33 $ (102,922) Other comprehensive income (loss) before reclassifications, net of tax of $(1,803) and $(22) (5,351) (65) (5,416) Amounts reclassified from AOCI, net of tax of $4,360 12,941 — 12,941 Net current-period other comprehensive income (loss) 7,590 (65) 7,525 As of December 31, 2018 (95,365) (32) (95,397) Other comprehensive income (loss) before reclassifications, net of tax of $(1,874) and $(77) (5,461) (223) (5,684) Amounts reclassified from AOCI, net of tax of $718 2,092 — 2,092 Net current-period other comprehensive income (loss) (3,369) (223) (3,592) As of December 31, 2019 $ (98,734) $ (255) $ (98,989) Amounts reclassified to net earnings for defined benefit pension items relate to the amortization of actuarial gains (losses) and settlement charges. These amounts are included within the defined benefit pension plan expense caption on our Consolidated Statements of Operations. See Note 15. Employee Benefit Plans for additional information.

Summarized Quarterly Financial

Summarized Quarterly Financial Information (Unaudited)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Quarterly Financial Information Disclosure [Abstract]
Summarized Quarterly Financial Information (Unaudited)	Summarized Quarterly Financial Information (Unaudited) Summarized quarterly financial information is as follows: 2019 1st 2nd 3rd 4th (in thousands, except per share data) Quarter Quarter Quarter Quarter Total Operating revenues $ 277,059 $ 320,428 $ 330,857 $ 423,055 $ 1,351,399 Costs and expenses (254,305) (272,351) (303,652) (351,080) (1,181,388) Depreciation and amortization of intangible assets (17,006) (19,532) (21,661) (26,145) (84,344) Gains (losses), net on disposal of property and equipment (173) (144) 11 1,998 1,692 Interest expense (8,916) (18,023) (26,537) (27,120) (80,596) Defined benefit pension plan expense (1,572) (1,564) (2,071) (1,746) (6,953) Miscellaneous, net (800) 369 2,042 (417) 1,194 Income (loss) from continuing operations before income taxes (5,713) 9,183 (21,011) 18,545 1,004 Provision (benefit) for income taxes (2,393) 3,385 (3,677) 5,602 2,917 Income (loss) from continuing operations, net of tax (3,320) 5,798 (17,334) 12,943 (1,913) Loss from discontinued operations, net of tax (3,494) (6,164) (4,429) (2,378) (16,465) Net income (loss) (6,814) (366) (21,763) 10,565 (18,378) Income (loss) attributable to noncontrolling interest — — 166 (166) — Net income (loss) attributable to the shareholders of The E.W. Scripps Company $ (6,814) $ (366) $ (21,929) $ 10,731 $ (18,378) Net income (loss) from continuing operations per basic share of common stock $ (0.04) $ 0.07 $ (0.22) $ 0.16 $ (0.02) Loss from discontinued operations per basic share of common stock $ (0.04) $ (0.07) $ (0.05) $ (0.03) $ (0.20) Net income (loss) from continuing operations per diluted share of common stock $ (0.04) $ 0.07 $ (0.22) $ 0.16 $ (0.02) Loss from discontinued operations per diluted share of common stock $ (0.04) $ (0.07) $ (0.05) $ (0.03) $ (0.20) Weighted average shares outstanding: Basic 80,673 80,822 80,877 80,927 80,826 Diluted 80,673 81,196 80,877 81,322 80,826 Cash dividends per share of common stock $ 0.05 $ 0.05 $ 0.05 $ 0.05 $ 0.20 The sum of the quarterly net income (loss) per share amounts may not equal the reported annual amount because each amount is computed independently based upon the weighted-average number of shares outstanding for the period. 2018 1st 2nd 3rd 4th (in thousands, except per share data) Quarter Quarter Quarter Quarter Total Operating revenues $ 243,206 $ 273,425 $ 289,334 $ 351,397 $ 1,157,362 Costs and expenses (225,407) (231,594) (228,632) (261,280) (946,913) Depreciation and amortization of intangible assets (14,547) (14,494) (14,840) (16,830) (60,711) Gains (losses), net on disposal of property and equipment (717) 66 501 (1,105) (1,255) Interest expense (8,759) (9,279) (9,003) (9,143) (36,184) Defined benefit pension plan expense (1,388) (1,389) (3,529) (13,446) (19,752) Miscellaneous, net 138 (156) (546) 687 123 Income (loss) from continuing operations before income taxes (7,474) 16,579 33,285 50,280 92,670 Provision (benefit) for income taxes (1,210) 4,219 8,695 11,077 22,781 Income (loss) from continuing operations, net of tax (6,264) 12,360 24,590 39,203 69,889 Loss from discontinued operations, net of tax (20,817) (6,640) (5,459) (17,224) (50,140) Net income (loss) (27,081) 5,720 19,131 21,979 19,749 Loss attributable to noncontrolling interest (632) — — — (632) Net income (loss) attributable to the shareholders of The E.W. Scripps Company $ (26,449) $ 5,720 $ 19,131 $ 21,979 $ 20,381 Net income (loss) from continuing operations per basic share of common stock $ (0.07) $ 0.15 $ 0.30 $ 0.48 $ 0.85 Loss from discontinued operations per basic share of common stock $ (0.26) $ (0.08) $ (0.07) $ (0.21) $ (0.61) Net income (loss) from continuing operations per diluted share of common stock $ (0.07) $ 0.15 $ 0.29 $ 0.47 $ 0.85 Loss from discontinued operations per diluted share of common stock $ (0.26) $ (0.08) $ (0.07) $ (0.21) $ (0.60) Weighted average shares outstanding: Basic 81,554 81,824 81,452 80,669 81,369 Diluted 81,554 81,852 82,084 81,348 81,927 Cash dividends per share of common stock $ 0.05 $ 0.05 $ 0.05 $ 0.05 $ 0.20 The sum of the quarterly net income (loss) per share amounts may not equal the reported annual amount because each amount is computed independently based upon the weighted-average number of shares outstanding for the period.

Assets Held for Sale and Discon

Assets Held for Sale and Discontinued Operations	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Discontinued Operations and Disposal Groups [Abstract]
Assets Held for Sale and Discontinued Operations	Assets Held for Sale and Discontinued Operations Stitcher During the second quarter of 2020, our Board of Directors approved the sale of our Stitcher podcasting business. On July 10, 2020, we signed a definitive agreement to sell the business for $325 million, with $265 million of cash upfront; earnout of up to $30 million based on 2020 financial results and paid in 2021; and earnout of up to $30 million based on 2021 financial results and paid in 2022. The transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2020 upon satisfaction of normal and customary closing conditions and regulatory approval. We have classified Stitcher as held for sale in our consolidated balance sheet and reported its results as discontinued operations in our condensed statements of operations for all periods presented. Radio Divestiture In the fourth quarter of 2017, we began the process to divest our radio business. Our radio business consisted of 34 radio stations in eight markets. We closed on the sale of our Tulsa radio stations on October 1, 2018, closed on the sales of our Milwaukee, Knoxville, Omaha, Springfield and Wichita radio stations on November 1, 2018 and closed on the sales of our Boise and Tucson radio stations on December 12, 2018. We have reported its results as discontinued operations for the years ended 2017 and 2018. Operating results of our Stitcher and radio operations included in discontinued operations were as follows: 2019 2018 2017 (in thousands) Stitcher Stitcher Radio Total Stitcher Radio Total Operating revenues $ 72,545 $ 51,063 $ 49,243 $ 100,306 $ 31,199 $ 68,630 $ 99,829 Total costs and expenses (91,725) (66,311) (42,694) (109,005) (33,803) (57,061) (90,864) Depreciation and amortization of intangible assets (2,642) (3,276) — (3,276) (3,437) (2,910) (6,347) Impairment of goodwill and intangible assets — — (25,900) (25,900) — (8,000) (8,000) Other, net (57) 29 (179) (150) 3,055 (258) 2,797 Income (loss) from operations of discontinued operations (21,879) (18,495) (19,530) (38,025) (2,986) 401 (2,585) Pretax loss on disposal of discontinued operations — — (18,558) (18,558) — — — Income (loss) from discontinued operations before income taxes (21,879) (18,495) (38,088) (56,583) (2,986) 401 (2,585) Income tax benefit (provision) 5,414 4,683 1,760 6,443 1,142 (2,996) (1,854) Loss from discontinued operations, net of tax $ (16,465) $ (13,812) $ (36,328) $ (50,140) $ (1,844) $ (2,595) $ (4,439) Results of discontinued operations in 2018 and 2017 included $25.9 million and $8.0 million, respectively, of non-cash impairment charges to write-down the goodwill of our radio business to fair value. The income tax provision for discontinued operations was impacted by non-deductible charges of $30.9 million in 2018 and $8.0 million in 2017. We also entered into separate Local Marketing Agreements (“LMA”) with the acquirer of the Tulsa radio stations and the acquirer of the Wichita, Springfield, Omaha, and Knoxville radio stations. Under the terms of these agreements, the acquiring entities paid us a monthly LMA fee and also reimbursed us for certain station expenses, as defined in the agreements, in exchange for the right to program and sell advertising from the stations' inventory of broadcast time. The LMA with the acquirer of the Tulsa radio stations was effective from July 30, 2018 until the closing of the transaction. The other LMA was effective from September 1, 2018 until closing of the transactions. Discontinued operating revenues included LMA fees totaling $2.5 million for the year ended December 31, 2018. The following table presents a summary of the Stitcher assets held for sale included in our consolidated balance sheets. (in thousands) As of December 31, 2019 As of December 31, 2018 Assets: Total current assets $ 34,793 $ 23,792 Investments 178 — Property and equipment 5,526 6,426 Goodwill and intangible assets 48,292 50,223 Operating lease right-of-use assets 10,448 — Other assets 2,029 1,828 Total assets included in the disposal group 101,266 82,269 Liabilities: Total current liabilities 10,175 9,447 Other liabilities 12,552 1,344 Total liabilities included in the disposal group 22,727 10,791 Net assets included in the disposal group $ 78,539 $ 71,478

