Luis Fernández, an executive with experience in news, sports and entertainment media, has been named Chairman of NBCUniversal Telemundo Enterprises.
Beau Ferrari, who had held the Chairman title for the past three years, will segue to a senior advisory role working with NBCU News Group Chairman Cesar Conde to develop new opportunities for the news portfolio.
The new post marks a return to Telemundo for Fernández, who previously served as President of Noticias Telemundo, the Hispanic media company’s news division.
Fernández also served as CEO of Radio Television Española (RTVE), Spain’s state-owned public radio and television corporation, where he supervised television, radio and digital divisions. Other previous posts include President of Univision Entertainment and Univision Studios, where he developed broadcast and social media programs during a historic ratings period for the company. He also was part of the management team of soccer organization Real Madrid, holding the title of International CEO and working from Beijing, and also was an exec at Canal +, Telecinco, Cadena SER, Radio EL PAÍS and Cadena COPE.
“Throughout his extraordinary career, Luis has time and again shown visionary leadership, building and growing the most successful Spanish language media organizations in the United States and overseas,” Conde said. “At this moment in Telemundo’s storied history, we are so fortunate to have someone of Luis’s experience and stature to rejoin our team and excited about what the future holds for Telemundo and its audiences under his leadership.”
Fernández said he was honored to be returning to Telemundo. “As our communities are increasingly playing a greater role in American culture, politics, sports and commerce, this is our time to meet the moment,” he said.
Conde said Ferrari led Telemundo during a “transformative time,” helping it remain a “highly influential voice to Spanish-speaking audiences.”
During Ferrari’s tenure, the NBCU division expanded to more than 150 countries, with a feather in its viewership cap coming last year during the Qatar World Cup, which boosted tune-in to record levels.
