In October 2020, he joined Estrella Media under its previous ownership as Executive VP of Digital and Streaming Media, following a role as Sr. VP and Head of Ad Sales and Operations at Sony Pictures Television Digital Networks.
Now, he’s been promoted to the newly created role of Chief Growth & Innovation Officer at the entity that is today the parent of Estrella Media — and venerable New York radio brands “HOT 97” and WBLS.
Earning the new position at Nasdaq-traded MediaCo Holding Inc. is René Santaella.
As MediaCo says, Santaella will now “own MediaCo’s end-to-end ‘Supply + Growth Engines’ chain that converts content investment into scalable distribution, deeper audience engagement, increased inventory scale and quality, and improved monetization performance across MediaCo’s entire portfolio.”
For MediaCo CEO Albert Rodriguez, the appointment comes amid market “momentum” — despite a dismal 2025 across the U.S. Hispanic market with respect to advertising revenue. “We are the momentum in the market, so we are investing in the required leadership and resources to accelerate growth.” said Rodriguez, who adds Santaella has “has a proven track record in building, modernizing and scaling multiplatform businesses and delivering measurable results. This new role is designed to be relentlessly focused on growth and innovation and maximizing the impact of our content, distribution, product and monetization engines.”
Santaella commented, “This role is designed around a simple truth: in today’s media landscape, growth comes from aligning the entire chain around consumers and a multiplatform world on every screen and every device. I’m excited to be hyper focused on growth and innovation by optimizing the value of our content portfolio, expanding distribution and inventory, improving engagement, and advancing the technology and workflows that power our platforms.”
MediaCo Chief Revenue Officer Brian Fisher added, “René’s leadership will accelerate how we scale distribution, inventory and monetization across our platforms. As MediaCo’s
audience continues to grow across TV, audio, digital and streaming, and with digital
surging – this role helps turn that momentum into even greater value for advertisers and
partners.”
MediaCo’s asset portfolio is comprised of Estrella Media’s EstrellaTV network and radio stations in Dallas, Houston and Southern California; WBLS-FM and WQHT-FM “HOT 97” in New York, two Spanish-language digital multicast audio brands in New York, and a recently launched TV brand wrapped around HOT 97, debuting first in Atlanta.