Summary of Significant Accoun_2

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies (Policies)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Accounting Policies [Abstract]
Nature of Operations	Nature of Operations — We are a diverse media enterprise, serving audiences and businesses through a portfolio of local television stations and national media brands. All of our businesses provide content and services via digital platforms, including the Internet, smartphones and tablets. Our media businesses are organized into the following reportable business segments: Local Media, National Media and Other.
Basis of Presentation	Basis of Presentation — Certain amounts in prior periods have been reclassified to conform to the current period's presentation.
Concentration Risks	Concentration Risks — Our operations are geographically dispersed and we have a diverse customer base. We believe bad debt losses resulting from default by a single customer, or defaults by customers in any depressed region or business sector, would not have a material effect on our financial position, results of operations or cash flows. We derive approximately 65% of our operating revenues from advertising. Changes in the demand for such services, both nationally and in individual markets, can affect operating results.
Use of Estimates	Use of Estimates — Preparing financial statements in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America requires us to make a variety of decisions that affect the reported amounts and the related disclosures. Such decisions include the selection of accounting principles that reflect the economic substance of the underlying transactions and the assumptions on which to base accounting estimates. In reaching such decisions, we apply judgment based on our understanding and analysis of the relevant circumstances, including our historical experience, actuarial studies and other assumptions. Our financial statements include estimates and assumptions used in accounting for our defined benefit pension plans; the periods over which long-lived assets are depreciated or amortized; the fair value of long-lived assets, goodwill and indefinite lived assets; the liability for uncertain tax positions and valuation allowances against deferred income tax assets; the fair value of assets acquired and liabilities assumed in business combinations; and self-insured risks. While we re-evaluate our estimates and assumptions on an ongoing basis, actual results could differ from those estimated at the time of preparation of the financial statements.
Consolidation	Consolidation — The consolidated financial statements include our accounts and those of our wholly-owned and majority-owned subsidiaries and variable interest entities (VIEs) for which we are the primary beneficiary. We are the primary beneficiary of a VIE when we have the power to direct the activities of the VIE that most significantly impact the economic performance of the VIE and have the obligation to absorb losses or the right to receive returns that would be significant to the VIE. Noncontrolling interest represents an owner’s share of the equity in certain of our consolidated entities. All intercompany transactions and account balances have been eliminated in consolidation. Investments in entities over which we have significant influence but not control are accounted for using the equity method of accounting. Income from equity method investments represents our proportionate share of net income generated by equity method investees.
Nature of Products and Services	Nature of Products and Services — The following is a description of principal activities from which we generate revenue. Core Advertising — Core advertising is comprised of sales to local and national customers. The advertising includes a combination of broadcast air time, as well as digital advertising. Pricing of advertising time is based on audience size and share, the demographic of our audiences and the demand for our limited inventory of commercial time. Advertising time is sold through a combination of local sales staff and national sales representative firms. Digital revenues are primarily generated from the sale of advertising to local and national customers on our local television websites, smartphone apps, tablet apps and other platforms. Political Advertising — Political advertising is generally sold through our Washington D.C. sales office. Advertising is sold to presidential, gubernatorial, Senate and House of Representative candidates, as well as for state and local issues. It is also sold to political action groups (PACs) or other advocacy groups. Retransmission Revenues — We earn revenue from retransmission consent agreements with multi-channel video programming distributors (“MVPDs”) in our markets. The MVPDs are cable operators and satellite carriers who pay us to offer our programming to their customers. We also receive fees from over-the-top virtual MVPDs such as Hulu, YouTubeTV and AT&T Now. The fees we receive are typically based on the number of subscribers in our local market and the contracted rate per subscriber. Other Products and Services — We derive revenue from sponsorships and community events through our Local Media segment. Our National Media segment offers subscription services for access to premium content to its customers. Our Triton business earns revenue from monthly fees charged to audio publishers for converting their content into digital audio streams and inserting digital advertising into those audio streams and providing statistical measurement information about their listening audience. Refer to Note 16. Segment Information for further information, including revenue by significant product and service offering.
Revenue Recognition and Contract Balances	Revenue Recognition — Revenue is measured based on the consideration we expect to be entitled to in exchange for promised goods or services provided to customers, and excludes any amounts collected on behalf of third parties. Revenue is recognized upon transfer of control of promised products or services to customers. Advertising — Advertising revenue is recognized, net of agency commissions, over time primarily as ads are aired or impressions are delivered and any contracted audience guarantees are met. We apply the practical expedient to recognize revenue at the amount we have the right to invoice, which corresponds directly to the value a customer has received relative to our performance. For advertising sold based on audience guarantees, audience deficiency may result in an obligation to deliver additional advertisements to the customer. To the extent that we do not satisfy contracted audience ratings, we record deferred revenue until such time that the audience guarantee has been satisfied. Retransmission — Retransmission revenues are considered licenses of functional intellectual property and are recognized at the point in time the content is transferred to the customer. MVPDs report their subscriber numbers to us generally on a 30- to 90-day lag. Prior to receiving the MVPD reporting, we record revenue based on estimates of the number of subscribers, utilizing historical levels and trends of subscribers for each MVPD. Other — Revenues generated by our Triton business are recognized on a ratable basis over the contract term as the monthly service is provided to the customer. Contract Balances — Timing of revenue recognition may differ from the timing of invoicing to customers. We record a receivable when revenue is recognized prior to invoicing, or unearned revenue when revenue is recognized subsequent to invoicing. We extend credit to customers based upon our assessment of the customer’s financial condition. Collateral is generally not required from customers. Payment terms may vary by contract type, although our terms generally include a requirement of payment within 30 to 90 days. In instances where the timing of revenue recognition differs from the timing of invoicing, we have determined our contracts do not include a significant financing component. The primary purpose of our invoicing terms is to provide customers with simplified and predictable ways of purchasing our products and services, not to receive financing from our customers. Assets Recognized from the Costs to Obtain a Contract with a Customer — We recognize an asset for the incremental costs of obtaining a contract with a customer if we expect the benefit of those costs to be longer than one year. We apply and use the practical expedient in the revenue guidance to expense costs as incurred for costs to obtain a contract when the amortization period is one year or less. This expedient applies to advertising sales commissions since advertising contracts are short-term in nature. In addition, we also may provide inducement payments to secure carriage agreements with distributors of our content. These inducement payments are capitalized and amortized to expense over the term of the distribution contract. Capitalized costs to obtain a contract with a customer totaled $9.3 million at December 31, 2019 and $9.7 million at December 31, 2018 and are included within miscellaneous assets on our Consolidated Balance Sheets. Amortization of these costs totaled $4.2 million and $1.0 million in 2019 and 2018, respectively.
Transaction Price Allocated to Remaining Performance Obligations	Transaction Price Allocated to Remaining Performance Obligations — As of December 31, 2019, we had an aggregate transaction price of $59.6 million allocated to unsatisfied performance obligations related to contracts within our Triton business, all of which are expected to be recognized into revenue over the next 24 months. We did not disclose the value of unsatisfied performance obligations on any other contracts with customers because they are either (i) contracts with an original expected term of one year or less, (ii) contracts for which the sales- or usage-based royalty exception was applied, or (iii) contracts for which we recognize revenue at the amount to which we have the right to invoice for services performed.
Cash Equivalents	Cash Equivalents — Cash equivalents represent highly liquid investments with maturity of less than three months when acquired.
Investments	Investments — From time to time, we make investments in private companies. Investment securities can be impacted by various market risks, including interest rate risk, credit risk and overall market volatility. Due to the level of risk associated with certain investment securities, it is reasonably possible that changes in the values of investment securities will occur in the near term. Such changes could materially affect the amounts reported in our financial statements. We record investments in private companies not accounted for under the equity method at cost, net of impairment write-downs, because no readily determinable market price is available. We regularly review our investments to determine if there has been any other-than-temporary decline in value. These reviews require management judgments that often include estimating the outcome of future events and determining whether factors exist that indicate impairment has occurred. We evaluate, among other factors, the extent to which cost exceeds fair value; the duration of the decline in fair value below cost; and the current cash position, earnings and cash forecasts and near-term prospects of the investee. We reduce the cost basis when a decline in fair value below cost is determined to be other than temporary, with the resulting adjustment charged against earnings.
Property and Equipment	Property and Equipment — Property and equipment is carried at cost less depreciation. We compute depreciation using the straight-line method over estimated useful lives as follows: Buildings and improvements 15 to 45 years Leasehold improvements Shorter of term of lease or useful life Broadcast transmission towers and related equipment 15 to 35 years Other broadcast and program production equipment 3 to 15 years Computer hardware 3 to 5 years Office and other equipment 3 to 10 years
Programming	Programming — Programming includes the cost of national television network programming, programming produced by us or for us by independent production companies and programs licensed under agreements with independent producers. Our network affiliation agreements require the payment of affiliation fees to the network. Network affiliation fees consist of pre-determined fixed fees in all cases and variable payments based on a share of retransmission revenues above the fixed fees for some of our agreements. Program licenses principally consist of television series and films. Program licenses generally have fixed terms, limit the number of times we can air the programs and require payments over the terms of the licenses. We record licensed program assets and liabilities when the license period has commenced and the programs are available for broadcast. We do not discount program licenses for imputed interest. We amortize program licenses based upon expected cash flows over the term of the license agreement. We classify the portion of the unamortized balance expected to be amortized within one year as a current asset. The costs of programming produced by us or for us by independent production companies is charged to expense over estimated useful lives based upon expected future cash flows. The realizable value of internal costs incurred for trial footage at Court TV, including employee compensation and benefits, are capitalized and amortized based upon expected future cash flows. All other internal costs to produce daily or live broadcast shows, such as news, sports or daily magazine shows, are expensed as incurred and are not classified in our Consolidated Statements of Operations as program costs, but are classified based on the type of cost incurred. Progress payments on programs not yet available for broadcast are recorded as deposits within programming assets. We review the net realizable value of program assets for impairment using a day-part methodology if the programming is for our local broadcast stations, whereby programs broadcast during a particular time period, such as prime time, are evaluated on an aggregate basis. Programming for our over-the-air broadcast network is reviewed for impairment using the individual network methodology. For our program assets available for broadcast, estimated amortization for each of the next five years is $59.4 million in 2020, $44.1 million in 2021, $25.9 million in 2022, $7.4 million in 2023, $3.1 million in 2024 and $3.3 million thereafter. Actual amortization in each of the next five years will exceed the amounts currently recorded as program assets available for broadcast, as we will continue to produce and license additional programs.
FCC Repack	FCC Repack — In April 2017, the Federal Communications Commission (the “FCC”) began a process of reallocating the broadcast spectrum (the “repack”). Specifically, the FCC is requiring certain television stations to change channels and/or modify their transmission facilities. The U.S. Congress passed legislation which provides the FCC with a fund to reimburse all reasonable costs incurred by stations operating under a full power license and a portion of the costs incurred by stations operating under a low power license that are reassigned to new channels.
Leases	Leases — We determine if an arrangement is a lease at inception. Operating leases are included in operating lease right-of-use (“ROU”) assets, other current liabilities and operating lease liabilities in our Consolidated Balance Sheets. ROU assets represent our right to use an underlying asset for the lease term and lease liabilities represent our obligation to make lease payments arising from the lease. Operating lease ROU assets and liabilities are recognized at the commencement date based on the present value of lease payments over the lease term. As the implicit rate is not readily determinable for most of our leases, we use our incremental borrowing rate when determining the present value of lease payments. The incremental borrowing rate represents an estimate of the interest rate we would incur at lease commencement to borrow an amount equal to the lease payments on a collateralized basis over the term of the lease. The operating lease ROU asset also includes any payments made at or before commencement and is reduced by any lease incentives. Our lease terms may include options to extend or terminate the lease when it is reasonably certain that we will exercise that option. Lease expense for lease payments is recognized on a straight-line basis over the lease term.
Goodwill and Other Indefinite-Lived Intangible Assets	Goodwill and Other Indefinite-Lived Intangible Assets — Goodwill represents the cost of acquisitions in excess of the acquired businesses’ tangible assets and identifiable intangible assets. FCC licenses represent the value assigned to the broadcast licenses of acquired broadcast television stations. Broadcast television stations are subject to the jurisdiction of the Federal Communications Commission (“FCC”) which prohibits the operation of stations except in accordance with an FCC license. FCC licenses stipulate each station’s operating parameters as defined by channels, effective radiated power and antenna height. FCC licenses are granted for a term of up to eight We do not amortize goodwill or our FCC licenses, but we review them for impairment at least annually or any time events occur or conditions change that would indicate it is more likely than not the fair value of a reporting unit is below its carrying value. We perform our annual impairment review during the fourth quarter of each year in conjunction with our annual planning cycle. We also assess, at least annually, whether our FCC licenses, classified as indefinite-lived intangible assets, continue to have indefinite lives. We review goodwill for impairment based upon our reporting units, which are defined as operating segments or groupings of businesses one level below the operating segment level. Reporting units with similar economic characteristics are aggregated into a single unit when testing goodwill for impairment. Our reporting units are our Local Media group, Katz, Stitcher, Triton and Newsy.
Amortizable Intangible Assets	Amortizable Intangible Assets — Television network affiliations represents the value assigned to an acquired broadcast television station’s relationship with a national television network. Television stations affiliated with national television networks typically have greater profit margins than independent television stations, primarily due to audience recognition of the television station as a network affiliate. We amortize these network affiliation relationships on a straight-line basis over estimated useful lives of 20 years. We amortize customer lists and other intangible assets in relation to their expected future cash flows over estimated useful lives of up to 20 years.
Impairment of Long-Lived Assets	Impairment of Long-Lived Assets — We review long-lived assets (primarily property and equipment and amortizable intangible assets) for impairment whenever events or circumstances indicate the carrying amounts of the assets may not be recoverable. Recoverability is determined by comparing the aggregate forecasted undiscounted cash flows derived from the operation of the assets to the carrying amount of the assets. If the aggregate undiscounted cash flow is less than the carrying amount of the assets, then amortizable intangible assets are written down first, followed by other long-lived assets, to fair value. We determine fair value based on discounted cash flows or appraisals. We report long-lived assets to be disposed of at the lower of carrying amount or fair value less costs to sell.
Self-Insured Risks	Self-Insured Risks — We are self-insured, up to certain limits, for general and automobile liability, employee health, disability and workers’ compensation claims and certain other risks. Estimated liabilities for unpaid claims totaled $9.1 million at December 31, 2019 and $9.8 million at December 31, 2018. We estimate liabilities for unpaid claims using actuarial methodologies and our historical claims experience. While we re-evaluate our assumptions and review our claims experience on an ongoing basis, actual claims paid could vary significantly from estimated claims, which would require adjustments to expense. Based on the terms of the Master Transaction Agreement with Journal Media Group ("Journal"), Scripps remains the primary obligor for newspaper insurance claims incurred prior to April 1, 2015. We recorded the liabilities related to these claims on our Consolidated Balance Sheets with an offsetting receivable of $1.3 million, which will be paid by Journal.
Income Taxes	Income Taxes — We recognize deferred income taxes for temporary differences between the tax basis and reported amounts of assets and liabilities that will result in taxable or deductible amounts in future years. We establish a valuation allowance if we believe that it is more likely than not that we will not realize some or all of the deferred tax assets. We record a liability for unrecognized tax benefits resulting from uncertain tax positions taken or that we expect to take in a tax return. Interest and penalties associated with such tax positions are included in the tax provision. The liability for additional taxes and interest is included in other liabilities in the Consolidated Balance Sheets.
Risk Management Contracts	Risk Management Contracts — We do not hold derivative financial instruments for trading or speculative purposes and we do not hold leveraged contracts. From time to time, we may use derivative financial instruments to limit the impact of interest rate fluctuations on our earnings and cash flows.
Share-Based Compensation	Stock-Based Compensation — We have a Long-Term Incentive Plan (the “Plan”) which is described more fully in Note 18. The Plan provides for the award of incentive and nonqualified stock options, stock appreciation rights, restricted stock units (RSUs) and unrestricted Class A Common shares and performance units to key employees and non-employee directors. We recognize compensation cost based on the grant-date fair value of the award. We determine the fair value of awards that grant the employee the underlying shares by the fair value of a Class A Common share on the date of the award. Certain awards of RSUs have performance conditions under which the number of shares granted is determined by the extent to which such performance conditions are met (“Performance Shares”). Compensation costs for such awards are measured by the grant-date fair value of a Class A Common share and the number of shares earned. In periods prior to completion of the performance period, compensation costs are based upon estimates of the number of shares that will be earned. Compensation costs are recognized on a straight-line basis over the requisite service period of the award. The impact of forfeitures is recognized as they occur. The requisite service period is generally the vesting period stated in the award. Grants to retirement-eligible employees are expensed immediately and grants to employees who will become retirement eligible prior to the end of the stated vesting period are expensed over such shorter period because stock compensation grants vest upon the retirement eligibility of the employee.
Earnings Per Share (EPS)	Earnings Per Share (“EPS”) — Unvested awards of share-based payments with rights to receive dividends or dividend equivalents, such as our RSUs, are considered participating securities for purposes of calculating EPS. Under the two-class method, we allocate a portion of net income to these participating securities and therefore exclude that income from the calculation of EPS for common stock. We do not allocate losses to the participating securities. The following table presents information about basic and diluted weighted-average shares outstanding: For the years ended December 31, (in thousands) 2019 2018 2017 Numerator (for basic and diluted earnings per share) Income (loss) from continuing operations, net of tax $ (1,913) $ 69,889 $ (10,178) Loss attributable to noncontrolling interest — 632 1,511 Less income allocated to RSUs — (1,129) — Numerator for basic and diluted earnings per share from continuing operations attributable to the shareholders of The E.W. Scripps Company $ (1,913) $ 69,392 $ (8,667) Denominator Basic weighted-average shares outstanding 80,826 81,369 82,052 Effect of dilutive securities: Stock options and restricted stock units — 558 — Diluted weighted-average shares outstanding 80,826 81,927 82,052 For the years ended December 31, 2019 and 2017, we incurred a net loss and the inclusion of RSUs and stock options would have been anti-dilutive. Accordingly, the diluted EPS calculations exclude the effect from 1.4 million and 1.2 million of outstanding RSUs as of December 31, 2019 and 2017, respectively.

Summary of Significant Accoun_3

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Accounting Policies [Abstract]
Schedule of allowance for doubtful accounts	A rollforward of the allowance for doubtful accounts is as follows: (in thousands) January 1, 2017 $ 1,490 Charged to costs and expenses 1,314 Amounts charged off, net (855) Balance as of December 31, 2017 1,949 Charged to costs and expenses 3,378 Amounts charged off, net (1,106) Balance as of December 31, 2018 4,221 Charged to costs and expenses 1,823 Amounts charged off, net (2,698) Balance as of December 31, 2019 $ 3,346
Estimated useful lives of property and equipment	We compute depreciation using the straight-line method over estimated useful lives as follows: Buildings and improvements 15 to 45 years Leasehold improvements Shorter of term of lease or useful life Broadcast transmission towers and related equipment 15 to 35 years Other broadcast and program production equipment 3 to 15 years Computer hardware 3 to 5 years Office and other equipment 3 to 10 years Property and equipment consisted of the following: As of December 31, (in thousands) 2019 2018 Land and improvements $ 62,712 $ 47,054 Buildings and improvements 187,830 144,389 Equipment 452,239 344,909 Computer software 20,047 17,492 Total 722,828 553,844 Accumulated depreciation 352,450 322,343 Net property and equipment $ 370,378 $ 231,501
Components of basic and diluted weighted-average shares	The following table presents information about basic and diluted weighted-average shares outstanding: For the years ended December 31, (in thousands) 2019 2018 2017 Numerator (for basic and diluted earnings per share) Income (loss) from continuing operations, net of tax $ (1,913) $ 69,889 $ (10,178) Loss attributable to noncontrolling interest — 632 1,511 Less income allocated to RSUs — (1,129) — Numerator for basic and diluted earnings per share from continuing operations attributable to the shareholders of The E.W. Scripps Company $ (1,913) $ 69,392 $ (8,667) Denominator Basic weighted-average shares outstanding 80,826 81,369 82,052 Effect of dilutive securities: Stock options and restricted stock units — 558 — Diluted weighted-average shares outstanding 80,826 81,927 82,052

Acquisitions (Tables)

Acquisitions (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Business Combinations [Abstract]
Fair values of the assets acquired and liabilities assumed	The following table summarizes the fair values of the Raycom, Cordillera and Nexstar-Tribune assets acquired and liabilities assumed at the closing dates. The allocation of purchase price for the Cordillera and Nexstar-Tribune acquisitions reflect preliminary fair values. (in thousands) Raycom Cordillera Nexstar- Tribune Total Accounts receivable $ — $ 26,264 $ — $ 26,264 Current portion of programming — — 11,997 11,997 Other current assets — 986 3,541 4,527 Property and equipment 11,721 53,734 61,864 127,319 Operating lease right-of-use assets 296 4,667 82,447 87,410 Programming (less current portion) — — 9,830 9,830 Goodwill 18,349 252,920 164,457 435,726 Indefinite-lived intangible assets - FCC licenses 6,800 26,700 176,000 209,500 Amortizable intangible assets: Television network affiliation relationships 17,400 169,400 181,000 367,800 Advertiser relationships 700 5,900 7,100 13,700 Other intangible assets — 13,000 — 13,000 Accounts payable — (15) — (15) Accrued expenses — (3,983) (1,820) (5,803) Current portion of programming liabilities — — (16,211) (16,211) Other current liabilities — (280) (3,035) (3,315) Programming liabilities — — (15,079) (15,079) Operating lease liabilities (296) (4,387) (79,766) (84,449) Net purchase price $ 54,970 $ 544,906 $ 582,325 $ 1,182,201 The following table summarizes the final fair values of the Triton assets acquired and liabilities assumed at the closing date. (in thousands) Cash $ 10,515 Accounts receivable 8,879 Other current assets 679 Property and equipment 705 Goodwill 80,656 Other intangible assets 75,000 Accounts payable (1,895) Accrued expenses (3,332) Other current liabilities (18) Deferred tax liability (10,976) Total purchase price $ 160,213 The following table summarizes the final fair values of the Katz assets acquired and liabilities assumed at the closing date. (in thousands) Cash $ 21,372 Accounts receivable 44,306 Current portion of programming 36,218 Intangible assets 32,300 Goodwill 203,760 Programming (less current portion) 52,908 Other assets 11,356 Accounts payable and accrued liabilities (29,339) Current portion of programming liabilities (32,877) Programming liabilities (37,692) Net purchase price $ 302,312
Pro forma results of operations	For the years ended December 31, (in thousands, except per share data) (unaudited) 2019 2018 Operating revenues $ 1,572,493 $ 1,568,360 Income (loss) from continuing operations attributable to the shareholders of The E.W. Scripps Company (18,657) 42,426 Income (loss) per share from continuing operations attributable to the shareholders of The E.W. Scripps Company Basic $ (0.23) $ 0.51 Diluted (0.23) 0.51

Income Taxes (Tables)

