Estrella Media Co (formerly known as Liberman Broadcasting, Inc. from 1987 to October 14, 2019 and LBI Media, Inc. from October 15, 2019 until February 2, 2020) is an American media company based in
Burbank, California
Burbank is a city in the southeastern end of the San Fernando Valley in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Located northwest of downtown Los Angeles, Burbank had a Census-estimated population of 102,755 as of 2023. The city was ...
, owned by
private equity
Private equity (PE) is stock in a private company that does not offer stock to the general public; instead it is offered to specialized investment funds and limited partnerships that take an active role in the management and structuring of the co ...
firm
HPS Investment Partners, LLC. Estrella Media primarily caters to the
Spanish
Spanish might refer to:
* Items from or related to Spain:
**Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain
**Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas
**Spanish cuisine
**Spanish history
**Spanish culture
...
-speaking
Hispanic
The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...
community, owns television and radio stations in several of the top Hispanic markets, and is the parent company of the
Estrella TV
Estrella TV () is an American Spanish-language broadcast television network owned by the Estrella Media subsidiary of HPS Investment Partners, LLC. The network primarily features programs, the vast majority of which are produced by the networ ...
network.
History
José Liberman, and his son Lenard founded the company in 1987, as Liberman Broadcasting, Inc.. Between them, they had more than 55 years of operating experience in the broadcasting industry. The father/son pair co-founded radio and television clusters in
Los Angeles
Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
and
Houston
Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...
, and in the late 1990s to early 2000s, expanded their assets to include broadcast properties in
Dallas
Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...
and
San Diego
San Diego ( , ) is a city on the Pacific coast of Southern California, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a population of over 1.4 million, it is the List of United States cities by population, eighth-most populous city in t ...
. Although their television stations were considered part of the Liberman Television Network, they were still classified as
independent station
An independent station is a broadcast station, usually a television station, not affiliated with a larger broadcast television network, network. As such, it only broadcasts broadcast syndication, syndicated programs it has purchased; brokered pr ...
s and by 2006, the company had adopted a consistent branding for its three television stations under the brand "Estrella TV" (or "Star TV"), mirroring the
television system
In Canada, a television system is a group of television stations which share common ownership, branding and programming, but which for some reason does not satisfy the criteria necessary for it to be classified as a television network under Cana ...
model in the
Canadian television industry. Liberman expanded the Estrella TV format to other markets where it acquired television stations, featuring much of the same programs as those aired by the Los Angeles, Dallas and Houston outlets (some of which aired in different timeslots than they did on KRCA, KMPX and KZJL).
In 1999, Liberman formed a production division within its LBI Media unit to produce original programming content that would be distributed to the stations, focusing on a mix of variety series, sketch comedy, scripted drama and music programs,
talk show
A talk show is a television programming, radio programming or podcast genre structured around the act of spontaneous conversation.Bernard M. Timberg, Robert J. Erler'' (2010Television Talk: A History of the TV Talk Show', pp.3-4Erler, Robert (201 ...
s and
game show
A game show (or gameshow) is a genre of broadcast viewing entertainment where contestants compete in a game for rewards. The shows are typically directed by a game show host, host, who explains the rules of the program as well as commentating a ...
s. One of its earliest programs, the reality game show ''
Gana la Verde'' ("Win the Green"), caused controversy after several immigrant advocacy groups (including the
American Immigration Lawyers Association, the Central American Resource Center, the Latina Lawyers Bar Association and the Mexican American Bar Association) and California
U.S. House Reps. Xavier Becerra,
Hilda Solis and
Linda Sánchez complained that the format – which debuted in July 2004, and featured
illegal immigrants
Illegal immigration is the migration of people into a country in violation of that country's immigration laws, or the continuous residence in a country without the legal right to do so. Illegal immigration tends to be financially upward, wi ...
competing in extreme ''
Fear Factor
''Fear Factor'' is an American stunt/ dare game show that first aired on NBC from 2001 to 2006 and was initially hosted by comedian and UFC commentator Joe Rogan. The show was adapted by Endemol USA from the original Dutch series titled '' ...
''-style competitions for the opportunity to win one year of legal assistance from an immigration attorney to help them obtain a
green card
A green card, known officially as a permanent resident card, is an identity document which shows that a person has permanent residency in the United States. ("The term 'lawfully admitted for permanent residence' means the status of having been ...
