Santamaria Named Pres. & CEO, SCPR
• Alejandra Santamaria has been selected as new President & CEO of Southern California Public Radio (SCPR) by the SCPR Board of Trustees. SCPR operates LA’s award-winning multi-platform local journalism leader LAist, which includes KPCC (LAist 89.3)/Pasadena, LAist.com and the podcast arm, LAist Studios.
Santamaria, who most recently served as interim President, General Manager and VP, Director of Sales for Univision Los Angeles, will succeed CEO Herb Scannell, who recently retired from the role.
Born and raised in Los Angeles, Santamaria brings three decades of experience in the media industry, a deep knowledge of the local media landscape and a strong track record of leading revenue-generating initiatives across multiple news platforms, including television, radio and digital properties.
“Los Angeles is my home and I am thrilled to lead one of the premier mission driven organizations serving my community,” said Santamaria. “My career has been aligned with a media organization that has meant a lot to me because of their mission to empower, educate and inform Latinos like my own family. I am ready to bring those skills and passion to LAist. The reporting LAist is doing is some of the best in the world. Now it’s our job to shine a brighter light on great reporting and continue to be a resource for Angelenos.”
Drew Murphy, SCPR Board Chair, remarked, “Alex is the leader LAist needs today and for the future. Public radio remains a vital, important part of the Los Angeles media ecosystem and we are confident that her experience and talent is ideal to shepherd us forward, helping us to deliver on our mission, while remaining financially sound, in order to continue our role as an essential resource for our community.”
Santamaria earlier served as the President & GM of Univision Arizona. She is also the founding member of Univision’s Women’s Leadership Council (WLC), and most recently served on the boards of the Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce and the L.A. County Economic Development Corporation.
