CINCINNATI -- Ellen Weiss, an accomplished journalist and successful news executive, will take charge of The E.W. Scripps Co.'s multimedia news bureau in Washington, D.C., effective Feb. 11, 2013.
As vice president and bureau chief, Weiss will oversee a growing team of investigative reporters whose stories appear in all Scripps television, newspaper and digital markets, plus guide the company's daily national coverage and manage the Scripps Howard News Service.
Weiss joins Scripps from The Center for Public Integrity, a nonprofit investigative news organization, where she was the executive editor in charge of strategic planning and investigative journalism. She was instrumental in the story selection, editing, publishing and distribution of original investigative journalism. Through her leadership, the organization's content crossed multiple platforms to reach audiences online and on major print, broadcast and digital outlets.
Before joining the nonpartisan organization in 2011, she enjoyed a transformative and successful career with National Public Radio. During her tenure, which spanned nearly 30 years, she was at the forefront of news coverage and investigations that touched many corners of the world. From early beginnings as a production assistant, she spent nearly two decades on the critically acclaimed "All Things Considered" program before spending five years as the supervising senior editor of NPR's national desk. In 2007 she was named senior vice president of NPR, overseeing the entire news organization of 400 domestic and international journalists. Weiss spearheaded the conversion of NPR's newsroom from an exclusively broadcast production to one that is now multimedia.
The D.C. bureau traces its roots to 1917, when the company's founder, Edward W. Scripps, established a headquarters in Washington to direct the company's support of American war efforts. With the advent of World War II, the bureau added international reporting responsibilities, most famously embodied by legendary Scripps war correspondent Ernie Pyle, who died in April 1945 while embedded with combat troops on the Pacific Island of Iejima. The bureau today serves 18 of the top 20 markets in the United States. The combined daily circulation of its clients exceeds 22 million.
Weiss is a lecturer and guest speaker on subjects related to media and the press, and she has been recognized with numerous national journalism awards, including Peabodys and Murrows. She replaces Peter Copeland, who, after a long career with Scripps, is transitioning to the role of consulting editor.