Income Taxes (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract]
Provision for income taxes	The provision for income taxes from continuing operations consisted of the following: For the years ended December 31, (in thousands) 2019 2018 2017 Current: Federal $ 6,653 $ 3,865 $ 1,431 State and local 2,235 2,331 (790) Foreign (6) 1 — Total current income tax provision (benefit) 8,882 6,197 641 Deferred: Federal (6,346) 15,588 (16,828) State and local 206 1,000 (2,725) Foreign 175 (4) — Total deferred income tax provision (benefit) (5,965) 16,584 (19,553) Provision (benefit) for income taxes $ 2,917 $ 22,781 $ (18,912)
Effective income tax rate reconciliation	The difference between the statutory rate for federal income tax and the effective income tax rate was as follows: For the years ended December 31, 2019 2018 2017 Statutory rate 21.0 % 21.0 % 35.0 % Effect of: State and local income taxes, net of federal tax benefit 212.7 3.7 1.8 Excess tax benefits from stock-based compensation (60.4) 0.7 7.8 Nondeductible expenses 118.7 1.2 (5.0) Reserve for uncertain tax positions (13.7) (0.1) 4.0 U.S. federal statutory rate change — — 14.5 Other 12.2 (1.9) 6.9 Effective income tax rate 290.5 % 24.6 % 65.0 %
Schedule of deferred income tax (liabilities) assets	The approximate effect of the temporary differences giving rise to deferred income tax assets (liabilities) were as follows: As of December 31, (in thousands) 2019 2018 Temporary differences: Property and equipment $ (33,802) $ (14,503) Goodwill and other intangible assets (100,841) (80,590) Investments, primarily gains and losses not yet recognized for tax purposes 3,176 3,067 Accrued expenses not deductible until paid 7,694 8,763 Deferred compensation and retiree benefits not deductible until paid 54,258 56,902 Operating lease right-of-use assets (31,039) — Operating lease liabilities 32,632 — Interest limitation carryforward 12,527 — Other temporary differences, net 3,422 3,616 Total temporary differences (51,973) (22,745) Federal and state net operating loss carryforwards 51,308 12,800 Valuation allowance for state deferred tax assets (4,905) (5,101) Net deferred tax liability $ (5,570) $ (15,046)
Gross unrecognized tax benefit reconciliation	A reconciliation of the beginning and ending balances of the total amounts of gross unrecognized tax benefits is as follows: For the years ended December 31, (in thousands) 2019 2018 2017 Gross unrecognized tax benefits at beginning of year $ 1,112 $ 1,088 $ 2,665 Increases in tax positions for prior years 87 130 16 Decreases in tax positions for prior years (387) (33) (390) Increases in tax positions for current years — 182 — Decreases in tax positions for current years (167) — (54) Decreases from lapse in statute of limitations (69) (255) (1,149) Gross unrecognized tax benefits at end of year $ 576 $ 1,112 $ 1,088

Investments (Tables)

Investments (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Investments [Abstract]
Schedule of investments	Investments consisted of the following: As of December 31, (in thousands) 2019 2018 Investments held at cost $ 4,405 $ 4,114 Equity method investments 3,970 3,048 Total investments $ 8,375 $ 7,162

Property and Equipment (Tables)

Property and Equipment (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Property, Plant and Equipment [Abstract]
Property and Equipment	We compute depreciation using the straight-line method over estimated useful lives as follows: Buildings and improvements 15 to 45 years Leasehold improvements Shorter of term of lease or useful life Broadcast transmission towers and related equipment 15 to 35 years Other broadcast and program production equipment 3 to 15 years Computer hardware 3 to 5 years Office and other equipment 3 to 10 years Property and equipment consisted of the following: As of December 31, (in thousands) 2019 2018 Land and improvements $ 62,712 $ 47,054 Buildings and improvements 187,830 144,389 Equipment 452,239 344,909 Computer software 20,047 17,492 Total 722,828 553,844 Accumulated depreciation 352,450 322,343 Net property and equipment $ 370,378 $ 231,501

Leases (Tables)

Leases (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Leases [Abstract]
Operating lease maturity schedule	Future minimum lease payments under non-cancellable operating leases as of December 31, 2019 were as follows: (in thousands) Operating 2020 $ 20,445 2021 11,263 2022 14,625 2023 14,703 2024 13,444 Thereafter 102,711 Total future minimum lease payments 177,191 Less: Imputed interest (48,492) Total $ 128,699
Operating lease maturity schedule under ASC 840	Future minimum lease payments under non-cancellable operating leases as of December 31, 2018 (1) were as follows: (in thousands) Operating 2019 $ 9,214 2020 7,204 2021 4,577 2022 4,393 2023 4,179 Thereafter 14,878 Total future minimum lease payments $ 44,445 (1) Amounts included for comparability and accounted for in accordance with ASC 840, "Leases".
Lease assets and liabilities	Other information related to our operating leases was as follows: (in thousands, except lease term and discount rate) As of December 31, 2019 Balance Sheet Information Right-of-use assets $ 128,192 Other current liabilities 15,051 Operating lease liabilities 113,648 Weighted Average Remaining Lease Term Operating leases 12.59 years Weighted Average Discount Rate Operating leases 5.19 %
Lease supplemental cash flow information	(in thousands) As of December 31, 2019 Supplemental Cash Flows Information Cash paid for amounts included in the measurement of lease liabilities $ 14,022 Right-of-use assets obtained in exchange for lease obligations 9,612

Goodwill and Other Intangible_2

Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Goodwill and Intangible Assets Disclosure [Abstract]
Goodwill by business segment	Goodwill by business segment was as follows: (in thousands) Local Media National Media Total Gross balance as of December 31, 2016 $ 708,133 $ 58,385 $ 766,518 Accumulated impairment losses (216,914) (21,000) (237,914) Net balance as of December 31, 2016 491,219 37,385 528,604 Cracked impairment charge — (29,403) (29,403) Katz acquisition — 209,572 209,572 Balance as of December 31, 2017 $ 491,219 $ 217,554 $ 708,773 Gross balance as of December 31, 2017 $ 708,133 $ 267,957 $ 976,090 Accumulated impairment losses (216,914) (50,403) (267,317) Net balance as of December 31, 2017 491,219 217,554 708,773 Katz acquisition adjustments — (5,812) (5,812) Triton acquisition — 83,876 83,876 Balance as of December 31, 2018 $ 491,219 $ 295,618 $ 786,837 Gross balance as of December 31, 2018 $ 708,133 $ 346,021 $ 1,054,154 Accumulated impairment losses (216,914) (50,403) (267,317) Net balance as of December 31, 2018 491,219 295,618 786,837 Television stations acquisitions 435,726 — 435,726 Omny acquisition — 5,336 5,336 Triton acquisition adjustment — (3,220) (3,220) Balance as of December 31, 2019 $ 926,945 $ 297,734 $ 1,224,679 Gross balance as of December 31, 2019 $ 1,143,859 $ 348,137 $ 1,491,996 Accumulated impairment losses (216,914) (50,403) (267,317) Net balance as of December 31, 2019 $ 926,945 $ 297,734 $ 1,224,679
Summary of other finite-lived intangible assets	Other intangible assets consisted of the following: As of December 31, (in thousands) 2019 2018 Amortizable intangible assets: Carrying amount: Television network affiliation relationships $ 616,244 $ 248,444 Customer lists and advertiser relationships 104,300 93,100 Other 102,956 82,193 Total carrying amount 823,500 423,737 Accumulated amortization: Television network affiliation relationships (82,917) (62,020) Customer lists and advertiser relationships (42,012) (31,323) Other (23,811) (11,703) Total accumulated amortization (148,740) (105,046) Net amortizable intangible assets 674,760 318,691 Indefinite-lived intangible assets — FCC licenses 385,915 157,215 Total other intangible assets $ 1,060,675 $ 475,906
Summary of other indefinite-lived intangible assets	Other intangible assets consisted of the following: As of December 31, (in thousands) 2019 2018 Amortizable intangible assets: Carrying amount: Television network affiliation relationships $ 616,244 $ 248,444 Customer lists and advertiser relationships 104,300 93,100 Other 102,956 82,193 Total carrying amount 823,500 423,737 Accumulated amortization: Television network affiliation relationships (82,917) (62,020) Customer lists and advertiser relationships (42,012) (31,323) Other (23,811) (11,703) Total accumulated amortization (148,740) (105,046) Net amortizable intangible assets 674,760 318,691 Indefinite-lived intangible assets — FCC licenses 385,915 157,215 Total other intangible assets $ 1,060,675 $ 475,906

Long-Term Debt (Tables)

Long-Term Debt (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Debt Disclosure [Abstract]
Components of Long-term debt	Long-term debt consisted of the following: As of December 31, (in thousands) 2019 2018 Revolving credit facility $ — $ — Senior unsecured notes, due in 2025 400,000 400,000 Senior unsecured notes, due in 2027 500,000 — Term loan, due in 2024 293,250 296,250 Term loan, due in 2026 759,272 — Total outstanding principal 1,952,522 696,250 Less: Debt issuance costs and issuance discounts (37,492) (7,486) Less: Current portion (10,612) (3,000) Net carrying value of long-term debt 1,904,418 685,764 Fair value of long-term debt * $ 1,991,164 $ 662,844

Fair Value Measurement (Tables)

Fair Value Measurement (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Fair Value Disclosures [Abstract]
Assets and liabilities that are measured at fair value on a recurring basis	The following tables set forth our assets that are measured at fair value on a recurring basis at December 31, 2019 and 2018: December 31, 2019 (in thousands) Total Level 1 Level 2 Level 3 Cash equivalents $ 8,948 $ 8,948 $ — $ — December 31, 2018 (in thousands) Total Level 1 Level 2 Level 3 Cash equivalents $ 1,007 $ 1,007 $ — $ —

Other Liabilities (Tables)

Other Liabilities (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Other Liabilities Disclosure [Abstract]
Other liabilities	Other liabilities consisted of the following: As of December 31, (in thousands) 2019 2018 Employee compensation and benefits $ 21,403 $ 19,775 Deferred FCC repack income 36,770 20,620 Programming liability 57,291 43,825 Liability for pension benefits 190,219 198,444 Liabilities for uncertain tax positions 637 811 Other 9,628 11,067 Other liabilities (less current portion) $ 315,948 $ 294,542

Supplemental Cash Flow Inform_2

Supplemental Cash Flow Information (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Supplemental Cash Flow Elements [Abstract]
Change in certain working capital accounts	The following table presents additional information about the change in certain working capital accounts: For the years ended December 31, (in thousands) 2019 2018 2017 Accounts receivable $ (98,714) $ (16,910) $ (17,181) Other current assets (11,056) (2,396) (5,775) Accounts payable 1,572 (35) (46) Accrued employee compensation and benefits 877 7,718 2,100 Accrued interest 12,726 6 465 Other accrued liabilities 4,239 (2,471) 8,591 Unearned revenue 358 2,037 708 Other, net (19,532) 605 278 Total $ (109,530) $ (11,446) $ (10,860)

Employee Benefit Plans (Tables)

Employee Benefit Plans (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Retirement Benefits [Abstract]
Components of benefit expense	The components of the expense consisted of the following: For the years ended December 31, (in thousands) 2019 2018 2017 Interest cost $ 23,287 $ 23,836 $ 25,966 Expected return on plan assets, net of expenses (19,974) (22,232) (17,439) Amortization of actuarial loss and prior service cost 2,622 3,527 4,424 Settlement losses — 11,713 — Total for defined benefit plans 5,935 16,844 12,951 Multi-employer plans 132 190 253 SERPs 1,018 2,908 1,161 Defined contribution plan 10,494 8,619 9,183 Net periodic benefit cost 17,579 28,561 23,548 Allocated to discontinued operations (447) (789) (848) Net periodic benefit cost - continuing operations $ 17,132 $ 27,772 $ 22,700
Changes in plan assets and benefit obligations recognized in other comprehensive income (loss)	Other changes in plan assets and benefit obligations recognized in other comprehensive income (loss) were as follows: For the years ended December 31, (in thousands) 2019 2018 2017 Actuarial gain/(loss) $ (5,478) $ (7,765) $ 12,205 Prior service cost — (424) — Amortization of actuarial loss and prior service cost 2,622 3,527 4,424 Reclassification of actuarial loss related to settlement — 11,713 — Total $ (2,856) $ 7,051 $ 16,629
Schedule of assumptions used	Assumptions used in determining the annual retirement plans expense were as follows: 2019 2018 (1) 2017 (2) Discount rate 4.38 % 3.71%-4.58% 4.26 % Long-term rate of return on plan assets 5.50 % 5.10 % 4.20%-4.30% (1) Range presented for 2018 discount rate represents the rates used for various remeasurement periods during the year as well as differing rates used for Scripps Pension Plan and Journal Communications, Inc. Plan. (2) Range presented for long-term rate of return on plan assets for 2017 represents the rates used for Scripps Pension Plan and Journal Communications, Inc. Plan. Assumptions used to determine the defined benefit pension plans benefit obligations were as follows: 2019 2018 2017 Weighted average discount rate 3.40 % 4.38 % 3.70 %
Schedule of employee benefit plan assets and obligations	The following table presents information about our employee benefit plan assets and obligations: Defined Benefit Plans SERPs For the years ended December 31, (in thousands) 2019 2018 2019 2018 Change in projected benefit obligation: Projected benefit obligation at beginning of year $ 544,581 $ 654,536 $ 16,985 $ 23,691 Interest cost 23,287 23,836 718 746 Benefits paid (35,186) (33,872) (1,019) (1,021) Actuarial (gains)/losses 60,909 (46,800) 1,857 (1,034) Plan Amendments — 424 — — Settlements — (53,543) — (5,397) Projected benefit obligation at end of year 593,591 544,581 18,541 16,985 Plan assets: Fair value at beginning of year 361,891 464,441 — — Actual return on plan assets 75,405 (32,334) — — Company contributions 18,589 17,199 1,019 6,418 Benefits paid (35,186) (33,872) (1,019) (1,021) Settlements — (53,543) — (5,397) Fair value at end of year 420,699 361,891 — — Funded status $ (172,892) $ (182,690) $ (18,541) $ (16,985) Amounts recognized in Consolidated Balance Sheets: Current liabilities $ — $ — $ (1,214) $ (1,231) Noncurrent liabilities (172,892) (182,690) (17,327) (15,754) Total $ (172,892) $ (182,690) $ (18,541) $ (16,985) Amounts recognized in accumulated other comprehensive loss consist of: Net actuarial loss $ 123,065 $ 120,191 $ 7,240 $ 5,571 Prior service cost 406 424 — —
Schedule of pension plans with an accumulated benefit obligation and projected benefit obligation in excess of plan assets	Information for pension plans with an accumulated benefit obligation and projected benefit obligation in excess of plan assets was as follows: Defined Benefit Plans SERPs As of December 31, (in thousands) 2019 2018 2019 2018 Accumulated benefit obligation $ 593,591 $ 544,581 $ 18,541 $ 16,985 Projected benefit obligation 593,591 544,581 18,541 16,985 Fair value of plan assets 420,699 361,891 — —
Schedule of allocation of pension plan assets by asset category	Information related to our pension plan asset allocations by asset category were as follows: Target Percentage of plan assets 2020 2019 2018 US equity securities 20 % 17 % 19 % Non-US equity securities 30 % 39 % 28 % Fixed-income securities 45 % 43 % 46 % Other 5 % 1 % 7 % Total 100 % 100 % 100 %
Plan assets measured using the fair value hierarchy	The following table presents our plan assets as of December 31, 2019 and 2018: As of December 31, (in thousands) 2019 2018 Equity securities Common/collective trust funds $ 237,015 $ 168,547 Fixed income Common/collective trust funds 181,176 166,079 Real estate fund — 24,798 Cash equivalents 2,508 2,467 Fair value of plan assets $ 420,699 $ 361,891

Segment Information (Tables)

Segment Information (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Segment Reporting [Abstract]
Information regarding business segments	Information regarding our business segments is as follows: For the years ended December 31, (in thousands) 2019 2018 2017 Segment operating revenues: Local Media $ 1,022,805 $ 917,480 $ 778,376 National Media 323,674 235,107 61,942 Other 4,920 4,775 5,455 Total operating revenues $ 1,351,399 $ 1,157,362 $ 845,773 Segment profit (loss): Local Media $ 217,885 $ 251,119 $ 156,890 National Media 43,166 29,168 (6,656) Other (3,957) (3,680) (2,361) Shared services and corporate (57,409) (53,123) (50,506) Acquisition and related integration costs (26,304) (4,124) — Restructuring costs (3,370) (8,911) (4,422) Depreciation and amortization of intangible assets (84,344) (60,711) (52,906) Impairment of goodwill and intangible assets — — (35,732) Gains (losses), net on disposal of property and equipment 1,692 (1,255) (169) Interest expense (80,596) (36,184) (26,552) Defined benefit pension plan expense (6,953) (19,752) (14,112) Miscellaneous, net 1,194 123 7,436 Income (loss) from continuing operations before income taxes $ 1,004 $ 92,670 $ (29,090) Depreciation: Local Media $ 34,086 $ 30,467 $ 31,870 National Media 4,302 2,336 88 Other 148 150 208 Shared services and corporate 1,462 1,432 1,883 Total depreciation $ 39,998 $ 34,385 $ 34,049 Amortization of intangible assets: Local Media $ 26,283 $ 14,821 $ 15,084 National Media 16,710 10,152 2,419 Shared services and corporate 1,353 1,353 1,354 Total amortization of intangible assets $ 44,346 $ 26,326 $ 18,857 The following table presents additions to property and equipment by segment: For the years ended December 31, (in thousands) 2019 2018 2017 Additions to property and equipment: Local Media $ 46,855 $ 37,773 $ 16,946 National Media 11,963 9,004 289 Other 529 — — Shared services and corporate 1,878 723 367 Total additions to property and equipment $ 61,225 $ 47,500 $ 17,602 Total assets by segment for the years ended December 31 were as follows: As of December 31, (in thousands) 2019 2018 2017 Assets: Local Media $ 2,694,667 $ 1,261,526 $ 1,273,735 National Media 680,764 655,718 459,694 Other 3,503 865 2,128 Shared services and corporate 81,657 129,969 189,433 Total assets of continuing operations 3,460,591 2,048,078 1,924,990 Discontinued operations 101,266 82,269 204,789 Total assets $ 3,561,857 $ 2,130,347 $ 2,129,779
Disaggregation of revenue	A disaggregation of the principal activities from which we generate revenue is as follows: For the years ended December 31, (in thousands) 2019 2018 2017 Operating revenues: Core advertising $ 861,386 $ 686,229 $ 548,457 Political 23,263 139,600 8,651 Retransmission and carriage 390,043 304,402 259,712 Other 76,707 27,131 28,953 Total operating revenues $ 1,351,399 $ 1,157,362 $ 845,773

