New York is always one of the highlights of our 2013-2014 upfront presentation tour, and yesterday was no exception. We entertained New York business media in the Hauser Salon at Lincoln Center, giving  them a preview of Scripps’ programming strategy and marketing opportunities we shared later in the evening when the New York advertising community filled Alice Tully Hall.

Our fabulous on-air talent made Tuesday night’s upfront a star-studded event!

At Scripps, we’ve worked hard to gain the respect of those who report on our industry. This time of year, these men and women have heard and seen programming and marketing pitches from just about every network on TV, so it was nice to see the media turn out in full force, all still very eager to hear and see what’s new with our popular lifestyle networks.

Steve Gigliotti, President of Ad Sales for Scripps, welcomed the group and shared with them the incredible reach of our power brands – noting that more than 170 million consumers interact with our networks, magazines, websites, social media platforms and apps every single month. Steve underscored that message with the commitment we feel, as the Leader in Lifestyle media, to continue to offer content that not only engages with consumers, but in many cases, truly makes a difference in their lives.

Our chief programming executives, Brooke Johnson, Burton Jablin, Laureen Ong and Sarah Trahern shared our programming slate for the 2013-14 season, including some exciting new shows coming to Food Network and Cooking Channel, HGTV and DIY Network, Travel Channel and Great American Country network. As Stuart Elliott of The New York Times noted, we’re rolling out 52 new programs – what equates to one a week over the next year. The media also was interested in hearing about what we’re doing in the area of second screen viewing and streaming of electronic video, including our plans to launch both dynamic ad insertion and TV Everywhere capabilities to better meet this growing demand for our content.

It never gets old to see good people and good organizations prosper. We were able to witness this again at this year’s N Street Village Gala where over $650,000 was raised to help homeless and low-income women in the Washington, D.C. area.   

Scripps Networks President John Lansing noted that both N Street Village and Scripps Networks have a rich history of empowering women

The Gala highlighted victories from the past year including N Street awarding Lolita, Patricia and Shevanda the Erna and John Steinbruck Award for exhibiting leadership, persistence and determination and events including the recent kitchen remodel at one of their shelters, provided by DIY Network.  Several Legislators were honored as well for helping further N Street’s cause and increase awareness.

Schroeder Stribling (left) and Gloria Mayfield Banks (right) pose with Lolita, Patricia and Shevanda after they were awarded the Erna and John Steinbruck Award

The N Street Village Gala annually attracts VIPs throughout the DC area including last year’s Founders’ Award Recipient Sen. Amy Klobuchar (middle) seen here with Scripps Networks Chief Legal Officer, Cynthia Gibson and John Lansing

 Way to go, N Street! We continue to be inspired by the great work you do for these women and your community.

HGTV recently hosted media at the first HGTV Smart Home in Jacksonville Beach, Fla.  As you might expect, their number-one question was “what makes this home so smart?”

Designed by architect Mike Stauffer, AIA, and constructed by Glenn Layton Homes, the HGTV Smart Home 2013 measures approximately 2,400 square feet and features more than 1,000 square feet of covered porches, decks and pool. Smart home technology connects many of the home’s appliances and devices, and allows occupants to monitor energy use and control home systems such as security, interior climate, lighting and other electronics. The HGTV Smart Home 2013 is built to meet the Consumer Electronics Association’s TechHome Rating specifications for technology infrastructure.

Entries for this year’s HGTV Smart Home Giveaway open on April 11.

“The features and functionality of this home are like nothing we’ve ever offered in HGTV home giveaways, and set the standard for creative spaces and ways that consumers can use emerging technology to improve their homes,” said Jack Thomasson, HGTV house planner.

Sound complicated? Not really. One of the greatest features of the HGTV Smart Home is that it demonstrates that anyone can incorporate a degree of smart technology into their own home in an affordable way. Here are Jack’s “Five Reasons to Go Smart in Your Home.”

HGTV House Planner Jack Thomasson interviews during Tuesday’s media day.

1. Find a system that speaks your language. Technology can be intimidating, but it can be explained within your comfort zone. It’s so frustrating to invest in something that doesn’t offer a return. When you invest in technology for your home, take care to find the right system.

2. Maximize security options. This can make your life easier and more secure and bring you peace of mind. For example, a front door that you can lock and unlock from a smart phone can free you of giving precious house keys away that can be duplicated at any hardware store. Or, discreet security cameras can alert you when someone is approaching your home.

3. Enjoy the luxury of remote function. That same technology that brings you security can bring you luxury. When you can control your home remotely, you eliminate everyday worries. If you become distracted while filling the bathtub, you’re covered — a Smart Home will shut it off automatically at a pre-designated fill level.

4. Embrace “smart” technology. The right tech choices — from energy efficiency to better use of your time — will make you more effective. There is no need to walk from room to room turning off lights, because you can adjust lights with an app that controls them inside and outside the home. Or control the temperature in your home with a smart thermostat that you can adjust from anywhere.

