PRISA Group President Jesus de Polanco dies.
June 23, 2007
Jesus de Polanco, chairman of Spain’s media conglomerate Grupo PRISA, has died at the age of 77. Polanco was surrounded by his children when he died of an unspecified rheumatic disease.
De Polanco founded Grupo PRISA, which owns El Pais Newspaper, Cadena Ser radio Networks, los 40 Principales, sports daily AS, business newspaper Cinco Días, television broadcaster Cuatro and Santillana publishing company, among others.
In 1958, Polanco founded the schoolbook publisher Santillana and was among the backers in 1976 of the left-wing El Pais, which would become the most read political newspaper in the country. He is credited with transforming a company once composed only of El Pais into an international media conglomerate with extensive holdings in Latin America. Grupo PRISA is now the largest media company in the Spanish-speaking world.
PRISA, Spain’s largest media group, was listed on the stock market seven years ago.
Earlier this year de Polanco designated his son Ignacio Polanco Moreno to succeed him as Grupo PRISA chairman.