Capital Stock and Share Based_2

Capital Stock and Share Based Compensation Plans (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Equity [Abstract]
Schedule of options outstanding and exercisable	The following table summarizes our stock option activity: Number Weighted- Range of Outstanding at December 31, 2016 486,914 $ 6.81 $ 6-9 Exercised (235,407) 6.20 6-8 Outstanding at December 31, 2017 251,507 7.38 6-9 Exercised (251,507) 7.38 6-9 Outstanding at December 31, 2018 —
Schedule of cash proceeds received from exercises of stock options	The following table summarizes additional information about exercises of stock options: For the years ended December 31, (in thousands) 2019 2018 2017 Cash received upon exercise $ — $ 1,857 $ 1,461 Intrinsic value (market value on date of exercise less exercise price) — 1,266 3,919 Tax benefits realized — 315 1,497
Restricted stock and restricted stock unit vesting activity	The following table summarizes our RSU activity: Fair Value Number Weighted Range of Unvested at December 31, 2016 1,425,177 $ 17.05 $ 12-24 Awarded 653,522 22.51 17-24 Vested (581,920) 20.78 14-24 Forfeited (308,856) 17.20 14-24 Unvested at December 31, 2017 1,187,923 19.99 14-24 Awarded 816,771 13.28 11-17 Vested (771,904) 14.16 11-18 Forfeited (57,348) 16.68 13-23 Unvested at December 31, 2018 1,175,442 15.86 11-24 Awarded 758,557 22.12 13-23 Vested (536,064) 21.67 12-23 Forfeited (39,497) 17.89 13-24 Unvested at December 31, 2019 1,358,438 18.68 11-24
Additional information about restricted stock and restricted stock unit vesting	The following table summarizes additional information about RSU vesting: For the years ended December 31, (in thousands) 2019 2018 2017 Fair value of RSUs vested $ 11,618 $ 10,930 $ 12,090 Tax benefits realized on vesting 2,969 1,758 4,630
Schedule of stock compensation costs	Share-based compensation costs were as follows: For the years ended December 31, (in thousands) 2019 2018 2017 Total share-based compensation $ 13,308 $ 11,008 $ 12,960 Included in discontinued operations (215) (468) (646) Included in continuing operations $ 13,093 $ 10,540 $ 12,314 Share-based compensation, net of tax $ 9,747 $ 7,919 $ 7,605

Accumulated Other Comprehensi_2

Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss), Net of Tax [Abstract]
Changes in Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss	Changes in the accumulated other comprehensive income (loss) ("AOCI") balance by component consisted of the following for the respective years: (in thousands) Defined Benefit Pension Items Other Total As of December 31, 2017 $ (102,955) $ 33 $ (102,922) Other comprehensive income (loss) before reclassifications, net of tax of $(1,803) and $(22) (5,351) (65) (5,416) Amounts reclassified from AOCI, net of tax of $4,360 12,941 — 12,941 Net current-period other comprehensive income (loss) 7,590 (65) 7,525 As of December 31, 2018 (95,365) (32) (95,397) Other comprehensive income (loss) before reclassifications, net of tax of $(1,874) and $(77) (5,461) (223) (5,684) Amounts reclassified from AOCI, net of tax of $718 2,092 — 2,092 Net current-period other comprehensive income (loss) (3,369) (223) (3,592) As of December 31, 2019 $ (98,734) $ (255) $ (98,989)

Summarized Quarterly Financia_2

Summarized Quarterly Financial Information (Unaudited) (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Quarterly Financial Information Disclosure [Abstract]
Schedule of quarterly financial information	Summarized quarterly financial information is as follows: 2019 1st 2nd 3rd 4th (in thousands, except per share data) Quarter Quarter Quarter Quarter Total Operating revenues $ 277,059 $ 320,428 $ 330,857 $ 423,055 $ 1,351,399 Costs and expenses (254,305) (272,351) (303,652) (351,080) (1,181,388) Depreciation and amortization of intangible assets (17,006) (19,532) (21,661) (26,145) (84,344) Gains (losses), net on disposal of property and equipment (173) (144) 11 1,998 1,692 Interest expense (8,916) (18,023) (26,537) (27,120) (80,596) Defined benefit pension plan expense (1,572) (1,564) (2,071) (1,746) (6,953) Miscellaneous, net (800) 369 2,042 (417) 1,194 Income (loss) from continuing operations before income taxes (5,713) 9,183 (21,011) 18,545 1,004 Provision (benefit) for income taxes (2,393) 3,385 (3,677) 5,602 2,917 Income (loss) from continuing operations, net of tax (3,320) 5,798 (17,334) 12,943 (1,913) Loss from discontinued operations, net of tax (3,494) (6,164) (4,429) (2,378) (16,465) Net income (loss) (6,814) (366) (21,763) 10,565 (18,378) Income (loss) attributable to noncontrolling interest — — 166 (166) — Net income (loss) attributable to the shareholders of The E.W. Scripps Company $ (6,814) $ (366) $ (21,929) $ 10,731 $ (18,378) Net income (loss) from continuing operations per basic share of common stock $ (0.04) $ 0.07 $ (0.22) $ 0.16 $ (0.02) Loss from discontinued operations per basic share of common stock $ (0.04) $ (0.07) $ (0.05) $ (0.03) $ (0.20) Net income (loss) from continuing operations per diluted share of common stock $ (0.04) $ 0.07 $ (0.22) $ 0.16 $ (0.02) Loss from discontinued operations per diluted share of common stock $ (0.04) $ (0.07) $ (0.05) $ (0.03) $ (0.20) Weighted average shares outstanding: Basic 80,673 80,822 80,877 80,927 80,826 Diluted 80,673 81,196 80,877 81,322 80,826 Cash dividends per share of common stock $ 0.05 $ 0.05 $ 0.05 $ 0.05 $ 0.20 The sum of the quarterly net income (loss) per share amounts may not equal the reported annual amount because each amount is computed independently based upon the weighted-average number of shares outstanding for the period. 2018 1st 2nd 3rd 4th (in thousands, except per share data) Quarter Quarter Quarter Quarter Total Operating revenues $ 243,206 $ 273,425 $ 289,334 $ 351,397 $ 1,157,362 Costs and expenses (225,407) (231,594) (228,632) (261,280) (946,913) Depreciation and amortization of intangible assets (14,547) (14,494) (14,840) (16,830) (60,711) Gains (losses), net on disposal of property and equipment (717) 66 501 (1,105) (1,255) Interest expense (8,759) (9,279) (9,003) (9,143) (36,184) Defined benefit pension plan expense (1,388) (1,389) (3,529) (13,446) (19,752) Miscellaneous, net 138 (156) (546) 687 123 Income (loss) from continuing operations before income taxes (7,474) 16,579 33,285 50,280 92,670 Provision (benefit) for income taxes (1,210) 4,219 8,695 11,077 22,781 Income (loss) from continuing operations, net of tax (6,264) 12,360 24,590 39,203 69,889 Loss from discontinued operations, net of tax (20,817) (6,640) (5,459) (17,224) (50,140) Net income (loss) (27,081) 5,720 19,131 21,979 19,749 Loss attributable to noncontrolling interest (632) — — — (632) Net income (loss) attributable to the shareholders of The E.W. Scripps Company $ (26,449) $ 5,720 $ 19,131 $ 21,979 $ 20,381 Net income (loss) from continuing operations per basic share of common stock $ (0.07) $ 0.15 $ 0.30 $ 0.48 $ 0.85 Loss from discontinued operations per basic share of common stock $ (0.26) $ (0.08) $ (0.07) $ (0.21) $ (0.61) Net income (loss) from continuing operations per diluted share of common stock $ (0.07) $ 0.15 $ 0.29 $ 0.47 $ 0.85 Loss from discontinued operations per diluted share of common stock $ (0.26) $ (0.08) $ (0.07) $ (0.21) $ (0.60) Weighted average shares outstanding: Basic 81,554 81,824 81,452 80,669 81,369 Diluted 81,554 81,852 82,084 81,348 81,927 Cash dividends per share of common stock $ 0.05 $ 0.05 $ 0.05 $ 0.05 $ 0.20

Assets Held for Sale and Disc_2

Assets Held for Sale and Discontinued Operations (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Discontinued Operations and Disposal Groups [Abstract]
Operating Results of Discontinued Operations and Net Assets Distributed	Operating results of our Stitcher and radio operations included in discontinued operations were as follows: 2019 2018 2017 (in thousands) Stitcher Stitcher Radio Total Stitcher Radio Total Operating revenues $ 72,545 $ 51,063 $ 49,243 $ 100,306 $ 31,199 $ 68,630 $ 99,829 Total costs and expenses (91,725) (66,311) (42,694) (109,005) (33,803) (57,061) (90,864) Depreciation and amortization of intangible assets (2,642) (3,276) — (3,276) (3,437) (2,910) (6,347) Impairment of goodwill and intangible assets — — (25,900) (25,900) — (8,000) (8,000) Other, net (57) 29 (179) (150) 3,055 (258) 2,797 Income (loss) from operations of discontinued operations (21,879) (18,495) (19,530) (38,025) (2,986) 401 (2,585) Pretax loss on disposal of discontinued operations — — (18,558) (18,558) — — — Income (loss) from discontinued operations before income taxes (21,879) (18,495) (38,088) (56,583) (2,986) 401 (2,585) Income tax benefit (provision) 5,414 4,683 1,760 6,443 1,142 (2,996) (1,854) Loss from discontinued operations, net of tax $ (16,465) $ (13,812) $ (36,328) $ (50,140) $ (1,844) $ (2,595) $ (4,439)
Disclosure of Long Lived Assets Held-for-sale	The following table presents a summary of the Stitcher assets held for sale included in our consolidated balance sheets. (in thousands) As of December 31, 2019 As of December 31, 2018 Assets: Total current assets $ 34,793 $ 23,792 Investments 178 — Property and equipment 5,526 6,426 Goodwill and intangible assets 48,292 50,223 Operating lease right-of-use assets 10,448 — Other assets 2,029 1,828 Total assets included in the disposal group 101,266 82,269 Liabilities: Total current liabilities 10,175 9,447 Other liabilities 12,552 1,344 Total liabilities included in the disposal group 22,727 10,791 Net assets included in the disposal group $ 78,539 $ 71,478

Summary of Significant Accoun_4

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies - Narrative (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands, shares in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Summary of Significant Accounting Policies [Line Items]
Unsatisfied performance obligations	$ 59,600
Unearned revenue recognized during the year	8,900
Capitalized customer acquisition costs	9,300	$ 9,700
Amortization of customer acquisition costs	4,200	1,000
Programming assets, amortization expense, next twelve months	59,400
Programming assets, amortization expense, year two	44,100
Programming assets, amortization expense, year three	25,900
Programming assets, amortization expense, year four	7,400
Programming Assets, Amortization Expense, Year Five	3,100
Programming assets, amortization expense, thereafter	3,300
FCC repack receivable	29,651	19,242
Deferred FCC repack income	36,770	20,620
Estimated liabilities for unpaid claims	$ 9,100	9,800
Anti-dilutive securities	1.4		1.2
Contract with Customer, Liability	$ 10,704	$ 10,346
Journal Media Group | Accounts receivable
Summary of Significant Accounting Policies [Line Items]
Estimated liabilities for unpaid claims	$ 1,300
Television network affiliation relationships
Summary of Significant Accounting Policies [Line Items]
Estimated useful life	20 years
Customer lists and advertiser relationships
Summary of Significant Accounting Policies [Line Items]
Estimated useful life	20 years
FCC licenses | Maximum
Summary of Significant Accounting Policies [Line Items]
FCC license term	8 years
Operating revenue | Advertising
Summary of Significant Accounting Policies [Line Items]
Concentration risk, percentage	65.00%

Summary of Significant Accoun_5

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies - Trade Receivables (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Allowance for Doubtful Accounts Receivable [Roll Forward]
Allowance for doubtful accounts, beginning balance	$ 4,221	$ 1,949	$ 1,490
Charged to costs and expenses	1,823	3,378	1,314
Amounts charged off, net	(2,698)	(1,106)	(855)
Allowance for doubtful accounts, ending balance	$ 3,346	$ 4,221	$ 1,949

Summary of Significant Accoun_6

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies - Estimated useful lives (Details)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019
Buildings and improvements | Minimum
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Property, Plant and Equipment, Useful Life	15 years
Buildings and improvements | Maximum
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Property, Plant and Equipment, Useful Life	45 years
Broadcast transmission towers and related equipment | Minimum
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Property, Plant and Equipment, Useful Life	15 years
Broadcast transmission towers and related equipment | Maximum
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Property, Plant and Equipment, Useful Life	35 years
Other broadcast and program production equipment | Minimum
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Property, Plant and Equipment, Useful Life	3 years
Other broadcast and program production equipment | Maximum
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Property, Plant and Equipment, Useful Life	15 years
Computer hardware | Minimum
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Property, Plant and Equipment, Useful Life	3 years
Computer hardware | Maximum
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Property, Plant and Equipment, Useful Life	5 years
Office and other equipment | Minimum
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Property, Plant and Equipment, Useful Life	3 years
Office and other equipment | Maximum
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Property, Plant and Equipment, Useful Life	10 years

Summary of Significant Accoun_7

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies - Earnings Per Share (Details) - USD ($) shares in Thousands, $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended								12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Sep. 30, 2019	Jun. 30, 2019	Mar. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Sep. 30, 2018	Jun. 30, 2018	Mar. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Numerator (for basic and diluted earnings per share)
Income (loss) from continuing operations, net of tax	$ 12,943	$ (17,334)	$ 5,798	$ (3,320)	$ 39,203	$ 24,590	$ 12,360	$ (6,264)	$ (1,913)	$ 69,889	$ (10,178)
Loss attributable to noncontrolling interest	$ 166	$ (166)	$ 0	$ 0	$ 0	$ 0	$ 0	$ 632	0	632	1,511
Less income allocated to RSUs									0	(1,129)	0
Numberator for basic and diluted earnings per share from continuing operations attributable to the shareholders of The E.W. Scripps Company									$ (1,913)	$ 69,392	$ (8,667)
Denominator
Basic weighted-average shares outstanding	80,927	80,877	80,822	80,673	80,669	81,452	81,824	81,554	80,826	81,369	82,052
Effect of dilutive securities:
Stock options and restricted stock units									0	558	0
Diluted weighted-average shares outstanding	81,322	80,877	81,196	80,673	81,348	82,084	81,852	81,554	80,826	81,927	82,052
Anti-dilutive securities									1,400		1,200

Recently Adopted Standards an_2

Recently Adopted Standards and Issued Accounting Standards (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2019	Jan. 01, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
New Accounting Pronouncements and Changes in Accounting Principles [Abstract]
Operating lease right-of-use assets	$ 128,192	$ 33,900	$ 0
Operating lease liabilities	$ 128,699	$ 37,300

Acquisitions - Narrative (Detai

Acquisitions - Narrative (Details)

Sep. 19, 2019USD ($)television_station

Jul. 26, 2019USD ($)

Jun. 10, 2019USD ($)

May 01, 2019USD ($)television_station

Jan. 01, 2019USD ($)television_station

Nov. 30, 2018USD ($)

Oct. 02, 2017USD ($)

Dec. 31, 2018USD ($)

Dec. 31, 2019USD ($)

Dec. 31, 2018USD ($)

Dec. 31, 2017USD ($)

Dec. 31, 2016USD ($)

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Goodwill

$ 786,837,000

$ 1,224,679,000

$ 786,837,000

$ 708,773,000

$ 528,604,000

Television network affiliation relationships

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Estimated useful life

20 years

Customer lists and advertiser relationships

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Estimated useful life

20 years

Nexstar Media Group, Inc.