– put its participants in danger of deportation by immigration authorities aware of the show.
On August 4, 2006, Liberman Broadcasting reached an agreement with
Entravision Communications
Entravision Communications Corporation is an American media company based in Santa Monica, California. Entravision primarily caters to the Spanish language in the United States, Spanish-speaking Hispanic and Latino Americans, Hispanic community ...
to buy the company's five Dallas-area radio stations. On May 30, 2007, Liberman Broadcasting announced that it would expand into
Utah
Utah is a landlocked state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is one of the Four Corners states, sharing a border with Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico. It also borders Wyoming to the northea ...
through its purchase of
KPNZ (channel 24) in
Salt Lake City
Salt Lake City, often shortened to Salt Lake or SLC, is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Utah. It is the county seat of Salt Lake County, the most populous county in the state. The city is the core of the Salt Lake Ci ...
from Utah Communications, LLC for $10 million (although it would continue to operate as an English language independent station from after the purchase was finalized that November until February 2008); then on July 19, 2007, Liberman bought KWIE (now
KRQB
KRQB (96.1 FM) is one of four Southern California radio stations branded as "Que Buena" and which all play Regional Mexican music. Its owner is Estrella Media. KRQB shares the same weekday morning show as the three Los Angeles-area Que Buena st ...
and at the time maintaining a
Rhythmic CHR format) in the Los Angeles suburb of
Riverside, California
Riverside is a city in and the county seat of Riverside County, California, United States. It is named for its location beside the Santa Ana River. As of the 2020 census, the city has a population of 314,998. It is the most populous city in th ...
from
Magic Broadcasting for $25 million. On August 18, 2008, the company purchased low-power station
KVPA-LP (channel 42) in
Phoenix, Arizona
Phoenix ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities and towns in Arizona#List of cities and towns, most populous city of the U.S. state of Arizona. With over 1.6 million residents at the 2020 census, it is the ...
from Latin America Broadcasting, Inc. for $1.25 million.
On January 27, 2009, at the
National Association of Television Program Executives
The National Association of Television Program Executives (NATPE), now branded as Content First, is a professional organization representing television programming executives and content creators. Founded in 1964 in response to the Prime Time Acc ...
(NATPE) Convention in
Las Vegas
Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...
, Liberman Broadcasting announced that it would turn the Estrella TV concept into a full-fledged national network that would launch at a then-yet-determined date later that year, which would be targeted at adults between the ages of 18 and 49 years old. Liberman had explored the possibility of developing a national network in 2007, when it raised $200 million in capital to acquire additional television stations and expand programming production.
The network was originally scheduled to launch on July 1, though its debut was subsequently delayed to September 14, 2009.
On February 3, 2010,
LeSea Broadcasting
Family Broadcasting Corporation, formerly known as LeSEA Broadcasting, is an American Christianity, Christian television network. Founded by Lester Sumrall in 1972, Family Broadcasting Corporation is headquartered in South Bend, Indiana, and br ...
announced the sale of KWHD to Liberman for $5.75 million; the station became an Estrella TV owned-and-operated station following completion of the sale, under the callsign
KETD, on June 1.
On February 22, 2010, Liberman Broadcasting acquired W40BY (now
WESV-LD
The following is a list of affiliates for Estrella TV, a Spanish language television network owned by Liberman Broadcasting.
Affiliates
Former affiliates
References
External links
*
{{United States broadcast affiliates
Lists of Amer ...
) Chicago from
Trinity Broadcasting Network
The Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN; legally Trinity Broadcasting of Texas, Inc.) is an international Christian-based broadcast television network and the world's largest religious television network. TBN solicits donations on its Web site, a ...
, intending to convert it to serve as the Estrella TV O&O for the market. The sale was closed on December 6. On January 23, 2012, Liberman Broadcasting announced the sale of KNTE-FM (96.9, now
KXBJ) in the Houston suburb of
El Campo, Texas to the KSBJ Educational Foundation for $2.1 million; the sale was completed that April. Subsequently, on May 2, Liberman pared back its Houston-area radio cluster further with the sale of KJOJ (880, now
KJOZ) in
Conroe to Aleluya Christian Broadcasting (a subsidiary of DAIJ Media LLC) for $1 million. On February 11, 2013, Liberman Broadcasting announced the sale of Spanish CHR KTCY (101.7 FM, now
KYDA
KYDA (101.7 FM) is a radio station based in the Fort Worth, Texas area, and is the local outlet of EMF's Air1 network, airing a Christian worship format. The station is licensed to Azle, Texas, with a transmitter site located north of Decatu ...
