iHeartMedia has announced the addition of Pedro Javier González as Senior Vice President of Programming for its iHeartLatino division.
González joins iHeart from Univision Radio where he served as Vice President of Content since 2012 and VP/Programming for East Coast Region from 2005-2012. Among his duties at Univision was oversight of the company’s content strategies for the Chicago, Miami, New York, and Puerto Rico markets. Prior to joining Univision he worked in his native Puerto Rico working his way up from on-air to Research Director to Program Director to VP/Programming for Uno Radio Group.
González will be based in Miami and report to iHeartLatino Chairman/Chief Creative Officer Enrique Santos and iHeartMedia EVP and National Programming Group General Manager Brad Hardin.
iHeartMedia announced today that Pedro Javier González has been named Senior Vice President of Programming for iHeartLatino. González will report to Enrique Santos, Chairman and Chief Creative Officer of iHeartLatino and Brad Hardin, Executive Vice President and General Manager for iHeartMedia’s National Programming Group. He will be based out of Miami.
In September 2016, iHeartMedia joined forces with Santos to develop iHeartLatino, an unprecedented Hispanic multi-platform initiative building on Santos’ unparalleled profile within the Latino community and leveraging iHeartMedia’s reach of more than a quarter of a billion listeners monthly. Recognizing the increased importance and size of the U.S. Hispanic populations, both Spanish- and English-speaking, the iHeartLatino division aggregates iHeartMedia’s vast portfolio of Hispanic targeted programming and content across multiple platforms – broadcast, digital, social and live events.
In his new position, González will work closely with Santos and Hardin to oversee the iHeartLatino brand and programming strategy. He will assist in the recruitment of top programming and on-air talent and will collaborate with iHeartMedia’s national and local sales teams to create and execute programming with partners. In addition, González will work with the National Programming Group’s Artist Relations department to plan and book talent for iHeartRadio Fiesta Latina, the annual mega-concert that celebrates the best in Latin music.
“Pedro knows that this is an ever changing industry and is always ahead of the game when it comes to adapting to the listeners needs and demands,” said Santos. “His vast experience building winning radio teams combined with his programing knowledge and expertise will be key in our continued growth. I’m thrilled to welcome Pedro ‘PJ’ González to his new role at iHeartLatino.”
González comes to iHeartLatino with a proven track record in all aspects of content operations in the radio industry and the Hispanic market. He previously served as Vice President of Content for Univision Radio, where he was responsible for branding and content strategies across radio and all digital platforms. During his 13-year tenure at Univision, he also managed talent development for all radio brands and worked closely with Santos. His extensive background also includes serving as Vice President of Programming for Uno Radio Group in his native Puerto Rico, where he oversaw the top three stations in the market. González began his radio career at 17-years-old as an on-air personality in Puerto Rico. He is a graduate of Universidad del Sagrado Corazón in San Juan.
“I’m thrilled for the opportunity to reunite with Enrique at iHeartMedia, which reaches more Hispanic consumers than any other media company in the U.S.,” said González. “I’ve been following the great work that iHeartLatino has already done and I can’t wait to collaborate with iHeartLatino’s talented programming team and on-air personalities on additional ways to best serve the millions of Hispanic consumers who listen to iHeartMedia radio stations and the iHeartRadio app every day.”