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Number of television stations acquired | television_station

8

Business acquisition, purchase price

$ 582,000,000

Revenues from acquired operations

$ 79,800,000

Goodwill

164,457,000

Nexstar Media Group, Inc. | Television network affiliation relationships

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Intangible assets acquired

181,000,000

Nexstar Media Group, Inc. | Customer lists and advertiser relationships

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Intangible assets acquired

$ 7,100,000

Cordillera Communications, LLC

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Number of television stations acquired | television_station

15

Business acquisition, purchase price

$ 521,000,000

Revenues from acquired operations

105,200,000

Working capital adjustment

23,900,000

Goodwill

252,920,000

Cordillera Communications, LLC | Television network affiliation relationships

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Intangible assets acquired

169,400,000

Cordillera Communications, LLC | Customer lists and advertiser relationships

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Intangible assets acquired

$ 5,900,000

Cordillera Communications, LLC | Shared service agreement

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Estimated useful life

20 years

Intangible assets acquired

$ 13,000,000

Raycom Media, Inc.

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Number of television stations acquired | television_station

3

Business acquisition, purchase price

$ 55,000,000

Revenues from acquired operations

23,400,000

Goodwill

18,349,000

Raycom Media, Inc. | Television network affiliation relationships

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Intangible assets acquired

17,400,000

Raycom Media, Inc. | Customer lists and advertiser relationships

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Intangible assets acquired

$ 700,000

Raycom Media, Inc., Cordillera Communications, LLC And Nexstar Media Group, Inc.

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Goodwill

$ 435,726,000

Raycom Media, Inc., Cordillera Communications, LLC And Nexstar Media Group, Inc. | Television network affiliation relationships

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Estimated useful life

20 years

Intangible assets acquired

$ 367,800,000

Raycom Media, Inc., Cordillera Communications, LLC And Nexstar Media Group, Inc. | Customer lists and advertiser relationships

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Intangible assets acquired

$ 13,700,000

Raycom Media, Inc., Cordillera Communications, LLC And Nexstar Media Group, Inc. | Customer lists and advertiser relationships | Minimum

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Estimated useful life

5 years

Raycom Media, Inc., Cordillera Communications, LLC And Nexstar Media Group, Inc. | Customer lists and advertiser relationships | Maximum

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Estimated useful life

10 years

Raycom Media, Inc., Cordillera Communications, LLC And Nexstar Media Group, Inc. | Shared service agreement

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Intangible assets acquired

$ 13,000,000

Omny Studio

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Business acquisition, purchase price

$ 8,300,000

Goodwill

$ 5,300,000

Omny Studio | Developed Technology

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Estimated useful life

10 years

Intangible assets acquired

$ 3,800,000

Triton Digital Canada, Inc.

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Business acquisition, purchase price

$ 160,000,000

Goodwill

80,656,000

Intangible assets acquired

75,000,000

Cash

$ 10,515,000

Goodwill, Purchase Accounting Adjustments

3,220,000

Decrease in fair value of DTL

$ (3,600,000)

Triton Digital Canada, Inc. | Customer lists and advertiser relationships

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Estimated useful life

12 years

Intangible assets acquired

$ 31,000,000

Triton Digital Canada, Inc. | Developed Technology

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Intangible assets acquired

$ 39,000,000

Triton Digital Canada, Inc. | Developed Technology | Minimum

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Estimated useful life

8 years

Triton Digital Canada, Inc. | Developed Technology | Maximum

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Estimated useful life

12 years

Triton Digital Canada, Inc. | Trade names

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Estimated useful life

10 years

Intangible assets acquired

$ 5,000,000

Katz Broadcasting Group

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Business acquisition, purchase price

$ 292,000,000

Goodwill

203,760,000

Intangible assets acquired

32,300,000

Cash

$ 21,372,000

Goodwill, Purchase Accounting Adjustments

5,812,000

Increase in fair value of property and equipment

9,900,000

Decrease in the fair value of program assets

4,100,000

Increase in previously reported depreciation expense

300,000

Programming Expense, Purchase Accounting Adjustments

$ 300,000

Gain on fair value remeasurement of acquisition

$ 5,400,000

Katz Broadcasting Group | E.W. Scripps [Member]

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Noncontrolling interest prior to acquisition

5.33%

Katz Broadcasting Group | Customer lists and advertiser relationships

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Estimated useful life

5 years

Intangible assets acquired

$ 24,000,000

Katz Broadcasting Group | Trade names

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Estimated useful life

10 years

Intangible assets acquired

$ 8,000,000

Senior Unsecured Notes, Due 2027 | Senior Notes

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Debt issued

$ 500,000,000

Senior Unsecured Notes, Due 2027 | Senior Notes | Nexstar Media Group, Inc.

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Proceeds from issuance of debt

$ 500,000,000

Term Loan B-1, Maturing 2026 | Nexstar Media Group, Inc.

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Proceeds from issuance of debt

240,000,000

Term Loan B-1, Maturing 2026 | Cordillera Communications, LLC

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Proceeds from issuance of debt

525,000,000

Term Loan B-1, Maturing 2026 | Cordillera Communications, LLC And Nexstar Media Group, Inc.

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Debt issued

$ 765,000,000

Acquisitions - Fair Values of A

Acquisitions - Fair Values of Assets Acquired and Liabilities Assumed, Raycom, Cordillera, Nexstar-Tribune (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2019	Sep. 19, 2019	May 01, 2019	Jan. 01, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Nov. 30, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017	Oct. 02, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016
Fair values of the assets acquired and the liabilities assumed
Current portion of programming	$ 52,699				$ 34,432
Programming (less current portion)	96,256				75,333
Goodwill	1,224,679				786,837		$ 708,773		$ 528,604
Current portion of programming liabilities	(96,682)				(40,301)
Programming liabilities	(57,291)				(43,825)
Raycom Media, Inc.
Fair values of the assets acquired and the liabilities assumed
Property and equipment				$ 11,721
Operating lease right-of-use assets				296
Goodwill				18,349
Operating lease liabilities				(296)
Net purchase price				54,970
Cordillera Communications, LLC
Fair values of the assets acquired and the liabilities assumed
Accounts receivable			$ 26,264
Other current assets			986
Property and equipment			53,734
Operating lease right-of-use assets			4,667
Goodwill			252,920
Accounts payable and accrued liabilities			(15)
Accrued expenses			(3,983)
Other current liabilities			(280)
Operating lease liabilities			(4,387)
Net purchase price			544,906
Nexstar Media Group, Inc.
Fair values of the assets acquired and the liabilities assumed
Current portion of programming		$ 11,997
Other current assets		3,541
Property and equipment		61,864
Operating lease right-of-use assets		82,447
Programming (less current portion)		9,830
Goodwill		164,457
Accrued expenses		(1,820)
Current portion of programming liabilities		(16,211)
Other current liabilities		(3,035)
Programming liabilities		(15,079)
Operating lease liabilities		(79,766)
Net purchase price		582,325
Raycom Media, Inc., Cordillera Communications, LLC And Nexstar Media Group, Inc.
Fair values of the assets acquired and the liabilities assumed
Accounts receivable	26,264
Current portion of programming	11,997
Other current assets	4,527
Property and equipment	127,319
Operating lease right-of-use assets	87,410
Programming (less current portion)	9,830
Goodwill	435,726
Accounts payable and accrued liabilities	(15)
Accrued expenses	(5,803)
Current portion of programming liabilities	(16,211)
Other current liabilities	(3,315)
Programming liabilities	(15,079)
Operating lease liabilities	(84,449)
Net purchase price	1,182,201
Triton Digital Canada, Inc.
Fair values of the assets acquired and the liabilities assumed
Accounts receivable						$ 8,879
Goodwill						80,656
Intangible assets						75,000
Net purchase price						160,213
Katz Broadcasting Group
Fair values of the assets acquired and the liabilities assumed
Accounts receivable								$ 44,306
Current portion of programming								36,218
Programming (less current portion)								52,908
Goodwill								203,760
Intangible assets								32,300
Accounts payable and accrued liabilities								(29,339)
Current portion of programming liabilities								(32,877)
Programming liabilities								(37,692)
Net purchase price								302,312
Television network affiliation relationships | Raycom Media, Inc.
Fair values of the assets acquired and the liabilities assumed
Intangible assets				17,400
Television network affiliation relationships | Cordillera Communications, LLC
Fair values of the assets acquired and the liabilities assumed
Intangible assets			169,400
Television network affiliation relationships | Nexstar Media Group, Inc.
Fair values of the assets acquired and the liabilities assumed
Intangible assets		181,000
Television network affiliation relationships | Raycom Media, Inc., Cordillera Communications, LLC And Nexstar Media Group, Inc.
Fair values of the assets acquired and the liabilities assumed
Intangible assets	367,800
Customer lists and advertiser relationships | Raycom Media, Inc.
Fair values of the assets acquired and the liabilities assumed
Intangible assets				700
Customer lists and advertiser relationships | Cordillera Communications, LLC
Fair values of the assets acquired and the liabilities assumed
Intangible assets			5,900
Customer lists and advertiser relationships | Nexstar Media Group, Inc.
Fair values of the assets acquired and the liabilities assumed
Intangible assets		7,100
Customer lists and advertiser relationships | Raycom Media, Inc., Cordillera Communications, LLC And Nexstar Media Group, Inc.
Fair values of the assets acquired and the liabilities assumed
Intangible assets	13,700
Customer lists and advertiser relationships | Triton Digital Canada, Inc.
Fair values of the assets acquired and the liabilities assumed
Intangible assets						$ 31,000
Customer lists and advertiser relationships | Katz Broadcasting Group
Fair values of the assets acquired and the liabilities assumed
Intangible assets								$ 24,000
Shared service agreement | Cordillera Communications, LLC
Fair values of the assets acquired and the liabilities assumed
Intangible assets			13,000
Shared service agreement | Raycom Media, Inc., Cordillera Communications, LLC And Nexstar Media Group, Inc.
Fair values of the assets acquired and the liabilities assumed
Intangible assets	13,000
FCC licenses
Fair values of the assets acquired and the liabilities assumed
Indefinite-lived intangible assets - FCC licenses	385,915				$ 157,215
FCC licenses | Raycom Media, Inc.
Fair values of the assets acquired and the liabilities assumed
Indefinite-lived intangible assets - FCC licenses				$ 6,800
FCC licenses | Cordillera Communications, LLC
Fair values of the assets acquired and the liabilities assumed
Indefinite-lived intangible assets - FCC licenses			$ 26,700
FCC licenses | Nexstar Media Group, Inc.
Fair values of the assets acquired and the liabilities assumed
Indefinite-lived intangible assets - FCC licenses		$ 176,000
FCC licenses | Raycom Media, Inc., Cordillera Communications, LLC And Nexstar Media Group, Inc.
Fair values of the assets acquired and the liabilities assumed
Indefinite-lived intangible assets - FCC licenses	$ 209,500

Acquisitions - Fair Values of_2

Acquisitions - Fair Values of Assets Acquired and Liabilities Assumed, Katz (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Nov. 30, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017	Oct. 02, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Current portion of programming	$ 52,699	$ 34,432
Goodwill	1,224,679	786,837		$ 708,773		$ 528,604
Programming (less current portion)	96,256	75,333
Current portion of programming liabilities	(96,682)	(40,301)
Programming liabilities	$ (57,291)	$ (43,825)
Katz Broadcasting Group
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Cash					$ 21,372
Accounts receivable					44,306
Current portion of programming					36,218
Intangible assets					32,300
Goodwill					203,760
Programming (less current portion)					52,908
Other assets					11,356
Accounts payable and accrued liabilities					29,339
Current portion of programming liabilities					(32,877)
Programming liabilities					(37,692)
Net purchase price					$ (302,312)
Triton Digital Canada, Inc.
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Cash			$ 10,515
Accounts receivable			8,879
Intangible assets			75,000
Goodwill			80,656
Net purchase price			$ (160,213)

Acquisitions - Fair Value of As

Acquisitions - Fair Value of Assets Acquired and Liabilities Assumed, Triton (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Nov. 30, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Other current assets	$ 39,486	$ 24,585
Property and equipment	370,378	231,501
Goodwill	1,224,679	786,837		$ 708,773	$ 528,604
Accounts payable	28,441	25,919
Accrued expenses	41,694	38,957
Other current liabilities	42,561	25,339
Deferred tax liability	$ (17,876)	$ (24,473)
Triton Digital Canada, Inc.
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Cash			$ 10,515
Accounts receivable			8,879
Other current assets			679
Property and equipment			705
Goodwill			80,656
Other intangible assets			75,000
Accounts payable			1,895
Accrued expenses			3,332
Other current liabilities			18
Deferred tax liability			(10,976)
Net purchase price			$ 160,213

Acquisitions - Pro Forma Result

Acquisitions - Pro Forma Results of Operations (Details) - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Operating revenues	$ 1,572,493	$ 1,568,360
Income (loss) from continuing operations attributable to the shareholders of The E.W. Scripps Company	$ (18,657)	$ 42,426
Income (loss) per share from operations attributable to the shareholders of The E.W. Scripps Company:
Basic (in dollars per share)	$ (0.23)	$ 0.51
Diluted (in dollars per share)	$ (0.23)	$ 0.51
Cordillera Communications, LLC And Nexstar Media Group, Inc.
Transaction costs	$ 19,900

Asset Write-Downs and Other C_2

Asset Write-Downs and Other Charges and Credits - Narrative (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended			12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017	Sep. 30, 2017	Jun. 30, 2017	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Restructuring Cost and Reserve [Line Items]
Acquisition and related integration costs				$ 26,304	$ 4,124	$ 0
Restructuring costs				3,370	8,911	4,422
Impairment of programming assets				$ 0	$ 8,920	0
Impairment charge		$ 29,400
Impairment of intangible assets		$ 6,300
Disposal Group, Disposed of by Sale, Not Discontinued Operations | Newspaper Syndication
Restructuring Cost and Reserve [Line Items]
Gain on disposal			$ 3,000
Employee Severance
Restructuring Cost and Reserve [Line Items]
Restructuring costs						$ 3,500
Katz Broadcasting Group
Restructuring Cost and Reserve [Line Items]
Gain recorded on investments	$ 5,400

Income Taxes - Narrative (Detai

Income Taxes - Narrative (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Income Tax Contingency [Line Items]
Deferred tax assets		$ 12
Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, Incomplete Accounting, Provisional Income Tax Expense (Benefit)	$ 4.2
Potential affect of unrecognized tax benefits on effective tax rate		0.2
Interest accrued on unrecognized tax benefits		0.1
Potential change in unrecognized tax benefits		0.1	$ 0.1
Federal
Income Tax Contingency [Line Items]
Net operating loss carryforwards		176
State
Income Tax Contingency [Line Items]
Net operating loss carryforwards		$ 353

Income Taxes - Provision for in

Income Taxes - Provision for income taxes (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended								12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Sep. 30, 2019	Jun. 30, 2019	Mar. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Sep. 30, 2018	Jun. 30, 2018	Mar. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Current:
Federal									$ 6,653	$ 3,865	$ 1,431
State and local									2,235	2,331	(790)
Foreign									(6)	1	0
Total current income tax provision (benefit)									8,882	6,197	641
Deferred federal									(6,346)	15,588	(16,828)
Deferred state and local									206	1,000	(2,725)
Deferred Foreign Income Tax Expense (Benefit)									175	(4)	0
Total deferred income tax provision (benefit)									(5,965)	16,584	(19,553)
Provision (benefit) for income taxes	$ 5,602	$ (3,677)	$ 3,385	$ (2,393)	$ 11,077	$ 8,695	$ 4,219	$ (1,210)	$ 2,917	$ 22,781	$ (18,912)

Income Taxes - Effective income

Income Taxes - Effective income tax reconciliation (Details)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Effective Income Tax Rate, Tax Rate Reconciliation
Statutory rate	21.00%	21.00%	35.00%
Effect of:
State and local income taxes, net of federal tax benefit	212.70%	3.70%	1.80%
Excess tax benefits from stock-based compensation	(60.40%)	0.70%	7.80%
Nondeductible expenses	118.70%	1.20%	(5.00%)
Reserve for uncertain tax positions	(13.70%)	(0.10%)	4.00%
U.S. federal statutory rate change	0.00%	0.00%	14.50%
Other	12.20%	(1.90%)	6.90%
Effective income tax rate	290.50%	24.60%	65.00%

