Spanish Broadcasting System has promoted Elisa Torres to EVP/Chief Network Officer of SBS National and AIRE Radio Networks.
Torres has led AIRE Radio Networks since 2015, when she was promoted after serving as SVP Network Operations and Affiliate Sales for two years. She was named the first female EVP of the company in 2017. Torres also previously served as Sr. Director of Affiliate Relations and Vice President of Distribution for Cumulus Media Networks and predecessor ABC Radio Networks from 2004 to 2013.
Spanish Broadcasting System, Inc. (SBS) announced today the promotion of Elisa Torres to Chief Network Officer/EVP, Aire Radio Networks and SBS National. Torres, the first female executive to hold a Chief position at SBS, the largest Hispanic-owned and minority certified multimedia and entertainment company in the U.S., will continue to oversee AIRE Radio Networks, the largest minority-certified Spanish Language audio network and will spearhead the advancement of all network and national audio sales and marketing solutions.
“Elisa has played an instrumental role in the creation, growth and development of Aire Radio Networks and our SBS national audio divisions,” said Raul Alarcon Jr., Chairman of SBS. “Her transformational leadership combined with her tenacity to develop innovative partnership solutions and strategies has resulted in significant year-over-year revenue growth for our company. We are excited to have her at the helm of our continued advancement.”
Torres, who is touted as one of the most influential women in radio and one of the most prominent Latina media executives in the country, initially joined Spanish Broadcasting System in 2013 to lead the establishment of AIRE Radio Networks and its syndication efforts. She has been responsible for overseeing all aspects of its operations, as well as the overall network sales strategy. In 2017, she was promoted to EVP, AIRE Radio Networks and SBS National, with the expanded responsibility of streamlining the network and national sales operations.
Under Torres’s direction, AIRE Radio Networks has become the leading minority-certified Spanish Language audio network in the country, reaching 95% of the U.S. HDMA, across 300+ affiliates in the country’s top markets. Torres has also led the national syndication efforts of programs such as Al Aire con El Terri, La Mezcla con Alex Sensation, and the newly acquired, El Show de Omar y Argelia, to name a few.
“The growth and success of Aire Radio Networks over the past ten years is a testament of Elisa’s unique entrepreneurial ability to build audio vehicles that effectively reach and culturally engage Hispanic consumers across the country,” said Albert Rodriguez, President and COO. “From developing revenue-generating cross-platform solutions to overseeing one of our most successful operations, we couldn’t be more proud to announce Elisa as the first female chief in SBS history.”
Torres has been the innovator behind some of the AIRE and SBS’s most desirable turn-key platforms such as Artistas 360, an audio-driven, cross-platform solution that connects advertisers to popular and rising Latin music artists around the globe in order to voice their campaigns and represent their brands. Artistas360 is comprised of iconic Latin artists and celebrities such as Ivy Queen, Carlos Ponce, Farruko and many others. With the mission of driving efficiencies, revenue and developing SBS’s local on-air talent, she developed the widely successful Influencer Network, which consist of personalities that represent U.S. Hispanic consumers across key markets. Advertisers are able to activate the Influencer Network in order to drive national messaging with local scale through the trusted reputation of SBS talent.
“It’s one of my greatest honors to work with the largest minority owned and certified Spanish Language multimedia company in the nation,” said Elisa Torres. “I’m extremely grateful for the trust and commitment I’ve received from Raul, Albert and the SBS family for allowing me the opportunity to build a network that delivers on my passion to empower and inspire the Latino community.”
In addition to building successful network vehicles and marketing partnership campaigns, Torres has developed cross-platform opportunities that have translated into proven revenue success. From leveraging offerings such as Mi Casa Es Tu Casa, a virtual live music concert experience to the company’s digital and expanded live music content portfolio to meet the advertisers’ needs, Torres has been at the core of streamlining all of SBS’s multimedia verticals.
Torres also developed the first-ever Spanish language show prep service, AIRE Show Prep, which empowers and serves radio producers and personalities with a wide range of content, music mixes, imaging, celebrity, and influencer voice-over solutions to program their stations.
Prior to joining AIRE Radio Networks/Spanish Broadcasting System, Elisa played a critical role in establishing and developing some of the first Spanish Language audio networks in the country. She started her career with Caracol Radio and worked her way up to be an executive with Cumulus Media, formally ABC Radio Networks, where she launched ABC Radio Networks en Español and ESPN Deportes, the first ever Spanish Language sports network. Torres has also been the leader behind some of the most highly rated syndicated radio programs featuring iconic Latin influencers such as Maria Marin, Conexion Thalia, Por El Placer de Vivir con Cesar Lozano and Daddy Yankee Weekend Show.
This story first appeared on radioinsight.com