MIAMI–Univision Holdings, Inc., the leading Spanish-language media and content company, today announced the new structure of its Entertainment, Sports and News divisions, led by Luis Silberwasser, President of Univision Television Networks Group.
“The new structure of our Entertainment, Sports and News divisions is critical to driving our business forward and expanding what we can offer to audiences globally”
“The new structure marks another significant step forward in Univision’s transformation strategy and will further accelerate the ability of these divisions to optimize their offerings and provide the best portfolio of networks and content,” said Silberwasser. “As we continue our transformation to become the world’s most important Spanish-language, multi-platform media company, we recognize that supporting our platforms with the best talent and structure is the key to unlocking innovative ideas and achieving superior results.”
The Entertainment, News and Sports divisions will now be structured as follows:
Entertainment
Univision’s evolution into a global multi-platform media company requires a new operating structure that allows the entertainment operations of the television group to focus on the genres that are most effective for television. Furthermore, the pending combination with Televisa will require a new structure to allow optimal collaboration between the United States and Mexico. Today’s leadership changes reflect Univision’s goal of organizing its entertainment structure to focus separately on scripted and non-scripted entertainment content and enable alignment with the Televisa content creation operations in Mexico.
- As announced earlier today, Jessica Rodriguez, most recently President of Entertainment and CMO for Univision, has been promoted to Chief Brand and Impact Officer for Univision and for the combined Televisa-Univision company, subject to the transaction closing. In this new corporate role, Rodriguez’s responsibilities will include creative strategy and branding, marketing and media strategy, talent strategy and insights, research and social impact, equity and inclusion.
- Ignacio Meyer will be promoted to Executive Vice President, Music and Non-Scripted Entertainment. He will continue to lead all development and production of non-scripted content, including entertainment realities, daily variety shows and key music awards tentpole events. Meyer started at Univision in 2011 and, under his creative leadership, Univision became the gold standard for family entertainment, award-winning formats and the most prestigious and culturally relevant Latin music awards shows. Furthermore, the show El Gordo y La Flaca, one of Univision’s longest and most iconic franchises, will now be part of the portfolio of non-scripted shows overseen by Meyer.
- Leonor Sotillo joins Univision as Senior Vice President of Scripted Strategy. Sotillo has more than 25 years of experience developing novelas and scripted content for broadcast networks in the U.S. and Latin America, both as a producer and programmer. She will oversee the scripted entertainment strategy for Univision’s U.S. Hispanic audience.
- Elisa Segovia, who currently oversees content strategy and scheduling for Univision, UniMás and Galavisión networks, will be transitioning to a new role as Senior Vice President, Creative Strategy and Insights, under Rodriguez’s new Corporate Brand, Creative and Impact Group. For a period of time, Segovia will also continue in her role leading programming and scheduling for the networks and will work with Silberwasser to ensure a smooth transition of this key area.
- Jorge Dominguez, Senior Vice President of Creative Services, will continue to oversee all creative design and production for the networks’ physical sets across sports, news and entertainment, and Nathan Smith, Vice President of Content Management, who oversees content management for linear and streaming, will join the Broadcast Operations and Technology team.
News
Univision recognizes its unique bond with the U.S. Hispanic community is built on trust, integrity and commitment to serve the communities where it operates, and Univision Noticias is at the core of that relationship. Univision’s news team, journalistic independence and editorial integrity have made it the undisputed leader in Hispanic News. As the company looks to grow its news business in the U.S., launch its first 24/7 digital news streaming service, evolve its approach to news gathering and production and ultimately enter other Spanish speaking markets (excluding Mexico) it is announcing the following organizational changes in its leadership team:
- Daniel Coronell, President of the News division, is stepping down from his role, effective August 1st, 2021. Coronell first joined the Univision News team in early 2011 as Vice President and News Director and occupied other senior positions until he was promoted to President of News in 2016. Coronell has been the architect of the award-winning Univision Noticias team, always demonstrating the highest journalistic values, work-ethic and a passion to serve the Hispanic community. Each year, under Coronell’s leadership, Univision Noticias has been the preferred news choice for Hispanics in the U.S., leading in ratings/share and achieving multiple prestigious awards – with 18 Emmys, 4 Rey de España awards and 3 Peabody awards. Univision is incredibly grateful to Coronell for all his contributions during his tenure at the company and for the legacy he leaves us to build upon. He is committed to ensuring a smooth transition process.