Income Taxes - Deferred tax (li

Income Taxes - Deferred tax (liabilities) assets (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Temporary differences [Abstract]
Property and equipment	$ (33,802)	$ (14,503)
Goodwill and other intangible assets	(100,841)	(80,590)
Investments, primarily gains and losses not yet recognized for tax purposes	3,176	3,067
Accrued expenses not deductible until paid	7,694	8,763
Deferred compensation and retiree benefits not deductible until paid	54,258	56,902
Operating lease right-of-use assets	(31,039)	0
Deferred Tax Asset, Operating Lease Liabilities	32,632
Operating lease liabilities		0
Interest limitation carryforward	12,527	0
Other temporary differences, net	3,422	3,616
Total temporary differences	(51,973)	(22,745)
Federal and state net operating loss carryforwards	51,308	12,800
Valuation allowance for state deferred tax assets	(4,905)	(5,101)
Net deferred tax liability	$ (5,570)	$ (15,046)

Income Taxes - Unrecognized Tax

Income Taxes - Unrecognized Tax Benefit (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Reconciliation of Unrecognized Tax Benefits [Roll Forward]
Gross unrecognized tax benefits at beginning of year	$ 1,112	$ 1,088	$ 2,665
Increases in tax positions for prior years	87	130	16
Decreases in tax positions for prior years	(387)	(33)	(390)
Increases in tax positions for current years	0	182	0
Decreases in tax positions for current years	(167)	0	(54)
Decreases from lapse in statute of limitations	(69)	(255)	(1,149)
Gross unrecognized tax benefits at end of year	$ 576	$ 1,112	$ 1,088

Restricted Cash - Narrative (De

Restricted Cash - Narrative (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Cash and Cash Equivalents [Abstract]
Restricted cash	$ 0	$ 5.1

Investments - Schedule (Details

Investments - Schedule (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Investments [Abstract]
Investments held at cost	$ 4,405	$ 4,114
Equity method investments	3,970	3,048
Total investments	$ 8,375	$ 7,162

Property and Equipment - Schedu

Property and Equipment - Schedule (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Property and equipment, gross	$ 722,828	$ 553,844
Accumulated depreciation	352,450	322,343
Net property and equipment	370,378	231,501
Land and improvements
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Property and equipment, gross	62,712	47,054
Buildings and improvements
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Property and equipment, gross	187,830	144,389
Equipment
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Property and equipment, gross	452,239	344,909
Computer software
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Property and equipment, gross	$ 20,047	$ 17,492

Leases - Additional Information

Leases - Additional Information (Details) $ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019USD ($)
Lessee, Lease, Description [Line Items]
Term of renewal	5 years
Term of option to terminate	1 year
Operating lease costs recognized	$ 14.7
Short-term lease costs	$ 0.3
Minimum
Lessee, Lease, Description [Line Items]
Remaining lease term	1 year
Maximum
Lessee, Lease, Description [Line Items]
Remaining lease term	20 years

Leases Lease assets and liabili

Leases Lease assets and liabilities (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2019	Jan. 01, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Leases [Abstract]
Right-of-use assets	$ 128,192	$ 33,900	$ 0
Other current liabilities	15,051
Operating lease liabilities	$ 113,648		$ 0
Weighted Average Remaining Lease Term	12 years 7 months 2 days
Weighted Average Discount Rate	5.19%

Leases Cash Flow Supplemental (

Leases Cash Flow Supplemental (Details) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019USD ($)
Leases [Abstract]
Cash paid for amounts included in the measurement of lease liabilities	$ 14,022
Right-of-use assets obtained in exchange for lease obligations	$ 9,612

Leases Operating lease maturity

Leases Operating lease maturity schedules (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2019	Jan. 01, 2019
Leases [Abstract]
2020	$ 20,445
2021	11,263
2022	14,625
2023	14,703
2024	13,444
Thereafter	102,711
Total future minimum lease payments	177,191
Less: Imputed interest	(48,492)
Total	$ 128,699	$ 37,300

Leases Operating lease maturi_2

Leases Operating lease maturity schedule under ASC 840 (Details) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2018USD ($)
Leases [Abstract]
2019	$ 9,214
2020	7,204
2021	4,577
2022	4,393
2023	4,179
Thereafter	14,878
Total future minimum lease payments	$ 44,445

Goodwill and Other Intangible_3

Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets - Goodwill by business segment (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended	12 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2017	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016
Summary of activity related to goodwill by business segment
Gross balance		$ 1,491,996	$ 1,054,154	$ 976,090	$ 766,518
Accumulated impairment losses		(267,317)	(267,317)	(267,317)	(237,914)
Goodwill [Roll Forward]
Balance, beginning of period		786,837	708,773	528,604
Impairment charge	$ (29,400)
Balance, end of period		1,224,679	786,837	708,773
Local Media
Summary of activity related to goodwill by business segment
Gross balance		1,143,859	708,133	708,133	708,133
Accumulated impairment losses		(216,914)	(216,914)	(216,914)	(216,914)
Goodwill [Roll Forward]
Balance, beginning of period		491,219	491,219	491,219
Balance, end of period		926,945	491,219	491,219
National Media
Summary of activity related to goodwill by business segment
Gross balance		348,137	346,021	267,957	58,385
Accumulated impairment losses		(50,403)	(50,403)	(50,403)	$ (21,000)
Goodwill [Roll Forward]
Balance, beginning of period		295,618	217,554	37,385
Balance, end of period		297,734	295,618	217,554
Cracked acquisition
Goodwill [Roll Forward]
Impairment charge				(29,403)
Cracked acquisition | National Media
Goodwill [Roll Forward]
Impairment charge				(29,403)
Katz Broadcasting Group
Goodwill [Roll Forward]
Acquisitions				209,572
Goodwill, Purchase Accounting Adjustments			(5,812)
Katz Broadcasting Group | National Media
Goodwill [Roll Forward]
Acquisitions				$ 209,572
Goodwill, Purchase Accounting Adjustments			(5,812)
Triton Digital Canada, Inc.
Goodwill [Roll Forward]
Acquisitions			83,876
Goodwill, Purchase Accounting Adjustments		(3,220)
Triton Digital Canada, Inc. | National Media
Goodwill [Roll Forward]
Acquisitions			$ 83,876
Goodwill, Purchase Accounting Adjustments		(3,220)
Raycom Media, Inc., Cordillera Communications, LLC And Nexstar Media Group, Inc.
Goodwill [Roll Forward]
Acquisitions		435,726
Balance, end of period		435,726
Raycom Media, Inc., Cordillera Communications, LLC And Nexstar Media Group, Inc. | Local Media
Goodwill [Roll Forward]
Acquisitions		435,726
Omny Studio
Goodwill [Roll Forward]
Acquisitions		5,336
Omny Studio | National Media
Goodwill [Roll Forward]
Acquisitions		$ 5,336

Goodwill and Other Intangible_4

Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets - Summary of other intangible assets (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Carrying amount:
Total carrying amount	$ 823,500	$ 423,737
Accumulated amortization:
Total accumulated amortization	(148,740)	(105,046)
Net amortizable intangible assets	674,760	318,691
Total other intangible assets	1,060,675	475,906
FCC licenses
Accumulated amortization:
Other indefinite-lived intangible assets - FCC licenses	385,915	157,215
Television network affiliation relationships
Carrying amount:
Total carrying amount	616,244	248,444
Accumulated amortization:
Total accumulated amortization	(82,917)	(62,020)
Customer lists and advertiser relationships
Carrying amount:
Total carrying amount	104,300	93,100
Accumulated amortization:
Total accumulated amortization	(42,012)	(31,323)
Other intangible assets
Carrying amount:
Total carrying amount	102,956	82,193
Accumulated amortization:
Total accumulated amortization	$ (23,811)	$ (11,703)

Goodwill and Other Intangible_5

Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets - Narrative (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Apr. 04, 2019	Sep. 30, 2017	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Goodwill [Line Items]
Payments to Acquire Intangible Assets			$ 24,864	$ 7,229	$ 9,745
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets, Gross			823,500	423,737
Estimated amortization expense of intangible assets for 2020			56,900
Estimated amortization expense of intangible assets for 2021			54,800
Estimated amortization expense of intangible assets for 2022			49,800
Estimated amortization expense of intangible assets for 2023			44,700
Estimated amortization expense of intangible assets for 2024			42,900
Estimated amortization expense of intangible assets for later years			425,700
Impairment charge		$ 29,400
Impairment of intangible assets		$ 6,300
Other intangible assets
Goodwill [Line Items]
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets, Gross			102,956	82,193
Cable And Satellite Carriage Rights
Goodwill [Line Items]
Intangible software assets acquired				5,800
Series of Individually Immaterial Business Acquisitions
Goodwill [Line Items]
Payments to Acquire Intangible Assets	$ 23,600
Series of Individually Immaterial Business Acquisitions | Other intangible assets
Goodwill [Line Items]
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets, Gross	4,100
FCC licenses
Goodwill [Line Items]
Indefinite-lived Intangible Assets (Excluding Goodwill)			$ 385,915	$ 157,215
FCC licenses | Series of Individually Immaterial Business Acquisitions
Goodwill [Line Items]
Indefinite-lived Intangible Assets (Excluding Goodwill)	$ 19,200

Long-Term Debt - Components of

Long-Term Debt - Components of Long-Term Debt (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands		Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Components of Long-term debt
Long-term debt		$ 1,952,522	$ 696,250
Less: Debt issuance costs and issuance discounts		(37,492)	(7,486)
Current portion of long-term debt		(10,612)	(3,000)
Long-term debt (less current portion)		1,904,418	685,764
Fair value of long-term debt	[1]	1,991,164	662,844
Amended and restated revolving credit facility | Variable rate credit facility
Components of Long-term debt
Long-term debt		0	0
Senior 5.125% Unsecured Notes, Due 2025 | Senior unsecured notes
Components of Long-term debt
Long-term debt		400,000	400,000
Senior Unsecured Notes, Due 2027 | Senior unsecured notes
Components of Long-term debt
Long-term debt		500,000	0
Term Loan B, Maturing 2024
Components of Long-term debt
Long-term debt		293,250	296,250
Term Loan B-1, Maturing 2026
Components of Long-term debt
Long-term debt		$ 759,272	$ 0
[1]	* Fair values of the 2025 and 2027 Senior Notes are estimated based on quoted private market transactions and are classified as Level 1 in the fair value hierarchy. The fair values of the term loans are based on observable estimates provided by third party financial professionals, and as such, are classified within Level 2 of the fair value hierarchy.

Long-Term Debt - Narrative (Det

Long-Term Debt - Narrative (Details)	Dec. 18, 2019	Sep. 19, 2019television_station	Jul. 26, 2019USD ($)	May 01, 2019USD ($)television_station	Apr. 04, 2018	Oct. 02, 2017USD ($)	Apr. 28, 2017USD ($)	Jun. 30, 2017USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2019USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2018USD ($)
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Long-term debt									$ 1,952,522,000	$ 696,250,000
Senior 5.125% Unsecured Notes, Due 2025 | Senior unsecured notes
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Debt issued							$ 400,000,000
Debt stated rate							5.125%
Debt issuance price as percentage of par							100.00%
Debt issuance costs							$ 7,000,000
Long-term debt									400,000,000	400,000,000
Senior 5.125% Unsecured Notes, Due 2025 | Senior unsecured notes | Redemption, Period One
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Debt redemption price							100.00%
Senior 5.125% Unsecured Notes, Due 2025 | Senior unsecured notes | Redemption, Period Two
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Percentage of principal amount redeemed							40.00%
Term Loan B, Maturing 2020
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Write off of deferred financing costs								$ 2,400,000
Senior Unsecured Notes, Due 2027 | Senior unsecured notes
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Long-term debt									$ 500,000,000	$ 0
Senior Unsecured Notes, Due 2027 | Senior Notes
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Debt issued			$ 500,000,000
Debt stated rate			5.875%
Debt issuance price as percentage of par			100.00%
Percentage of principal amount redeemed			40.00%
Debt issuance costs			$ 10,700,000
Senior Unsecured Notes, Due 2027 | Senior Notes | Redemption, Period One
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Debt redemption price			105.875%
Senior Unsecured Notes, Due 2027 | Senior Notes | Redemption, Period Two
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Debt redemption price			100.00%
Term Loan B, Maturing 2024
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Debt issued						$ 300,000,000
Interest rate reduction					25.00%
Net leverage ratio requirement						2.75
Annual principal payment						$ 3,000,000
Variable interest rate									3.80%	4.34%
Weighted average interest rate									3.88%	4.30%
Long-term debt									$ 293,250,000	$ 296,250,000
Term Loan B, Maturing 2024 | Minimum | London Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR)
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
LIBOR plus margin range						2.00%
Term Loan B, Maturing 2024 | Maximum | London Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR)
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
LIBOR plus margin range						1.75%
Term Loan B-1, Maturing 2026
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Debt issuance costs				$ 23,000,000
Interest rate reduction				25.00%
Annual principal payment				$ 7,600,000
Variable interest rate									4.30%
Weighted average interest rate									4.56%
Long-term debt									$ 759,272,000	0
Term Loan B-1, Maturing 2026 | London Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR)
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
LIBOR plus margin range	2.50%			2.75%
Amended and restated revolving credit facility | Variable rate credit facility
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Net leverage ratio requirement									5.5
Weighted average interest rate									4.18%
Revolving credit and term loan agreement							$ 210,000,000
Long-term debt									$ 0	0
Amended and restated revolving credit facility | Variable rate credit facility | Minimum
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Percentage of commitment fees of total unused commitment under revolving credit facility									0.30%
Amended and restated revolving credit facility | Variable rate credit facility | Minimum | London Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR)
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
LIBOR plus margin range							1.75%
Amended and restated revolving credit facility | Variable rate credit facility | Maximum
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Percentage of commitment fees of total unused commitment under revolving credit facility									0.50%
Amended and restated revolving credit facility | Variable rate credit facility | Maximum | London Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR)
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
LIBOR plus margin range							2.50%
Amended and restated revolving credit facility | Letter of Credit [Member]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Outstanding letter of credits									$ 6,000,000	$ 100,000
Cordillera Communications, LLC And Nexstar Media Group, Inc. | Term Loan B-1, Maturing 2026
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Debt issued				$ 765,000,000
Cordillera Communications, LLC
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Number of television stations acquired | television_station				15
Cordillera Communications, LLC | Term Loan B-1, Maturing 2026
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Proceeds from issuance of debt				$ 525,000,000
Nexstar Media Group, Inc.
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Number of television stations acquired | television_station		8
Nexstar Media Group, Inc. | Senior Unsecured Notes, Due 2027 | Senior Notes
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Proceeds from issuance of debt			$ 500,000,000
Nexstar Media Group, Inc. | Term Loan B-1, Maturing 2026
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Proceeds from issuance of debt				$ 240,000,000

Fair Value Measurement - Assets

Fair Value Measurement - Assets and Liabilities Measured at Fair Value (Details) - Recurring Measurements - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Assets and liabilities that are measured at fair value on a recurring basis
Cash equivalents	$ 8,948	$ 1,007
Level 1
Assets and liabilities that are measured at fair value on a recurring basis
Cash equivalents	8,948	1,007
Level 2
Assets and liabilities that are measured at fair value on a recurring basis
Cash equivalents	0	0
Level 3
Assets and liabilities that are measured at fair value on a recurring basis
Cash equivalents	$ 0	$ 0

Other Liabilities (Details)

Other Liabilities (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Other liabilities
Employee compensation and benefits	$ 21,403	$ 19,775
Deferred FCC repack income	36,770	20,620
Programming liability	57,291	43,825
Liability for pension benefits	190,219	198,444
Liabilities for uncertain tax positions	637	811
Other	9,628	11,067
Other liabilities (less current portion)	$ 315,948	$ 294,542

Supplemental Cash Flow Inform_3

Supplemental Cash Flow Information - Change in Certain Working Capital Accounts (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Supplemental Cash Flow Elements [Abstract]
Accounts receivable	$ (98,714)	$ (16,910)	$ (17,181)
Other current assets	(11,056)	(2,396)	(5,775)
Accounts payable	1,572	(35)	(46)
Accrued employee compensation and benefits	877	7,718	2,100
Accrued interest	12,726	6	465
Other accrued liabilities	4,239	(2,471)	8,591
Unearned revenue	358	2,037	708
Other, net	(19,532)	605	278
Total	$ (109,530)	$ (11,446)	$ (10,860)

