Telemundo shake-up: President Emilio Romano exits

Another high-ranking NBCUniversal executive is leaving.

This time it is Telemundo President Emilio Romano who is exiting after just two years in the top position at the Spanish-language network.

For Romano, the handwriting has been on the wall for awhile. NBCUniversal Chief Executive Steve Burke had hired two former high-ranking Univision executives who had been Romano’s industry competitors. Joe Uva, who previously served as chief executive of Univision, was hired as chairman of NBCUniversal’s Latino initiatives and content. That made Uva Romano’s boss.

Then, last month, Burke hired Cesar Conde, former Univision Networks president, as an executive vice president overseeing the media company’s international expansion. Burke also switched management teams at movie studio Universal Pictures in Los Angeles.

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In an email to Telemundo’s staff, Uva said he would become more involved in the Spanish-language network’s operations in Hialeah, Fla., during a search for a replacement for Romano.

Romano’s “focus on positioning Telemundo to take share from Univision, and [cable channel] mun2 to better resonate with the rapidly growing millennial population has established a foundation for growth,” Uva said in the announcement. “As a result, he has been instrumental in elevating the perception of Telemundo in the marketplace.”

The aggressive and dynamic Romano, a former top airline official in Mexico City who had experience in media, was recruited to NBCUniversal by former ranking programming executive, Lauren Zalaznick, shortly after Comcast Corp. took control of NBCUniversal.

Zalaznick also is leaving the company amid the extensive management overhaul orchestrated by Burke.

“A formal search for [Romano’s] replacement will begin immediately,” Uva wrote in the email. “Until we identify a new leader, I will be spending more time in Hialeah.”

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Follow Meg James on Twitter: @MegJamesLAT