Spanish radio stars quit as Soros-backed group bids to take over conservative stations

Radio stars are quitting Spanish-language conservative talk station Radio Mambi ahead of a planned takeover by a group partially funded by progressive billionaire George Soros. The group is set to purchase 18 Hispanic radio stations across 10 different markets.

In June, conservative radio star Lourdes Ubieta quit the iconic Miami station and will now be full-time at the up-and-coming Americano Media. Radio Mambi has deep roots in the South Florida Cuban exile community, whereas the national Americano Media is looking to attract all Spanish-speaking conservatives across the US. Radio Mambi, which provides an anti-communism view, would now be controlled by the liberal Soros-funded group if the $60 million deal is approved by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC).

The Latino Media Network will be made up of 18 Hispanic radio stations including Radio Mambi. The network was partially financed by Lakestar Finance, an investment group affiliated with Soros Fund Management. The stations, which are currently owned by Univision, would be controlled by former Hillary for America and AFL-CIO employee Jess Morales Rocketto and former Obama White House staffer Stephanie Valencia, if the deal is approved by the FCC.

The pair recently told Axios that the network will reach one-third of all Hispanics living in the US.

Ubieta told Fox News, "I would never cut a deal with these people. Never, never, never." She called the takeover a "stab in the heart" of her community and said she wanted no part of it and that is why she left.

Ubieta, who has been an outspoken critic of the takeover, told the outlet that she turned down a significant offer that included a non-disclosure agreement to stay at Radio Mambi. "They told me that I will receive half the money as soon as they get the FCC approval and then the rest of the money when Soros people take over. Ubieta added, "I don't want to be part of the deal. I’m not going to sign the papers and I quit."

Ubieta will now be full-time at the Miami-based Americano Media, where she has been hosting a show, in addition to her role at Radio Mambi. Ubieta expects her role to grow to include programming and the news desk in addition to her hosting responsibilities.

Earlier this week, Dania Alexandrino, another star of Radio Mambi quit the station ahead of a planned Soros-linked liberal group’s takeover. Other conservative personalities from Radio Mambi are expected to follow the pair to Americano Media.

Alexandrino told Fox News, "I found out by reading an article and I was like, 'Holy crap,' so I sent it to the station manager and I was like, 'I do want you to know that if this purchase happens, there's no way in hell I'm taking any money from this staff.' I was straightforward about that because I’ve had an on-air rift with Congressman Darren Soto… he belongs to the Hispanic Congressional Caucus, which I happen to call the Hispanic Communist Caucus. For month, he’s been trying to push censorship of Radio Mambi."

Alexandrino told the outlet that Soto has declined to debate the topic on her show multiple times. "I've had a bone to pick with Darren Soto and with George Soros, because George Soros has actually financed most of Darren Soto’s campaign. His campaigns have been funded by Latino Victory Fund which get their financing from George Soros. So, you know whether you want to call it directly or indirectly, he's been financed by George Soros… my principles, my values will not allow me to take any money from a man that I've been shunning and that I've been destroying on the air as somebody who only searches and seeks the destruction of America."

According to Florida Politics, the Soros-funded Latino Victory Fund funneled at least $500,000 into Soto’s 2018 campaign.

Tuesday, three-time Emmy Award-winning host Nelson Rubio informed the management of Radio Mambi that he was leaving immediately.

Rubio told Fox News through a translator, "I don't agree with, nor do I share the ideology of the group of purchased Radio Mambi… very simply, George Soros represents the extreme left."

According to the outlet, he had planned on informing his listeners on-air but was not allowed to host his program once management knew he was leaving.

Democrats have been concerned over the continuing loss of party support in the Hispanic community. Media Research Center Latino director Jorge Bonilla told Fox News that the purchase of these stations by the Soros-funded network "reeks of desperation."

Bonilla said, "The left, increasingly feeling entitled to Hispanics yet unable to persuade them, openly seeks to control their access to information. This is the true aim of the 'Spanish-language disinformation' campaign of the past few years. Censorship and control.'"

He added, "This is about power, this is about control. This is not about free speech. This is not about this misinformation. This is about controlling the flow of information to a specific community for political purposes, and that is what makes this deal, I think, so controversial."

Left-leaning media has been growing increasingly concerned about Hispanic voters running to the right for years. Recent headlines include Washington Post’s "Republican House Latinos mobilize to bolster ranks and influence" and CBS News’ "Hispanic voters’ support for GOP is increasing."

FiveThirtyEight posted an article entitled "Why The GOP Might Not Turn Off Conservative Latino Voters" and "Have Latinos Really Moved Toward The Republican Party?"

MSNBC aired a report earlier this month on why Hispanics were moving to the right and blamed "disinformation" as well as paranoia about communism and socialism.

Polls have shown increasing gains of the GOP in the Hispanic community. Abortion, religious liberty, parental rights, support of the free-market system and comprehensive immigration reform that favors migrants who enter the country legally are among the many topics that have Hispanics leaving the Democratic party.

To make matter worse for Democrats, First Lady Dr. Jill Biden had to apologize after comparing Hispanics to "breakfast tacos" in a speech this week.

According to its website, Americano Media aspires to represent "a counterrevolution and the entry onto the scene of the only non-progressive national media outlet created by and for the Hispanic American community, a community tired of being treated as a victim of its past, played with emotionally and that the other networks in the country only offer him fear as his present and uncertainty for his future."

The station is available on SiriusXM channel 153 and through its app but plans to expand to television.

Steve Cortes, who was a member of former-President Trump campaign’s Hispanic Advisory Council, told Fox News that Soros’ latest move is a sign liberals "rightly fret about the incredible gains among Hispanics for the America First movement" that has caused many of them to leave the Democratic Party.

Cortes added, "The radicalism of the Democrats today has effectively left formerly Dem-leaning Latinos as political orphans. "Hispanics increasingly rally to the America First combination of cultural conservatism plus patriotic populist economics."

Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL), tweeted in response to the news, "A front group led by left-wing operatives & financed by Soros linked money is buying up Spanish language radio stations because they still don’t realize that the reason why they are bleeding Hispanic support isn’t ‘misinformation’ it’s their socialism." He also said in a statement that he had sent a letter to the FCC regarding the acquisition of the networks.

In response to the acquisition by the Soros-backed group, Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis purchased an ad buy on Radio Mambi and WQBA-AM, two Miami radio stations being acquired by the new left-wing radio network.

DeSantis tweeted, "The Soros-funded radical Left is running a scheme to manipulate local media in Florida to push their Marxist agenda on voters. In Florida, we reject the professional Left & their attempt to infiltrate our state & will always stand for truth and freedom."

The DeSantis ad warns voters about the purchase of the stations and promotes his position against "leftist disinformation" as he continues the "fight against socialism in America."