Employee Benefit Plans - Narrat

Employee Benefit Plans - Narrative (Details) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2018USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2017USD ($)	Nov. 09, 2018USD ($)retiree
Defined Benefit Plan Disclosure [Line Items]
Expected amortization of actuarial loss from accumulated other comprehensive loss into net periodic benefit costs	$ 4,800
Estimated future benefit payments expected to be paid in 2020	31,400
Estimated future benefit payments expected to be paid in 2021	31,900
Estimated future benefit payments expected to be paid in 2022	32,400
Estimated future benefit payments expected to be paid in 2023	33,000
Estimated future benefit payments expected to be paid in 2024	33,800
Total estimated future benefit payments expected to be paid for the five years ending 2029	$ 175,000
Target plan asset allocations range	100.00%
Fixed-income securities
Defined Benefit Plan Disclosure [Line Items]
Target plan asset allocations range	45.00%
Equity and other return-seeking assets
Defined Benefit Plan Disclosure [Line Items]
Target plan asset allocations range	55.00%
Defined benefit plans
Defined Benefit Plan Disclosure [Line Items]
Settlement losses	$ 0	$ (11,713)	$ 0
Current year actuarial gain (loss)	(5,478)	(7,765)	12,205
Expected contributions to benefit plans	31,800
SERPs
Defined Benefit Plan Disclosure [Line Items]
Settlement losses		(1,800)
Amortization of actuarial loss	(200)	(300)	(200)
Current year actuarial gain (loss)	(1,900)	$ (1,000)	$ (2,500)
Expected amortization of actuarial loss from accumulated other comprehensive loss into net periodic benefit costs	300
Expected contributions to benefit plans	$ 1,200
Journal Communications, Inc. Plan | Defined benefit plans
Defined Benefit Plan Disclosure [Line Items]
Pension assets				$ 306,000
Pension obligations				419,000
Premium group annuity contract				$ 53,500
Number of eligble employees | retiree				1,500
Scripps Pension Plan | Defined benefit plans
Defined Benefit Plan Disclosure [Line Items]
Pension obligations				$ 9,000
Number of eligble employees | retiree				600

Employee Benefit Plans - Compon

Employee Benefit Plans - Components of Expense (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Defined Benefit Plan, Net Periodic Benefit Cost (Credit) [Abstract]
Net periodic benefit cost	$ 17,579	$ 28,561	$ 23,548
Net periodic benefit cost - discontinued operations	(447)	(789)	(848)
Net periodic benefit cost - continuing operations	17,132	27,772	22,700
Multi-employer plans
Defined Benefit Plan, Net Periodic Benefit Cost (Credit) [Abstract]
Net periodic benefit cost	132	190	253
Defined benefit plans
Defined Benefit Plan, Net Periodic Benefit Cost (Credit) [Abstract]
Interest cost	23,287	23,836	25,966
Expected return on plan assets, net of expenses	(19,974)	(22,232)	(17,439)
Amortization of actuarial loss and prior service cost	2,622	3,527	4,424
Settlement losses	0	11,713	0
Total for defined benefit plans	5,935	16,844	12,951
SERPs
Defined Benefit Plan, Net Periodic Benefit Cost (Credit) [Abstract]
Interest cost	718	746
Settlement losses		1,800
Net periodic benefit cost	1,018	2,908	1,161
Defined Contribution Plan
Defined Benefit Plan, Net Periodic Benefit Cost (Credit) [Abstract]
Net periodic benefit cost	$ 10,494	$ 8,619	$ 9,183

Employee Benefit Plans - Change

Employee Benefit Plans - Changes Recognized in OCI (Details) - Defined benefit plans - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Defined Benefit Plan Disclosure [Line Items]
Actuarial gain/(loss)	$ (5,478)	$ (7,765)	$ 12,205
Prior service cost	0	(424)	0
Amortization of actuarial loss and prior service cost	(2,622)	(3,527)	(4,424)
Settlement losses	0	11,713	0
Total	$ (2,856)	$ 7,051	$ 16,629

Employee Benefit Plans - Annual

Employee Benefit Plans - Annual Retirement Plan Expense Assumptions (Details)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Defined Benefit Plan Disclosure [Line Items]
Discount rate	4.38%		4.26%
Long-term rate of return on plan assets	5.50%	5.10%
Minimum
Defined Benefit Plan Disclosure [Line Items]
Discount rate		3.71%
Long-term rate of return on plan assets			4.20%
Maximum
Defined Benefit Plan Disclosure [Line Items]
Discount rate		4.58%
Long-term rate of return on plan assets			4.30%

Employee Benefit Plans - Schedu

Employee Benefit Plans - Schedule of Defined Benefit Plans (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Defined benefit plans
Change in Projected Benefit Obligation
Projected benefit obligation at beginning of year	$ 544,581	$ 654,536
Interest cost	23,287	23,836	$ 25,966
Benefits paid	(35,186)	(33,872)
Actuarial (gains)/losses	60,909	(46,800)
Plan Amendments	0	424
Settlements	0	53,543
Projected benefit obligation at end of year	593,591	544,581	654,536
Plan assets:
Fair value at beginning of year	361,891	464,441
Actual return on plan assets	75,405	(32,334)
Company contributions	18,589	17,199
Benefits paid	(35,186)	(33,872)
Settlements	0	53,543
Fair value at end of year	420,699	361,891	464,441
Funded status	(172,892)	(182,690)
Amounts Recognized in Consolidated Balance Sheets:
Current liabilities	0	0
Noncurrent liabilities	(172,892)	(182,690)
Total	(172,892)	(182,690)
Amounts Recognized in Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss:
Net actuarial loss recognized in accumulated other comprehensive loss	(123,065)	120,191
Prior service cost recognized in accumulated other comprehensive loss	406	424
SERPs
Change in Projected Benefit Obligation
Projected benefit obligation at beginning of year	16,985	23,691
Interest cost	718	746
Benefits paid	(1,019)	(1,021)
Actuarial (gains)/losses	1,857	(1,034)
Plan Amendments	0	0
Settlements	0	5,397
Projected benefit obligation at end of year	18,541	16,985	23,691
Plan assets:
Fair value at beginning of year	0	0
Actual return on plan assets	0	0
Company contributions	1,019	6,418
Benefits paid	(1,019)	(1,021)
Settlements	0	5,397
Fair value at end of year	0	0	$ 0
Funded status	(18,541)	(16,985)
Amounts Recognized in Consolidated Balance Sheets:
Current liabilities	(1,214)	(1,231)
Noncurrent liabilities	(17,327)	(15,754)
Total	(18,541)	(16,985)
Amounts Recognized in Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss:
Net actuarial loss recognized in accumulated other comprehensive loss	(7,240)	5,571
Prior service cost recognized in accumulated other comprehensive loss	$ 0	$ 0

Employee Benefit Plans - Pensio

Employee Benefit Plans - Pension Plans with Accumulated Benefit Obligation in Excess of Assets (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Defined benefit plans
Defined Benefit Plan Disclosure [Line Items]
Accumulated benefit obligation	$ 593,591	$ 544,581
Projected benefit obligation	593,591	544,581	$ 654,536
Fair value of plan assets	420,699	361,891	464,441
SERPs
Defined Benefit Plan Disclosure [Line Items]
Accumulated benefit obligation	18,541	16,985
Projected benefit obligation	18,541	16,985	23,691
Fair value of plan assets	$ 0	$ 0	$ 0

Employee Benefit Plans - Define

Employee Benefit Plans - Defined Benefit Plan Obligations Assumptions (Details)	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Weighted average discount rate
Defined Benefit Plan Disclosure [Line Items]
Weighted average discount rate	3.40%	4.38%	3.70%

Employee Benefit Plans - Alloca

Employee Benefit Plans - Allocation of Plan Assets (Details)	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Defined Benefit Plan Disclosure [Line Items]
Target allocation	100.00%
Percentage of plan assets at end of period	100.00%	100.00%
US equity securities
Defined Benefit Plan Disclosure [Line Items]
Target allocation	20.00%
Percentage of plan assets at end of period	17.00%	19.00%
Non-US equity securities
Defined Benefit Plan Disclosure [Line Items]
Target allocation	30.00%
Percentage of plan assets at end of period	39.00%	28.00%
Fixed-income securities
Defined Benefit Plan Disclosure [Line Items]
Target allocation	45.00%
Percentage of plan assets at end of period	43.00%	46.00%
Other
Defined Benefit Plan Disclosure [Line Items]
Target allocation	5.00%
Percentage of plan assets at end of period	1.00%	7.00%

Employee Benefit Plans - Sche_2

Employee Benefit Plans - Schedule of plan assets by fair value hierarchy (Details) - Estimate of fair value - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Fair Value, Balance Sheet Grouping, Financial Statement Captions [Line Items]
Fair value of plan assets	$ 420,699	$ 361,891
Equity securities, Common/collective trust funds
Fair Value, Balance Sheet Grouping, Financial Statement Captions [Line Items]
Fair value of plan assets	237,015	168,547
Fixed income, Common/collective trust funds
Fair Value, Balance Sheet Grouping, Financial Statement Captions [Line Items]
Fair value of plan assets	181,176	166,079
Real Estate Fund
Fair Value, Balance Sheet Grouping, Financial Statement Captions [Line Items]
Fair value of plan assets	0	24,798
Cash equivalents
Fair Value, Balance Sheet Grouping, Financial Statement Captions [Line Items]
Fair value of plan assets	$ 2,508	$ 2,467

Segment Information - Narrative

Segment Information - Narrative (Details) - Local Media	Dec. 31, 2019low_power_stationaffiliatestation
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Number of local broadcast stations | station	60
Number of low power stations operated | low_power_station	9
ABC affiliates
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Number of television affiliates	18
NBC affiliates
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Number of television affiliates	11
CBS affiliates
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Number of television affiliates	9
FOX affiliates
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Number of television affiliates	4
CW affiliates
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Number of television affiliates	13
Number of full power stations | station	5
Number of multicast | station	8
My TV Affiliates
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Number of television affiliates	2
Independent stations
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Number of television affiliates	2

Segment Information - Schedule

Segment Information - Schedule of Business Segments (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended								12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Sep. 30, 2019	Jun. 30, 2019	Mar. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Sep. 30, 2018	Jun. 30, 2018	Mar. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Segment operating revenues:
Total operating revenues	$ 423,055	$ 330,857	$ 320,428	$ 277,059	$ 351,397	$ 289,334	$ 273,425	$ 243,206	$ 1,351,399	$ 1,157,362	$ 845,773
Segment profit (loss):
Segment profit (loss)									87,359	148,483	4,138
Acquisition and related integration costs									(26,304)	(4,124)	0
Restructuring costs									(3,370)	(8,911)	(4,422)
Depreciation and amortization of intangibles	(26,145)	(21,661)	(19,532)	(17,006)	(16,830)	(14,840)	(14,494)	(14,547)	(84,344)	(60,711)	(52,906)
Impairment of goodwill and intangible assets									0	0	(35,732)
Gains (losses), net on disposal of property and equipment	1,998	11	(144)	(173)	(1,105)	501	66	(717)	1,692	(1,255)	(169)
Interest expense	(27,120)	(26,537)	(18,023)	(8,916)	(9,143)	(9,003)	(9,279)	(8,759)	(80,596)	(36,184)	(26,552)
Defined benefit pension plan expense	(1,746)	(2,071)	(1,564)	(1,572)	(13,446)	(3,529)	(1,389)	(1,388)	(6,953)	(19,752)	(14,112)
Miscellaneous, net	(417)	$ 2,042	$ 369	$ (800)	687	$ (546)	$ (156)	$ 138	1,194	123	7,436
Income (loss) from continuing operations before income taxes, extraordinary items, noncontrolling interest									1,004	92,670	(29,090)
Depreciation:
Total depreciation									39,998	34,385	34,049
Amortization of intangibles:
Total amortization of intangible assets									44,346	26,326	18,857
Additions to property and equipment:
Total additions to property and equipment									61,225	47,500	17,602
Assets
Total assets	3,561,857				2,130,347				3,561,857	2,130,347	2,129,779
Continuing Operations
Assets
Total assets	3,460,591				2,048,078				3,460,591	2,048,078	1,924,990
Discontinued Operations
Assets
Total assets	101,266				82,269				101,266	82,269	204,789
Local Media
Segment operating revenues:
Total operating revenues									1,022,805	917,480	778,376
Segment profit (loss):
Segment profit (loss)									217,885	251,119	156,890
Depreciation:
Total depreciation									34,086	30,467	31,870
Amortization of intangibles:
Total amortization of intangible assets									26,283	14,821	15,084
Additions to property and equipment:
Total additions to property and equipment									46,855	37,773	16,946
Assets
Total assets	2,694,667				1,261,526				2,694,667	1,261,526	1,273,735
National Media
Segment operating revenues:
Total operating revenues									323,674	235,107	61,942
Segment profit (loss):
Segment profit (loss)									43,166	29,168	(6,656)
Depreciation:
Total depreciation									4,302	2,336	88
Amortization of intangibles:
Total amortization of intangible assets									16,710	10,152	2,419
Additions to property and equipment:
Total additions to property and equipment									11,963	9,004	289
Assets
Total assets	680,764				655,718				680,764	655,718	459,694
Other
Segment operating revenues:
Total operating revenues									4,920	4,775	5,455
Segment profit (loss):
Segment profit (loss)									(3,957)	(3,680)	(2,361)
Depreciation:
Total depreciation									148	150	208
Additions to property and equipment:
Total additions to property and equipment									529	0	0
Assets
Total assets	3,503				865				3,503	865	2,128
Shared services and corporate
Segment profit (loss):
Segment profit (loss)									(57,409)	(53,123)	(50,506)
Depreciation:
Total depreciation									1,462	1,432	1,883
Amortization of intangibles:
Total amortization of intangible assets									1,353	1,353	1,354
Additions to property and equipment:
Total additions to property and equipment									1,878	723	367
Assets
Total assets	$ 81,657				$ 129,969				$ 81,657	$ 129,969	$ 189,433

Segment Information - Disaggreg

Segment Information - Disaggregation of Revenue (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended								12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Sep. 30, 2019	Jun. 30, 2019	Mar. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Sep. 30, 2018	Jun. 30, 2018	Mar. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total operating revenues	$ 423,055	$ 330,857	$ 320,428	$ 277,059	$ 351,397	$ 289,334	$ 273,425	$ 243,206	$ 1,351,399	$ 1,157,362	$ 845,773
Core advertising
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total operating revenues									861,386	686,229	548,457
Political
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total operating revenues									23,263	139,600	8,651
Retransmission and carriage
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total operating revenues									390,043	304,402	259,712
Other
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total operating revenues									$ 76,707	$ 27,131	$ 28,953

Commitments and Contingencies -

Commitments and Contingencies - Narrative (Details) $ in Millions	Dec. 31, 2019USD ($)
Contractual Obligation, Fiscal Year Maturity [Abstract]
Contractual obligations due in 2020	$ 597
Contractual obligations due in 2021	548.8
Contractual obligations due in 2022	281.3
Contractual obligations due in 2023	55.2
Contractual obligations due in 2024	33.4
Contractual obligations due in later years	$ 0.2

Capital Stock and Share Based_3

Capital Stock and Share Based Compensation Plans - Narrative (Details)	Feb. 25, 2019$ / sharesshares	Nov. 30, 2016USD ($)	Sep. 30, 2018USD ($)shares	Dec. 31, 2019USD ($)directorcommon_share$ / sharesshares	Dec. 31, 2018USD ($)$ / shares	Dec. 31, 2017USD ($)	[1]	Feb. 28, 2020USD ($)
Class of Stock [Line Items]
Classes of common shares | common_share				2
Accelerated share repurchase program, agreement to repurchase		$ 25,000,000
Accelerated share repurchases, payment			$ (25,000,000)
Shares repurchased and retired during period | shares	147,164		1,300,000
Percent of total shares repurchased under ASR			80.00%
Treasury stock acquired, weighted average cost per share (in usd per share) | $ / shares	$ 16.70
Stock repurchased during period, value				$ 584,000	$ 32,323,000	$ 17,885,000
Number of shares available for future stock compensation grants | shares				5,100,000
Minimum
Class of Stock [Line Items]
Minimum number of directors up for election to entitle shareholders to vote				0.3333
Maximum
Class of Stock [Line Items]
Minimum number of directors up for election to entitle shareholders to vote | director				3
Common stock, Class A
Class of Stock [Line Items]
Stock repurchase program, authorized amount		$ 100,000,000
Stock repurchased during period, value				$ 600,000	$ 7,300,000
Outstanding amount authorized				$ 49,700,000
Common stock, Class A | Minimum
Class of Stock [Line Items]
Price paid per share for stock repurchased during the period | $ / shares				$ 15.54	$ 13.29
Common stock, Class A | Maximum
Class of Stock [Line Items]
Price paid per share for stock repurchased during the period | $ / shares				$ 18.72	$ 17.86
Stock Options | Common stock, Class A | Maximum
Class of Stock [Line Items]
Purchase price of stock options granted, percent of fair market value				100.00%
Restricted Stock Units (RSUs)
Class of Stock [Line Items]
Total unrecognized compensation cost related to restricted stock, RSUs and performance shares				$ 13,400,000
Weighted-average period of recognition, years				1 year 6 months
Restricted Stock Units (RSUs) | Minimum
Class of Stock [Line Items]
Vesting period of stock options				3 years
Restricted Stock Units (RSUs) | Maximum
Class of Stock [Line Items]
Vesting period of stock options				4 years
Subsequent Event | Common stock, Class A
Class of Stock [Line Items]
Stock repurchase program, authorized amount								$ 100,000,000
[1]	* Net of tax payments related to shares withheld for vested stock and RSUs of $3,831 in 2019, $3,796 in 2018 and $4,576 in 2017.

