NEW YORK — After serving as VP/GM of Cumulus Media‘s WNSH-FM 94.7 “Nash,” the company’s former Country station where she built the sales department from scratch as GSM in 2013, Maire Mason joined Spanish Broadcasting System (SBS).
That was in February 2018. Now, this Gotham leader is adding Windy City duties for the company founded by Raúl Alarcón Jr. and led on a day-to-day basis by President/COO Albert Rodriguez.
As such, Mason, the VP/GM of WSKQ “Mega 97.9” and WPAT “93.1 Amor” in New York is taking on the additional role of VP/GM of regional Mexican WLEY “107.9 La Ley” in Chicago.
WLEY, licensed to Aurora, Ill., is a Class B facility using a tower site adjacent to that of WSCR-AM (the one-time WMAQ) on Army Trail Road in the Chicago suburb of Glendale Heights, just west of O’Hare Airport.
SBS completed its acquisition of WLEY, formerly WYSY-FM, from CBS Radio in April 1997; the deal was precipitated by Infinity Broadcasting’s sale to Westinghouse, which created that version of CBS Radio. SBS paid approximately $30 million for the station.
A quarter-century later, it is a solid competitor to TelevisaUnivision’s WOJO-FM “Qué Buena 105.1.” And, it played a role in the unsuccessful launch of a regional Mexican station by iHeartMedia at 95.5 MHz, today a Rock station.
With the additional role, Mason will be responsible for leading a team of sales managers and salespeople in Chicago, overseeing all operations and developing an infrastructure that will support and optimize revenue, SBS says.
“It’s an honor to expand my role and contribute to revenue growth for SBS in Chicago, a market that has such a welcoming and inclusive spirit,” Mason said. “In 2023 the fastest growing segment of the population in Chicago will be Hispanics. As the largest minority owned and certified multi-media company, Spanish Broadcasting System continues to be the number one destination for connecting with Hispanic communities by offering exclusive, original, and culturally immersive content. I look forward to advocating for and reinforcing the value of Hispanic audiences among advertisers, while elevating our Chicago operation to greater heights.”
Rodriguez added, “Maire Mason is an extraordinary executive that has proven time and time again to be one of the top players in the audio market. Her ability to adapt to any market and situation is just one of the reasons we offered her the position in Chicago. We have seen a huge change in our New York SBS stations since her arrival.”
Mason in June received the 2022 Medallas de Cortez Award for General/Market Manager of the Year for her leadership of WSKQ and WPAT at the Hispanic Radio Conference.
Mason is perhaps best-known for her 29-year tenure at CBS Radio in New York, where she served as VP/GM of WNEW-FM 102.7 and, later, WXRK-FM 92.3 following its acquisition from Infinity Broadcasting. Mason began at then-AOR WNEW in August 1980.
From July 2011 through October 2012, she served as Director of Sales for Merlin Media in New York.
That’s not to say Mason has no prior experience in Hispanic media. From April 2010-July 2011 she served as Director of Sales for Univision Radio in New York.