5. Have fun. Technology can and should be fun. As you incorporate technology into your home and connect appliances and devices electronically, you’ll marvel at the newfound freedoms you didn’t even realize you’d lost and the functionality you didn’t know you were missing. Wireless advancements have made technology more available, more affordable and more user-friendly than ever.

Members of the media at Tuesday’s media event.

Besides showcasing technology and helping consumers understand how to use it in their own homes, the HGTV Smart Home provides a great platform for many loyal advertisers to present their products and services in an environment that only HGTV can deliver.

The fully furnished HGTV Smart Home 2013 features products provided by national advertising partners including  GMC, Bassett Furniture, Moen, Shaw Floors, ADT Security Services, Bush Brothers & Company, Quicken Loans, Garnier, The Sherwin-Williams Company, Tempur-Pedic Management, LLC., Trex Company, Inc., and Char-Broil.

The first HGTV Smart Home is move-in ready for one new owner who’ll claim the fully-furnished home, a new GMC vehicle and $100,000 in the first HGTV Smart Home Giveaway. The entry period runs April 11-May 31. Get more details at hgtv.com/smarthome.

The fun and frivolity of mega-conference South by Southwest in Austin, Texas, is finally winding down. But not before HGTV made its presence known as a sponsor of the nine-day event of cutting-edge interactive ideas, film screenings and musical performances.

This week HGTV joined forces with online music channel Vevo to transform the popular Ghost Room venue into a beer garden and hangout space complete with picnic tables, Ping-Pong, and food and beverages. The space, designed by HGTV HOME Studio interns and new graduates, also functioned as a music venue and an exclusive after-hours VIP lounge.

HGTV also partnered with Paste magazine to host the entertainment site’s ninth annual day party, “Stages on Sixth,” featuring some of the festival’s most exciting veteran performers. Held at one of 6th Street’s biggest music venues, nearly 50 bands have performed this week. This year’s line-up included festival favorites Billy Bragg, Buddy Miller & Jim Lauderdale, Josh Ritter and The Zombies, as well as newcomer CR Smith, winner of HGTV and Paste’s “Be The New Sound of HGTV Contest.” As part of his grand prize package, CR performed his contest-winning song, “This Way Home,” which was regularly featured on HGTV in 2012.

HGTV’s Wi-Fi bench has been a big hit with the SXSW crowd this week.

For the duration of the festival, HGTV provided specially branded Wi-Fi benches (pictured above) placed strategically throughout downtown Austin. The Wi-Fi hotspots offered passersby a place to rest and recharge their mobile devices to stay connected with friends and family back home. In addition, HGTV’s wildly popular “Art on the Side” — an exhibition where festival-goers paint mini-murals on an outside wall — was back and bigger than ever at the Austin Music Hall.

SXSW oozes creative expression and allows for HGTV to demonstrate how art, music and design connect to the aesthetic of home. It’s the second year in a row the brand has connected with SXSW’s younger audience, but sure not to be the last!

Throughout this blog we’ve highlighted the special relationship between Food Network and our national outreach partner, Share Our Strength. Last week’s screening of the network’s HUNGER HITS HOME documentary at Long Island Lutheran Middle School and High School in Brookville, N.Y. – an event hosted by our Content Marketing and Distribution Team and Cablevision – was the latest in a long line of initiatives dedicated to ending childhood hunger by 2015.

Why Long Island Lutheran, you ask? The high school won Cablevision’s Optimum Power to Learn 2012 Charity Champions competition. To acknowledge the students’ work in fighting hunger in their community, we brought in Susan Stockton, SVP of Culinary at Food Network, and Chuck Scofield, Chief Development Officer at Share Our Strength, to speak to the more than 600 students and faculty members in attendance about No Kid Hungry and the importance of ensuring all children have access to healthy food.

Back Row (L-to-R): Denis Scannell, Lutheran H.S. Principal; Evelyn Cruise, Cablevision; Brent Scott, Scripps Networks Interactive; Chuck Scofield, Share Our Strength
Front Row: 2 Lutheran H.S. students; Loretta Sehlmeyer, Board Member, Island Harvest; 2 Lutheran H.S. students; Susan Stockton, SVP of Culinary Production, Food Network

Following Susan and Chuck’s remarks, the students were presented with a $2,500 donation made by Food Network and Cablevision. The funds will be used for the school’s upcoming “meal packaging event” in which they aim to pack 300,000 meals that will feed 500 children every day for one year. These remarkable students packed a total of 309,234 meals in 2012!

This interactive student program on hunger in America was a win-win for everyone involved. Turnout was fantastic, and Food Network and Cablevision were provided a tremendous opportunity to drive affinity toward this crucial pro-social initiative.

Watch Food Network’s HUNGER HITS HOME documentary.

Pledge to help end childhood hunger by 2015!