Gen Media Partners has announced the formation of a strategic task force to champion the power and influence of certified minority-owned and -targeted radio stations to advertisers and agencies. The task force will advocate on behalf of the largely overlooked multicultural-owned and -targeted radio stations across all market sizes, including non-metro, and demonstrate multicultural radio’s remarkable power to connect with audiences. Ann-Marie Figueira, whose promotion to Senior Vice President of Hispanic Platforms and Multicultural Initiatives was announced recently, will lead the initiative.
“Our goal – our job – is to make sure advertisers and their agencies look beyond the large-scale companies and include independent, certified minority-owned and -targeted radio groups in their plans,” asserted Kevin Garrity, Chief Executive Officer of Gen Media Partners. “We’re already seeing a receptiveness to learning more about these stations and their effectiveness at reaching multicultural audiences with content that is relevant to their specific lifestyles, tastes, and cultures.”
“Our team has a passion for and an understanding of owners and operators of independent multicultural radio — whether its urban, Indigenous, Asian, or Hispanic — and we’re excited to tell their story,” Figueira stated. “Most independent minority owners are heavily involved, personally and professionally, with their communities. They serve on local boards and actively participate in local events. That deep level of direct engagement with the community enhances the already strong connection with audiences that radio is known for and builds an extra layer of trust that can enhance the effectiveness of an advertiser’s message.”
“These radio stations are a cornerstone in multicultural communities, and their listeners buy millions of dollars of products each year,” Garrity pointed out. It’s a great story, and if we don’t tell it no one will. “
Representing 1,176 radio stations in 168 markets, either minority-owned or -targeted to Hispanic, African American, Asian, or Indigenous audiences, Gen Media Partners has one of the strongest multicultural platforms in radio, reaching 95% of the multicultural segment of the US population.