Capital Stock and Share Based_4

Capital Stock and Share Based Compensation Plans - Summary of stock option transactions (Details) - Stock Options - $ / shares	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Options, Outstanding and Exercisable [Roll Forward]
Options outstanding at beginning of period, number of shares	251,507	486,914
Options exercised in period, number of shares	(251,507)	(235,407)
Options outstanding at end of period, number of shares	0	251,507
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Options, Outstanding and Exercisable, Weighted Average Exercise Price [Roll Forward]
Options outstanding at beginning of period, weighted-average exercise price (USD per share)	$ 7.38	$ 6.81
Options exercised in period, weighted-average exercise price (USD per share)	7.38	6.20
Options outstanding at end of period, weighted-average exercise price (USD per share)		$ 7.38
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Options, Outstanding and Exercisable, Exercise Price Range [Roll Forward]
Options outstanding at beginning of period, lower end of range of exercise price range (USD per share)	6	6
Options outstanding at beginning of period, upper end of range of exercise price range (USD per share)	9	9
Options exercised, lower end of exercise price range (USD per share)	6	6
Options exercised, upper end of exercise price range (USD per share)	9	8
Options outstanding at end of period, lower end of range of exercise price range (USD per share)		6
Options outstanding at end of period, upper end of range of exercise price range (USD per share)		9

Capital Stock and Share Based_5

Capital Stock and Share Based Compensation Plans - Cash proceeds (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Cash received upon exercise	$ 0	$ 1,857	$ 1,461
Stock Options
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Cash received upon exercise	0	1,857	1,461
Intrinsic value (market value on date of exercise less exercise price)	0	1,266	3,919
Tax benefits realized	$ 0	$ 315	$ 1,497

Capital Stock and Share Based_6

Capital Stock and Share Based Compensation Plans - Restricted stock and restricted stock unit activity (Details) - Restricted Stock Units (RSUs) - $ / shares	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Options, Outstanding [Roll Forward]
Unvested shares at beginning of period, number of shares	1,175,442	1,187,923	1,425,177
Shares and units awarded in period, number of shares	758,557	816,771	653,522
Shares and units vested in period, number of shares	(536,064)	(771,904)	(581,920)
Shares and units forfeited in period, number of shares	(39,497)	(57,348)	(308,856)
Unvested shares at end of period, number of shares	1,358,438	1,175,442	1,187,923
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Options, Additional Disclosures [Abstract]
Unvested shares at beginning of period, weighted-average value (USD per share)	$ 18.68	$ 15.86	$ 19.99	$ 17.05
Shares and units awarded in period, weighted-average value (USD per share)	22.12	13.28	22.51
Shares and units vested in period, weighted-average value (USD per share)	21.67	14.16	20.78
Shares and units forfeited in period, weighted-average value (USD per share)	17.89	16.68	17.20
Unvested shares at end of period, weighted-average value (USD per share)	$ 18.68	$ 15.86	$ 19.99
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Equity Instruments Other than Options, Nonvested, Exercise Price Range [Roll Forward]
Unvested shares and units, range of exercise prices, beginning of period, lower range (USD per share)	11	14	12
Unvested shares and units, range of exercise prices, beginning of period, upper range (USD per share)	24	24	24
Shares and units awarded in period, range of exercise prices, lower range (USD per share)	13	11	17
Shares and units awarded in period, range of exercise prices, upper range (USD per share)	23	17	24
Shares and units vested in period, range of exercise prices, lower range (USD per share)	12	11	14
Shares and units vested in period, range of exercise prices, upper range (USD per share)	23	18	24
Shares and units forfeited in period, range of exercise prices, lower range (USD per share)	13	13	14
Shares and units forfeited in period, range of exercise prices, upper range (USD per share)	24	23	24
Unvested shares and units, range of exercise prices, end of period, lower range (USD per share)	11	11	14
Unvested shares and units, range of exercise prices, end of period, upper range (USD per share)	24	24	24

Capital Stock and Share Based_7

Capital Stock and Share Based Compensation Plans - Additional restricted stock and restricted stock unit vesting (Details) - Restricted Stock Units (RSUs) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Fair value of RSUs vested	$ 11,618	$ 10,930	$ 12,090
Tax benefits realized on shares and units vested	$ 2,969	$ 1,758	$ 4,630

Capital Stock and Share Based_8

Capital Stock and Share Based Compensation Plans - Schedule of stock compensation costs (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Employee Service Share-based Compensation, Allocation of Recognized Period Costs [Line Items]
Share-based compensation, net of tax	$ 9,747	$ 7,919	$ 7,605
Discontinued Operations
Employee Service Share-based Compensation, Allocation of Recognized Period Costs [Line Items]
Total share-based compensation	215	468	646
Continuing Operations
Employee Service Share-based Compensation, Allocation of Recognized Period Costs [Line Items]
Total share-based compensation	13,093	10,540	12,314
Restricted Stock Units (RSUs)
Employee Service Share-based Compensation, Allocation of Recognized Period Costs [Line Items]
Total share-based compensation	$ 13,308	$ 11,008	$ 12,960

Accumulated Other Comprehensi_3

Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss (Details) - USD ($)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss) [Roll Forward]
Accumulated other comprehensive loss, beginning balance	$ (95,397,000)	$ (102,922,000)
Other comprehensive income (loss) before reclassifications, net of tax	(5,684,000)	(5,416,000)
Amounts reclassified from accumulated other comprehensive loss, net of tax	2,092,000	12,941,000
Net current-period other comprehensive income (loss)	(3,592,000)	7,525,000
Accumulated other comprehensive loss, ending balance	(98,989,000)	(95,397,000)	$ (102,922,000)
Other comprehensive income (loss) before reclassifications, tax amount	(77,000)	(22,000)	(136,000)
Defined Benefit Pension Items
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss) [Roll Forward]
Accumulated other comprehensive loss, beginning balance	(95,365,000)	(102,955,000)
Other comprehensive income (loss) before reclassifications, net of tax	(5,461,000)	(5,351,000)
Amounts reclassified from accumulated other comprehensive loss, net of tax	2,092,000	12,941,000
Net current-period other comprehensive income (loss)	(3,369,000)	7,590,000
Accumulated other comprehensive loss, ending balance	(98,734,000)	(95,365,000)	(102,955,000)
Other comprehensive income (loss) before reclassifications, tax amount	(1,874,000)	(1,803,000)
Amounts reclassified from AOCI, tax amount	718,000	4,360,000
Other
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss) [Roll Forward]
Accumulated other comprehensive loss, beginning balance	(32,000)	33,000
Other comprehensive income (loss) before reclassifications, net of tax	(223,000)	(65,000)
Amounts reclassified from accumulated other comprehensive loss, net of tax	0	0
Net current-period other comprehensive income (loss)	(223,000)	(65,000)
Accumulated other comprehensive loss, ending balance	(255,000)	(32,000)	$ 33,000
Other comprehensive income (loss) before reclassifications, tax amount	$ (77,000)	$ (22,000)

Summarized Quarterly Financia_3

Summarized Quarterly Financial Information (Unaudited) - Schedule (Details) - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, shares in Thousands, $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended								12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Sep. 30, 2019	Jun. 30, 2019	Mar. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Sep. 30, 2018	Jun. 30, 2018	Mar. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Selected Quarterly Financial Information [Abstract]
Total operating revenues	$ 423,055	$ 330,857	$ 320,428	$ 277,059	$ 351,397	$ 289,334	$ 273,425	$ 243,206	$ 1,351,399	$ 1,157,362	$ 845,773
Costs and expenses	(351,080)	(303,652)	(272,351)	(254,305)	(261,280)	(228,632)	(231,594)	(225,407)	(1,181,388)	(946,913)	(752,828)
Depreciation and amortization of intangible assets	(26,145)	(21,661)	(19,532)	(17,006)	(16,830)	(14,840)	(14,494)	(14,547)	(84,344)	(60,711)	(52,906)
Gains (losses), net on disposal of property and equipment	1,998	11	(144)	(173)	(1,105)	501	66	(717)	1,692	(1,255)	(169)
Interest expense	(27,120)	(26,537)	(18,023)	(8,916)	(9,143)	(9,003)	(9,279)	(8,759)	(80,596)	(36,184)	(26,552)
Defined benefit pension plan expense	(1,746)	(2,071)	(1,564)	(1,572)	(13,446)	(3,529)	(1,389)	(1,388)	(6,953)	(19,752)	(14,112)
Miscellaneous, net	(417)	2,042	369	(800)	687	(546)	(156)	138	1,194	123	7,436
Income (loss) from continuing operations before income taxes	18,545	(21,011)	9,183	(5,713)	50,280	33,285	16,579	(7,474)	1,004	92,670	(29,090)
Provision (benefit) for income taxes	5,602	(3,677)	3,385	(2,393)	11,077	8,695	4,219	(1,210)	2,917	22,781	(18,912)
Income (loss) from continuing operations, net of tax	12,943	(17,334)	5,798	(3,320)	39,203	24,590	12,360	(6,264)	(1,913)	69,889	(10,178)
Loss from discontinued operations, net of tax	(2,378)	(4,429)	(6,164)	(3,494)	(17,224)	(5,459)	(6,640)	(20,817)	(16,465)	(50,140)	(4,439)
Net income (loss)	10,565	(21,763)	(366)	(6,814)	21,979	19,131	5,720	(27,081)	(18,378)	19,749	(14,617)
Loss attributable to noncontrolling interest	(166)	166	0	0	0	0	0	(632)	0	(632)	(1,511)
Net income (loss) attributable to the shareholders of The E.W. Scripps Company	$ 10,731	$ (21,929)	$ (366)	$ (6,814)	$ 21,979	$ 19,131	$ 5,720	$ (26,449)	$ (18,378)	$ 20,381	$ (13,106)
Income (loss) from continuing operations, per basic share	$ 0.16	$ (0.22)	$ 0.07	$ (0.04)	$ 0.48	$ 0.30	$ 0.15	$ (0.07)	$ (0.02)	$ 0.85	$ (0.11)
Loss from discontinued operations, per basic share					(0.21)	(0.07)	(0.08)	(0.26)	(0.20)	(0.61)	(0.05)
Income (loss) from continuing operations, per diluted share	$ 0.16	$ (0.22)	$ 0.07	$ (0.04)	0.47	0.29	0.15	(0.07)	(0.02)	0.85	(0.11)
Loss from discontinued operations, per diluted share					$ (0.21)	$ (0.07)	$ (0.08)	$ (0.26)	$ (0.20)	$ (0.60)	$ (0.05)
Basic weighted-average shares outstanding	80,927	80,877	80,822	80,673	80,669	81,452	81,824	81,554	80,826	81,369	82,052
Diluted weighted-average shares outstanding	81,322	80,877	81,196	80,673	81,348	82,084	81,852	81,554	80,826	81,927	82,052
Cash dividends per share of common stock (USD per share)	$ 0.05	$ 0.05	$ 0.05	$ 0.05	$ 0.05	$ 0.05	$ 0.05	$ 0.05	$ 0.20	$ 0.20

Assets Held for Sale and Disc_3

Assets Held for Sale and Discontinued Operations - Narrative (Details) $ in Thousands	Jul. 10, 2020USD ($)	Sep. 30, 2017USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2019USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2018USD ($)radio_station	Dec. 31, 2017USD ($)
Income Statement, Balance Sheet and Additional Disclosures by Disposal Groups, Including Discontinued Operations [Line Items]
Impairment charge		$ 29,400
Disposal Group, including discontinued operation, professional fees				$ 2,500
Discontinued Operations, Held-for-sale
Income Statement, Balance Sheet and Additional Disclosures by Disposal Groups, Including Discontinued Operations [Line Items]
Impairment charge				$ 25,900	$ 8,000
Radio | Discontinued Operations, Held-for-sale
Income Statement, Balance Sheet and Additional Disclosures by Disposal Groups, Including Discontinued Operations [Line Items]
Number of Radio Stations | radio_station				34
Impairment charge				$ 25,900	8,000
Non-deductible charges				30,900	8,000
Stitcher | Discontinued Operations, Held-for-sale
Income Statement, Balance Sheet and Additional Disclosures by Disposal Groups, Including Discontinued Operations [Line Items]
Impairment charge			$ 0	$ 0	$ 0
Stitcher | Discontinued Operations, Disposed of by Sale
Income Statement, Balance Sheet and Additional Disclosures by Disposal Groups, Including Discontinued Operations [Line Items]
Disposal Group, Including Discontinued Operation, Consideration	$ 325,000
Proceeds from Divestiture of Interest in Consolidated Subsidiaries	265,000
Stitcher | Discontinued Operations, Disposed of by Sale | Earnout
Income Statement, Balance Sheet and Additional Disclosures by Disposal Groups, Including Discontinued Operations [Line Items]
Disposal Group, Including Discontinued Operation, Earnout	30,000
Stitcher | Discontinued Operations, Disposed of by Sale | Earnout Based On 2021 Financial Results
Income Statement, Balance Sheet and Additional Disclosures by Disposal Groups, Including Discontinued Operations [Line Items]
Disposal Group, Including Discontinued Operation, Earnout	$ 30,000

Assets Held for Sale and Disc_4

Assets Held for Sale and Discontinued Operations - Operating Results of Discontinued Operations and Net Assets Distributed (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended									12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2019	Sep. 30, 2019	Jun. 30, 2019	Mar. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Sep. 30, 2018	Jun. 30, 2018	Mar. 31, 2018	Sep. 30, 2017	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017
Income Statement, Balance Sheet and Additional Disclosures by Disposal Groups, Including Discontinued Operations [Line Items]
Impairment of goodwill and intangible assets									$ (29,400)
(Loss) income from discontinued operations, net of tax	$ (2,378)	$ (4,429)	$ (6,164)	$ (3,494)	$ (17,224)	$ (5,459)	$ (6,640)	$ (20,817)		$ (16,465)	$ (50,140)	$ (4,439)
Discontinued Operations, Held-for-sale
Income Statement, Balance Sheet and Additional Disclosures by Disposal Groups, Including Discontinued Operations [Line Items]
Operating revenues											100,306	99,829
Total costs and expenses											(109,005)	(90,864)
Depreciation and amortization of intangibles											(3,276)	(6,347)
Impairment of goodwill and intangible assets											(25,900)	(8,000)
Other, net											(150)	2,797
Income (loss) from operations of discontinued operations											(38,025)	(2,585)
Pretax loss on disposal of discontinued operations											(18,558)	0
(Loss) income on discontinued operations before income taxes											(56,583)	(2,585)
Benefit (provision) for income taxes											6,443	(1,854)
(Loss) income from discontinued operations, net of tax											(50,140)	(4,439)
Radio | Discontinued Operations, Held-for-sale
Income Statement, Balance Sheet and Additional Disclosures by Disposal Groups, Including Discontinued Operations [Line Items]
Operating revenues											49,243	68,630
Total costs and expenses											(42,694)	(57,061)
Depreciation and amortization of intangibles											0	(2,910)
Impairment of goodwill and intangible assets											(25,900)	(8,000)
Other, net											(179)	(258)
Income (loss) from operations of discontinued operations											(19,530)	401
Pretax loss on disposal of discontinued operations											(18,558)	0
(Loss) income on discontinued operations before income taxes											(38,088)	401
Benefit (provision) for income taxes											1,760	(2,996)
(Loss) income from discontinued operations, net of tax											(36,328)	(2,595)
Stitcher | Discontinued Operations, Held-for-sale
Income Statement, Balance Sheet and Additional Disclosures by Disposal Groups, Including Discontinued Operations [Line Items]
Operating revenues										72,545	51,063	31,199
Total costs and expenses										(91,725)	(66,311)	(33,803)
Depreciation and amortization of intangibles										(2,642)	(3,276)	(3,437)
Impairment of goodwill and intangible assets										0	0	0
Other, net										(57)	29	3,055
Income (loss) from operations of discontinued operations										(21,879)	(18,495)	(2,986)
Pretax loss on disposal of discontinued operations										0	0	0
(Loss) income on discontinued operations before income taxes										(21,879)	(18,495)	(2,986)
Benefit (provision) for income taxes										5,414	4,683	1,142
(Loss) income from discontinued operations, net of tax										$ (16,465)	$ (13,812)	$ (1,844)

Assets Held for Sale and Disc_5

Assets Held for Sale and Discontinued Operations (Details) - Discontinued Operations, Disposed of by Sale - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Assets
Total current assets	$ 34,793	$ 23,792
Investments	178
Property and equipment	5,526	6,426
Goodwill and intangible assets	48,292	50,223
Operating lease right-of-use assets	10,448
Other assets	2,029	1,828
Stitcher
Assets
Total assets included in the disposal group	101,266	82,269
Liabilities:
Total current liabilities	10,175	9,447
Other liabilities	12,552	1,344
Total liabilities included in the disposal group	22,727	10,791
Net assets included in the disposal group	$ 78,539	$ 71,478