Pio Ferro leaves Mediaco: What is next for Hot 97 and WBLS?

[davideduardo]

Radio Insight reports:

Meruelo Media has appointed Pio Ferro as Senior Vice President of Programming for its four stations in Los Angeles starting Monday, May 13.
Ferro will oversee programming and digital content for all four of Meruelo Media’s stations: Classic Hip Hop 93.5 KDAY, Spanish Rhythmic “Cali 93.9” KLLI, Rock 95.5 KLOS, and Hip Hop “Power 106” KPWR plus KWHY-TV. Ferro joins Meruelo from MediaCo New York where he currently served as VP of Programming overseeing “Hot 97” WQHT and Adult R&B 107.5 WBLS.

With the Emmis FM losing its LMA soon, and talk of financial difficulties at MediaCo, I wonder what is in store for the two NYC MediaCo FMs.

Pio Ferro Jumps From MediaCo To Meruelo Media As SVP/Programming - RadioInsight

Meruelo Media has appointed Pio Ferro as Senior Vice President of Programming for its four stations in Los Angeles starting Monday, May 13. Ferro will oversee programming and digital content for all four of Meruelo Media’s stations: Classic Hip Hop 93.5 KDAY, Spanish Rhythmic “Cali 93.9” KLLI...

radioinsight.com

 

[PTBoardOp93]

With the Emmis FM losing its LMA soon, and talk of financial difficulties at MediaCo, I wonder what is in store for the two NYC MediaCo FMs.

MediaCo got $10 million in new loan availability last month when they acquired Liberman Media (formerly Estrella). So their short term finances look OK -- assuming Lieberman isn't a gong show of a company.

 

[TheBigA]

They have a new CEO, so I suspect the new VP of programming will come from her:

MediaCo has also selected Jacqueline Hernández as its new Interim CEO. Hernandez had been operating New Majority Ready, a multicultural marketing and content strategy company that she founded in 2019, and has held executive roles at Time Magazine, Turner Broadcasting, Combate Americas, and NBC/Universal as well as Publisher of People Magazine en Espanol and Teen People, COO of Telemundo. She also serves or has served as a board member for companies including Estrella Media, RedBox, and Victoria’s Secret.

MediaCo Acquires Estrella Media’s Content Operations; To Program Radio Licenses

MediaCo Holding, owners of Hip Hop "Hot 97" WQHT and Adult R&B 107.5 WBLS New York, have announced the acquisition

radioinsight.com

 

[davideduardo]

MediaCo got $10 million in new loan availability last month when they acquired Liberman Media (formerly Estrella). So their short term finances look OK -- assuming Lieberman isn't a gong show of a company.

Liberman was, indeed, a gong show. Rimshots in DFW and Houston, Class A simulcasts in LA. A history of Lenard Leberman's severe authoritarian management

 

[Identnut]

Liberman was, indeed, a gong show. Rimshots in DFW and Houston, Class A simulcasts in LA. A history of Lenard Leberman's severe authoritarian management

If Liberman goes belly-up, I wonder what this means for the talented Don Cheto. That's easily Estrella's biggest radio asset. He may be on just one station in Los Angeles (I don't count the mid-day shows in Texas) but he's syndicated nationwide and pretty successful at it.

 

[Mediafrog+]

MediaCo got $10 million in new loan availability last month when they acquired Liberman Media (formerly Estrella).

Backwards. MediaCo acquired the Estrella Media assets, formerly Liberman.

Liberman was, indeed, a gong show. Rimshots in DFW and Houston, Class A simulcasts in LA. A history of Lenard Leberman's severe authoritarian management

Estrella Media seemed to have the Houston stations on a good course… very nice numbers recently for their rimshot signals (La Raza, El Norte) as Univision’s KLTN continues to fall.

 

[davideduardo]

Estrella Media seemed to have the Houston stations on a good course… very nice numbers recently for their rimshot signals (La Raza, El Norte) as Univision’s KLTN continues to fall.

But Estrella did nothing with their Houston stations; they just filled the void when KLTN collapsed.

 

[Señor xrey]

What happened to KLTN? They have a great signal and did well when I was with HBC over a decade ago.

Oh wait.
Televisa-Univision came in.
Never mind.