- Leopoldo Gomez, former head of News at Televisa, has been appointed President, News following Coronell’s departure. Gomez is a seasoned news executive, with proven business results and more than 20 years of experience leading a large and diversified news group in Mexico, the world’s most populous Spanish-language market. Gomez is a graduate of George Washington University and Georgetown University with masters and doctorate degrees in Political Science and in Government. Gomez has been the anchor and director of Mexico’s highest rated weekly Public Affairs TV program, Tercer Grado, and writes a weekly column in one of Mexico’s leading national newspapers. Gomez has been awarded Mexico’s Premio Nacional de Periodismo on two occasions, and is the recipient of the Premio Ondas Iberoamericano de Radio y Television and the Premio Rey de España. As previously announced, Televisa Noticias in Mexico will not be part of the combined Televisa-Univision, and Gomez will no longer be a part of Televisa’s news operations in Mexico. Univision Noticias and Televisa Noticias are and will continue to be separate operations. Gomez’s appointment is effective immediately, and he will relocate to the United States in the weeks ahead.
- Maria Martinez-Guzman will be promoted to Executive Vice President, News overseeing editorial and production units of Univision Network’s news properties including the flagship newscast “Noticiero Univision”. Martínez-Guzman joined Univision Network in 2002 from Univision’s McAllen, TX station KNVO-48 and has held numerous production and editorial positions at the company, including Executive Producer, Vice President of News Gathering and recently Senior Vice President of News.
- Jorge Ramos, Univision’s 10 time Emmy Award-winning journalist and news anchor, will assume additional responsibilities as Special Editorial Advisor to the CEO reporting to Univision CEO, Wade Davis. Ramos has been at the forefront of journalistic integrity and news excellence for more than four decades and represents the best of what Univision Noticias stands for.
Sports
Sports is a key component of Univision’s programming strategy across all platforms. Univision’s success in sports and its position as the ultimate home of soccer has enabled significant opportunities for growth beyond its television programming. In order to better capture this enormous opportunity, Univision is announcing the creation of a Global Sports Enterprises division that will focus on delivering the key sports rights for its network and streaming services and on expanding into new business opportunities, such as sports betting, combat sports and other sports-related growth opportunities globally.
While Global Sports Enterprises will oversee the expansion of rights and businesses beyond television content, the Sports Content Division will remain focused on the creation, production, promotions and operations of all sports content in the Television Networks Group. As a result of this move, Univision is announcing the following executive promotions and changes:
- As announced earlier today, Juan Carlos Rodriguez has been promoted to President of Global Sports Enterprises and will lead the future of sports for Univision and then the combined Televisa-Univision company, subject to the transaction closing. In this new corporate role, Rodriguez will focus on strategically acquiring and delivering key sports rights to Televisa-Univision’s portfolio of networks and streaming services in both the U.S. and Mexico. Rodriguez will also be responsible for creating and launching sports-related businesses including new categories such as partner management, sports betting, new events and activations.
- Olek Loewenstein has been promoted to President of Sports Content and will lead the production of all live sports matches and events, shoulder programming and other sports-related properties for both the linear and streaming portfolio in the U.S. and Mexico. Loewenstein is a ten-year Univision sports executive and the architect of the TUDN joint-production arrangement, currently in place between Univision and Televisa to produce shared sports programming.
“The new structure of our Entertainment, Sports and News divisions is critical to driving our business forward and expanding what we can offer to audiences globally,” said Wade Davis, CEO, Univision. “As demonstrated by this and other recent announcements, we are building the industry’s best team across all of our platforms to help fulfill our incredible potential. One of our key principles during this transformation is to ensure that the best talent, ideas and business processes come together to drive success and achieve our ambitious goals.”
About Univision Communications Inc.
As the leading Spanish-language content and media company in the U.S., Univision Communications Inc. entertains, informs and empowers U.S. Hispanics with news, sports and entertainment content across broadcast and cable television, audio and digital platforms. The Company’s top-rated media portfolio includes the Univision and UniMás broadcast networks, as well as 10 cable networks including Galavisión and TUDN, the No. 1 Spanish-language sports network in the country. Locally, Univision owns or operates 61 television stations in major Hispanic markets across the United States. Additionally, Uforia, the Home of Latin Music, encompasses 58 owned or operated radio stations, a live event series and a robust digital audio footprint. The Company’s prominent digital assets include Univision.com, free AVOD streaming service PrendeTV, Univision Now, the largest Hispanic influencer network, and several top-rated apps. For more information, visit corporate.univision.com.
