José Miguel Contreras launches La Séptima, a progressive TV channel in Spain

Media entrepreneur José Miguel Contreras is preparing to launch La Séptima, a new free‑to‑air television channel aimed at a progressive audience in Spain. The channel is scheduled to begin broadcasting on 5 November and is backed by an investment of about €30 million, with an initial staff of roughly 300 journalists, producers, technicians and administrators.

Javier Ruiz, a veteran journalist from Cadena SER, Cuatro and RTVE, will serve as editorial director, overseeing the channel’s political and economic coverage. Comedian Héctor de Miguel is expected to anchor a daily program that blends news, satire and entertainment, echoing the format of Contreras’s earlier projects. The channel’s programming will feature frequent political talk shows, analysis and humor aimed at filling a niche for left‑leaning content on private TV.

Industry observers note that the identity of the communications director (dircom) for La Séptima remains unsettled, with speculation about candidates drawn from Contreras’s past ventures such as La Sexta. The appointment is considered strategic for shaping the new channel’s brand and outreach.