) in the Dallas–Fort Worth suburb of
Azle, Texas to the Educational Media Foundation for $6 million.
In September 2016, Liberman Broadcasting was involved in two sexual harassment lawsuits filed with the
Los Angeles Superior Court
The Superior Court of Los Angeles County is the California Superior Court located in Los Angeles County. It is the largest single unified trial court in the United States.
The Superior Court operates 36 courthouses throughout the county. Curr ...
involving two female newscasters. In the initial suit, former Estrella TV anchor/correspondent Adriana Ruggiero (who filed her suit anonymously under the pseudonym "
Jane Doe
John Doe (male) and Jane Doe (female) are multiple-use placeholder names that are used in the British, Canadian, and American legal systems, when the true name of a person is unknown or is being intentionally concealed. In the context of law ...
") claimed sexual harassment,
wrongful termination
In law, wrongful dismissal, also called wrongful termination or wrongful discharge, is a situation in which an employee's contract of employment has been termination of employment, terminated by the employer, where the termination breaches one o ...
and
breach of contract
Breach of contract is a legal cause of action and a type of civil wrong, in which a binding agreement or bargained-for exchange is not honored by one or more of the parties to the contract by non-performance or interference with the other part ...
, accusing the network's Vice President of News at the time, Andres Angulo, informed her that Lenard Liberman was unconvinced about promoting Ruggiero—who was appointed as main anchor of the early-evening ''Noticiero Estrella TV'' newscast in 2015—to permanently replace the then-recently deceased
Enrique Gratas as anchor of the prime time news program ''Cierre de Edicion'' because she did not look attractive enough, had asked her to showcase her cleavage more on-air (a claim Angulo allegedly stated he would deny asking her if she took the case to court), had repeatedly harassed another female employee, and threatened to replace her with fellow anchor Adriana Yañez (who was hired by the network in October 2015) if Ruggiero insisted on receiving a bonus stipulated in her contract. In retaliation for pursuing the bonus, Ruggiero claimed she was excluded from ''Cierre de Edicion'' editorial meetings and "intentionally caused members of the news team to lose respect" for her opinions and abilities. (Ruggiero was replaced as ''Cierre de Edicion'' anchor by Pedro Ferriz Hijar, previously with Mexico's Efekto TV network, and was replaced on ''Noticiero Estrella TV'' by Yañez in January 2016, resulting in her effective dismissal from the network.)
A separate suit filed on June 23 by Karla Amezola—then anchor at Los Angeles flagship KRCA-TV—cited a history of "shameless and disgusting acts" of harassment by Angulo that "continued to escalate in levels of depravity", stating that he bragged about his sexual experiences and showed her
nude photographs of female co-workers he had slept with to Amezola and other Estrella/KRCA colleagues, had propositioned her for sex numerous times (including telling her that he thought of her while masturbating in his office), had
kissed her against her will and allegedly stroked his
erect penis
An erection (clinically: penile erection or penile tumescence) is a Physiology, physiological phenomenon in which the penis becomes firm, engorged, and enlarged. Penile erection is the result of a complex interaction of psychological, neural, ...
while asking her to "turn around" to peer at her buttocks while in Angulo's office. Amezola also claimed Angulo threatened her in 2015 against taking any legal action and warned her that
human resources
Human resources (HR) is the set of people who make up the workforce of an organization, business sector, industry, or economy. A narrower concept is human capital, the knowledge and skills which the individuals command. Similar terms include ' ...
would not believe her allegations. After filing a complaint to Estrella/KRCA human resources, Angulo and Estrella TV management retaliated against employees who "contributed damaging information," removing her as 5:00 p.m. anchor at KRCA (while retaining her as 11:00 p.m. anchor) without cause and undertaking measures against employees who came forward as witnesses to Amezola's claims.
