Otto Padrón Evaluates Space for a Spanish-Language Channel Within GAIM’s Lineup

Otto Padrón recently accepted a new challenge in his 40-year professional career: to transform and operate an English-language network —Get After It Media (GAIM)— with several channels in English, as co-president and owner. In an interview with Ríchard Izarra for #PRODUprimetime, he commented:

“In this world you need to have a certain tolerance for danger, risks, and the opportunities that come along. I’ve tried to make sure that risk is calculated, that it has a plan, and is not just a gamble, but rather a proposal to take an opportunity and take it to the next level. I believe that’s what I’m doing now with GAIM.”

Padrón explained that this philosophy comes from his personal reality as a refugee. “I came to this country (the U.S.) seeking refuge. I didn’t arrive as an immigrant, I arrived as a refugee because we left Cuba, and I often explain to people the difference between being a refugee and an immigrant. I didn’t have the option to stay in my country, because it was impossible for my father to remain in that culture,” he noted.

IA MiTT Team Spear Base, Foward Operating Base (FOB) Marez in Mosul, Iraq. Otto Padrón first row left (October 2006)

He mentioned that after enlisting in the army and beginning his military career, he learned “that in this world you need to have a certain tolerance for danger, for risks, and for the opportunities that come along. If you’re willing to bet something and put something on the line that might not work, but if it does, it triples what you’re doing. I’ve never been afraid of fear.” He added that he still maintains “a very close connection with the military, because it has been part of my life for 38 years. I think like a soldier, I plan like a soldier, I execute like a soldier. When I plan content, programming, or operations, I do it in a very military way —I make my operation orders and put them into the system— and it’s hard for me to forget that.”

A NEW ERA OF TV

Padrón believes we are indeed in a new era of television. “I 100% believe there’s a transition, an evolution. Something new doesn’t happen overnight. We’ve moved from fairly flat horizontal content to vertical content that narrows the lens a bit, but creatively opens up the world, the perspective, to so many creators that it surprises us.

I have a 33-year-old daughter, and whenever I watch what she does on social media for her company —which, by the way, I’m now stealing her away to do for mine— I’m impressed by how it’s done with resources and creativity. And obviously, we’re also talking about traditional content, the vertical, as my kids say: ‘Dad, I want to watch the big TV.’ And they see this (the phone) as the little TV, but in the more traditional 16×9 horizontal aspect. What impresses me most is how technology is giving access to extremely creative people, who with just this phone, whichever it may be, produce content that amazes me.”

Mosul TV, Iraq, control room during a local production driven by Otto Padrón (November 2006)

He added that what his daughter has been doing for the past 13 years has impressed him deeply. “She’s using this tool at levels that are unknown to me and is opening my eyes to content others are creating that is also amazing —even small soap operas made on mobile devices that leave me —a telenovela lover by excellence— astonished, impressed, and with the desire to keep growing, learning, and exploring platforms that allow us to express ourselves, whether through programming that hasn’t been seen before or original programming we’re developing.”

PLANS WITH GAIM

Padrón recalled that GAIM is a company created in the early 1990s. Formerly called Luken, GAIM specialized in exploiting the frequency of traditional TV stations that were moving from analog to digital, which opened up many more digital channels.

The company specialized in servicing TV stations that had, at that time, more access and more capacity. They launched a channel called Retro TV. “Retro TV was a channel that brought content out of the vault of one of the most important TV producers, content that was no longer seen because there were no outlets outside of cable. Retro TV had content like The Beverly Hillbillies and Laugh In, shows that were no longer on major networks. From Retro TV, other channels were born: The Family Channel, which offered newer family-focused TV; The Action Channel, focused on action products, action and adventure movies; and Rev’n, a linear TV channel with an automotive focus.

“And another channel I’m very excited about is called Heartland, a country lifestyle channel: country music, the lives of personalities, and ties with The Country Music Association (CMA). I’m very excited because we’ve been developing content for this channel,” explained Padrón.

Padrón revealed that, having started his career in Spanish-language TV, “I’ll always, in some way, want to do something in Spanish. We’re developing something very interesting, with very interesting partners that I’ll obviously announce at the right time. But we are working in that space. Looking at the five channels we operate, if I can optimize them, maybe merge two into one, and with that available frequency, with that new capacity, I could launch something in Spanish. It’s my passion, it’s what I know how to do —possibly better than the rest— but I’m very excited about doing things in English right now,” he emphasized.

ACHIEVEMENTS AT MERUELO MEDIA

Asked about his achievements at Meruelo Media, Padrón took the opportunity to thank Alex, Luis, and the Meruelo team for making him part of the family. “I grew in this business. I had never led at that level, at that speed, in the genre in which I did it. They believed in me, gave me the opportunity, the trust, and the resources to do it. We grew from one TV channel to two, from one cable channel and five radio stations —if you count one that repeats in Riverside County. We have a story of explosive growth. Those were magical years of growth for me, both emotionally and intellectually,” he said.

He also recalled that his family grew during that time. “My kids were born here in Los Angeles. I have two girls in Miami, and here I have two kids, Daniel and my daughter Angélica. I also have to thank God for that, because Meruelo gave me the opportunity to grow, and in that process I discovered things that would have been impossible without that chance.”

MAJ Otto Padrón (Center) with Mosul TV General Manager (L) and Station Chief Engineer (R)

He added that they also built a “state-of-the-art, fully digital TV studio. It was the first time I had the chance to design, create, and operate a studio entirely —new in almost every sense of the word. What we did here in 13 years —in the first six months at Meruelo— is equivalent to the first six years of work at Univision or the years I spent at Telemundo. The things we did, the necessity to get them done, and the experience I gained —both from doing them and from making mistakes and learning more from those mistakes than from successes.”

Although he no longer works at Meruelo, Padrón clarified that he still works in the same building and office.

“When I left Meruelo to start my consulting company called ACTIFY —Strategic Consulting Services around everything related to brands, development, operations, and content— I decided, together with Alex and Luis, the owners of Meruelo, to stay involved in some way in what we were doing. It has been a beautiful chapter in my professional career. They allowed me to stay. They told me: ‘Stay and continue developing this business you’ve been doing for 13 years.’ And so we continue working together. That’s why I still remain in the same offices that were mine. And that’s the curious thing about this relationship —it continues to be a family relationship,” he concluded.