Univision’s new CEO doesn’t speak Spanish

When former Viacom chief financial officer Wade Davis agreed to buy a majority stake in Univision Communications Inc. this week, one task moved to the top of his to-do list: Learn Spanish. ASAP.

Davis’s investment firm, ForgeLight, with backing from Searchlight Capital Partners, will acquire 64% of Univision, which has been searching for a buyer since July. (Televisa will retain its 36% stake.) Univision is struggling with all the normal afflictions facing a TV broadcaster in the era of streaming—cord-cutters and increased non-broadcast competition—with the added disadvantage of carrying a hefty debt load.