On November 21, 2018, Liberman Broadcasting filed for
Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection
Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code (Title 11 of the United States Code) permits reorganization under the bankruptcy laws of the United States. Such reorganization, known as Chapter 11 bankruptcy, is available to every business, wh ...
with the
United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware. The company—which claimed assets worth between $100 million and $500 million and liabilities worth between $500 million and $1 billion—sought to reduce its overall debt by more than $350 million and secured $38 million in
debtor-in-possession financing.
On April 17, 2019, Liberman obtained approval of its reorganization plan from the Delaware bankruptcy court, with the expectation that it would be able to clear its balance sheet within the following several months. As a result, Estrella TV suspended production of the talk show ''Noches con Platanito'' and cancelled its two morning news programs ''Primera Edición'' and ''Buenos Dias Familia''. (The latter two shows—following a four-month run of telenovelas and an encore of the previous weeknight's edition of flagship newscast ''Cierre de Edicion'' in the timeslot—would later be replaced by a new morning news program, ''En la Mañana'', on October 21.) On October 15, 2019, Liberman Broadcasting completed its reorganization plan, turning over ownership of the company—which was formally renamed LBI Media, Inc.—to its first lien lender,
private equity
Private equity (PE) is stock in a private company that does not offer stock to the general public; instead it is offered to specialized investment funds and limited partnerships that take an active role in the management and structuring of the co ...
firm HPS Investment Partners, LLC, which sponsored the reorganization plan; the reorganization eliminated more than $350 million of debt from its balance sheet. As part of the corporate reorganization, co-founder/CEO Lenard Liberman divested his equity in LBI, and was replaced as the company's CEO by former
Granite Broadcasting and
Communications Corporation of America
Communications Corporation of America (also known as ComCorp) was a broadcasting company in the United States that owned television stations in smaller markets. The company was headquartered in Lafayette, Louisiana. It owned and/or operated 20 st ...
Chairman Peter Markham. On February 3, 2020, LBI Media rebranded as Estrella Media, borrowing its name from flagship Spanish-language network Estrella TV. On April 18, 2024, MediaCo Holding, announced that it had acquired all of the company's content assets. Estrella Media kept the stations as a result.
Estrella-owned stations
Stations are listed alphabetically by state and
city of license
In U.S., Canadian, and Mexican broadcasting, a city of license or community of license is the community that a radio station or television station is officially licensed to serve by that country's broadcast regulator.
In North American broadcast ...
.
Television / Radio Stations
Former stations
Programming
Television
The following television shows are produced by Estrella Media,
TV Azteca
Televisión Azteca, S.A.B. de C.V., commonly known as TV Azteca, is a Mexican multimedia conglomerate owned by Grupo Salinas. It is the second-largest mass media company in Mexico after Televisa. It primarily competes with Televisa as well as so ...
and are distributed exclusively to Estrella owned & operated TV stations:
*''Venga la Alegría''
*''Ventaneando''
*''Al Extremo''
*''Escape Perfecto''
*''La Rueda de la Suerte''
*''Noticias 24 Horas''
*''Noticero Estrella TV"
*''Rica Famosa Latina''
*''Venga la Alegría: Fin de Semana''
*''Al Extremo: Fin de Semana''
*''MasterChef Latinos''
*''100 Latinos Dijeron''
*''Tengo Talento, Mucho Talento''
*''MasterChef México: Celebrity''
*''Tu-Night con Omar Chaparro''
*''Boxeo Estrella TV''
*''Marcaje Personal''
Radio
Qué Buena 105.5/94.3/96.1, La Buena NY, La Raza TX features
Regional Mexican
Regional Mexican music refers collectively to the regional subgenres of the country music of Mexico and its derivatives from the Southwestern United States. Each subgenre is representative of a certain region and its popularity also varies by ...
music & La Ranchera 106.7, El Norte 107.9 features
Ranchera And Norteña music, whereas features Luna Brand features Spanish
Adult Contemporary
Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the 1980s to the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul ...
Music.
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Estrella Media
1987 establishments in California
Mass media companies established in 1987
Broadcasting companies of the United States
Television broadcasting companies of the United States
Spanish-language broadcasting in the United States
Spanish-language mass media in California
Companies based in Burbank, California
Oaktree Capital Management media holdings
Estrella Media stations
Radio broadcasting companies of the United States
Companies that filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2018
2019 mergers and acquisitions