New digs on Miami AM radio for national Spanish-language outlet for conservatives

Miami’s conservative Spanish-language radio market is adding one more station to the menu next week, as a new national conservative media company transitions into local radio.

The AM station, formerly the all-sports “790 The Ticket,” will now be called Radio Libre 790, part of a new partnership between Audacy and Americano Media, a network that launched on SiriusXM earlier this year with the promise of appealing to a growing segment of Republican Latinos.

“The joint endeavor with Audacy is a natural fit for Americano,” Ivan Garcia-Hidalgo, Americano Media’s founder, said in a statement. “This is the first of many terrestrial radio syndication agreements for Americano, and we look forward to a strong partnership with Audacy.”

The launch of Radio Libre 790, WAXY-AM, was first reported by NBC News. It will begin airing the new shows on Oct. 3 and listeners can tune in on radio in Miami and online through the Audacy website or app.

Americano’s new enterprise is the latest development in an ongoing fight for South Florida’s Spanish-language airwaves. While the company said their network would reach Hispanic communities across the country, some of their programming is specific to South Florida, where Republicans appear to be increasing their foothold in Hispanic communities.

The owners said Radio Libre 790 will feature Americano’s flagship shows, including hosts Nelson Rubio, Dania Alexandrino and Lourdes Ubieta. All three left Radio Mambí — a radio station that has historically catered to Miami’s conservative Cuban exile community — after the station’s controversial sale to a group of Hispanic entrepreneurs with links to the Democratic Party.

That new company, Latino Media Network, has become a flashpoint for conservative Latinos who claim the new owners are only seeking to censor conservative Latino voices, which dominate political commentary shows on Spanish-language media in South Florida but are more scarce in other parts of the country. Critics of that claim, however, argue that networks like Americano have been disinforming Latino voters.

Both Republican and Democratic lawmakers have been pulled into this fight, at the federal and local level, with members of both parties at times pushing for more involvement from the Federal Communications Commission, a regulatory agency that is largely apolitical.

Some Democrats told NBC News that American’s shift to a terrestrial station is a sign the company’s national reach has failed. Americano’s executives counter that the move was always part of its plan, NBC News reported, and that their content can still be accessed through other platforms.

“We’re proud to introduce Spanish radio to our South Florida portfolio for the first time ever and empower the voice of so many of our neighbors in this community,” said Claudia Menegus, Audacy’s regional president and market manager. “With the launch of this station, we aim to not only serve our listeners but give them a reliable home for the news they seek and the information they rely on every day.”