Radio Mambí’s new owners will respect and retain the station’s Cuban ‘spirit’ | Opinion

We recently launched the Latino Media Network (LMN), announcing the acquisition of 18 TelevisaUnivision radio stations in 10 markets across the country, including two here in Miami.

Given the amount of conversation about our company since then, we wanted to make a few things clear.

It is not lost on us that Radio Mambí, one of the 18 stations we acquired, has been an institution in the Cuban community for decades. We believe in the role it has played in the community and do not intend to change the spirit or character of what has made it popular and profitable.

We wholeheartedly believe in free speech and free expression. We believe in journalistic integrity. And our goal will always be to run a successful business. We will be focused on how to continue to build our audience and make the stations profitable.

The deal with TelevisaUnivision to purchase the stations was a business transaction. Our primary business objective was keeping Spanish-language stations under Hispanic ownership. We own 100% of the company — and we are proud that, as Latinas, we were able to raise capital that has been long denied to people like us. We are backed by a group of prominent Latinos from different backgrounds who support LMN as investors and advisors and, more important, as local residents. This coalition includes award-winning journalist Maria Elena Salinas, who worked as co-anchor of Univision for 30 years; Al Cardenas, businessman and former president of the Republican Party of Florida; and Eduardo Padrón, former president of Miami Dade College. We look to its guidance as we move forward.

LMN will build upon the great work TelevisaUnivision has done in creating radio for Latino communities throughout the United States. It is imperative that we do so. While Latinos continue to drive the country’s population growth, minority media ownership is on the decline. This is why now is the time to invest in more resources to create content that is for Hispanics, by Hispanics. WAQI and WQBA are as critical to our mission as the Cuban diaspora is to the future of our country. These community-focused stations will continue to create relevant content for radio and other audio platforms with information that listeners can trust and rely on.

As the leading voices on these stations have shared with the public, we have encouraged them to stay and continue with us on this mission. We are committed to the freedoms that Miami values so much and that have allowed us, two Latinas, to create a company that follows and will thrive on the benefits of a free-market exchange.

Stephanie Valencia is a social entrepreneur, public servant, and author. She is the founder of Equis and has held leadership roles in tech, philanthropy and government. Jess Morales Rocketto is a social entrepreneur and civil society leader. She is chief of Moonshots at Equis.

This story was originally published June 10, 2022 at 2:22 PM.