HGTV is growing. Branching out. OK, enough clever clichés, but this spring, just in time for Memorial Day, HGTV broadens its HGTV Home brand with a new line of live plants. The HGTV Home Plant Collection reinforces what HGTV has been doing from the beginning – delivering to consumers the information and expert insight they want and need to pursue their lifestyle with passion. 

Gardening is, after all, one of the most popular outdoor pursuits. The National Gardening Association reports that three-quarters of U.S. households – nearly 200,000,000 people –  engage in gardening activities at some level. 

HGTV already taps into that loyal following with a popular website (HGTVGardens.com), and soon will launch an HGTV gardening app to help connect with and attract a new generation of garden fans.

The HGTV Home Plant Collection, which can be found in close to 400 stores in over 20 states, extends the powerful HGTV brand into a new albeit familiar area. In recent months, we’ve launched a line of paint and flooring and furniture is on the way.

About 15,000 cable industry leaders will head to Boston in a few days for the NCTA Cable Show (May 21-23), the cable industry’s largest annual confab. A lot of these folks will arrive early, stay late, or find some time between sessions to sample some of the local flavor of Boston – something that can be a challenge when your time is limited.

That’s where Travel Channel’s Guide to Boston comes in. Back in January, convention planners expressed a desire to help Cable Show attendees experience more. Those conversations led to co-branded partnership with the NCTA and Travel Channel that’s just launched. Travel Channel’s Guide to Boston, created by Travel Channel experts, serves as an online resource to help Cable Show attendees get around Boston and quickly glean the must-see attractions, best restaurants, swankiest bars and other quick escapes near the Boston Convention & Exhibition Center.

Bull & Finch Pub is a must-see for fans of the popular television show Cheers.

After all, work/life balance is a Core Value at Scripps Networks Interactive. What better way to share that appreciation with our cable industry brethren, and who better than Travel Channel to make it happen?

When we think of New York, we tend to think about it as the greatest city on earth. For foodies, it’s a city where you can get any kind of food you want, anytime.

Unless you are the one in five children who doesn’t know where his or her next meal will come from. In a city known for its culinary prowess, access to healthy food can be a real issue. So can the price of food.

A fascinating online Op/Ed in the New York Daily News looks at how critical the problem of childhood hunger is in America’s biggest city. It’s worth reading.

At Scripps Networks Interactive, we believe childhood hunger and childhood obesity are next door neighbors. And we know they are closely linked to school performance. We also believe it is a problem that can and will be solved.

We are not alone. All across the country we are helping kids learn about eating healthy and learning about nutrition through our Food Network Good Food Gardens. We’ll be planting three more in the next month in three different parts of the country.

Senator Charles Schumer

Senator Kirsten Gillibrand

It takes a village to raise a child and it will take all of us who have the means to address the issue. That’s why we’ve partnered with Share our Strength to raise awareness through programs like Hunger Hits Home. Just as important are federal programs that help make sure kids get properly fed. In New York, we know Senators Charles Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand  understand the issues and are providing the leadership needed to address them. We’re also proud to have four Good Food Gardens, tended by school-age children and their families, flourishing in New York.

There are many pieces to this puzzle. All are important but it is difficult to address any of them unless all American’s have access to healthy, affordable food. We’re making progress but we still have a long way to go. No matter where you live, the problem is in your own backyard.. We encourage you to get involved. Help us change the world, one meal at a time.

We couldn’t have asked for a better day or a more enthusiastic group of kids to get to work on the latest Good Food Garden from Food Network. This one is in Cincinnati, at the Boys & Girls Club in the Avondale community, a food desert with no grocery store to provide fresh produce for families in the area.

Scripps Networks President, John Lansing and Food Network Host, Aarti Sequeira work with kids in Cicinnati to install a Good Food Garden

Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), a member of the U.S. Senate Hunger Caucus and an advocate of increasing access to fresh, local foods through investment in local and regional food economies, gets the credit for turning us on to the idea of bringing a Good Food Garden to Cincinnati.  Senator Brown joined Aarti Sequeira, winner of Next Food Network Star and host of Aarti’s Party,  and Scripps Networks president John Lansing along with about a dozen Scripps employees  on this warm, sunny afternoon as we poured and spread about 150 bags of soil and planted more than 200 veggies.

Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown works with Aarti Sequeira

This is the 36th Good Food Garden built through Food Network’s partnership with Share Our Strength as part of our commitment to fight childhood hunger, but it never gets old diggin’ in the dirt with the kids who will nurture these gardens and, ultimately, harvest and enjoy the rewards of their labor.

Employees from our Cincinnati office joined in the fun

Oh, and here’s a myth buster:  Broccoli was the clear favorite among the kids when asked what they most look forward to eating from the garden.  This Good Food Garden should produce food to feed approximately 500 people three times a year.

The kids from the Avondale Boys & Girls Club had a blast planting the garden

“Keep Austin Weird”

If you’ve ever been to the capitol of the Lone Star State, you know exactly what I’m talking about.  Initiated to promote local small businesses, the slogan has come to reflect a friendly and accepting culture of artistic and individual expression.  Whether you’re walking Congress Street during the day or the Mardi Gras-esque Sixth Street at night, you’re sure to be met with an atmosphere of unparalleled vibrancy and creativity!

Nothing symbolizes this idea though, in terms of size and scope, quite like South By Southwest (SXSW).  Since its inception in 1987, the SXSW Music and Conference Festival has evolved from a small, community-focused music festival to an all-encompassing phenomenon incorporating music, film, and technology.  It’s grown from 700 registrants in its first year to an-expected 20,000-plus registrants at this year’s event, which kicked off yesterday.

SXSW is everywhere in Austin...even at the airport.

SXSW has served as the launching pad for a bevy of social media platforms we use today (Twitter or Foursquare anyone?).  While our largest lifestyle brands – HGTV and Food Network – don’t lack in name recognition, a trip to Austin in mid-March was never high on these brands’ lists.  But as SXSW has become more mainstream – CNN’s morning show Starting Point broadcasted live from Austin this morning – all hands are on deck for our powerhouse media brands and our digital media team to get in front of the masses at this event.

The centerpiece of HGTV’s presence at SXSW will be The Studio by HGTV, a former bar that will be transformed by design rock stars, Bob and Cortney Novogratz, of HGTV’s Home by Novogratz.  The Studio by HGTV will host our Garden Party this Sunday evening, in celebration of the launch of HGTV’s new gardening blog, HGTVGardens.com. And throughout next week’s SXSW Music Festival, The Studio by HGTV will host an electrifying lineup of live bands and network talent.  In addition, HGTV will also be co-sponsoring Flatstock 33, a free poster art expo.

What The Studio at HGTV looked like as of this past Thursday.

The integration of social media and television has been abuzz this year with the record social activity triggered from the Super Bowl and the Oscars. Food Network and Cooking Channel executives Susie Fogelson (SVP of Marketing, Creative and Brand Strategy) and Robert Madden (SVP of Online Brands) will be on separate event panels discussing whether social media is driving television ratings and how some of today’s most successful food truck chefs and entrepreneurs are incorporating social media into their communication strategy.

Austinites love their food…and they’re sure to love what Cooking Channel will be “brewing” in the kitchen.  The food brand is teaming up with Austin’s Easy Tiger Bake Shop & Beer Garden to bring foodies and SXSWi attendees the “Cooking Channel Beer Garden at Easy Tiger,” pairing Easy Tiger’s 30-plus local and boutique draft beers with a delicious, custom menu created by Cooking Channel Kitchens and the Easy Tiger culinary team.  Digital media executives and journalists, food and beverage tastemakers and influencers, consumers and Nadia G from Nadia G’s Bitchin’ Kitchen are expected to be at this weekend’s event!

While there will be no shortage of A-list celebs present for the music and film part of SXSW (Jay-Z, Lionel Richie and Austin-native Matthew McConaughey to name a few), event organizers are expected a record number of job seekers looking to break into the “interactive world.”  Catering to this demand, SXSWi is hosting the Tech Career Expo @SXSW, a two-day event that will match talented professionals with more than 70 participating companies.  We’ll be there, so make sure to stop by our booth and learn why we’re one of the Top 10 Places to Work in Cable!

SXSW 2012 promises to be bigger and better than ever.  For all of us at SNI, we’re excited for our chance to “be weird” in Austin!