Julio Ricardo Varela
Journalist of the Year
MSNBC Columnist and Founder, Latino Rebels and The Latino Newsletter
Julio (Julito) Ricardo Varela is an award-winning journalist and senior leader.
He is currently the Senior Producer and Strategist for Free Press, a D.C.-based nonprofit media and journalism advocacy group founded in 2003. He is also an MSNBC Columnist on a freelance basis and the founder of The Latino Newsletter on a part-time basis.
As President of Pulitzer-winning Futuro Media, Julio was responsible for the business/operations side of the organization and played a key senior leadership role in overseeing the company’s editorial vision. Previously, he served as the company’s Editorial Director, leading teams at Latino USA, Latino Rebels, the In The Thick political podcast, and the Community Podcast Lab. As Vice President of New Business Development for Futuro Studios, he led the division’s new business initiatives, which have garnered industry accolades and positioned Futuro as a major player in the premium audio space.
In 2011, Julio founded Latino Rebels, a top U.S. Latino digital media site. In 2018, Latino Rebels officially joined Futuro Media. He co-hosted In The Thick for eight years, from 2015 to 2023. He was a frequent contributor to Latino USA, and as Digital Director for Futuro from 2015 to 2020, Julio expanded the show’s digital footprint, overseeing historic gains in podcast, online and social audiences.
From 2013 to 2014. Julio was Digital Producer for Al Jazeera America’s “The Stream,” and his work has been featured in many global outlets, including The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Atlantic, The Guardian, ESPN, NBC News, Quartz, Le Monde, WGBH, WNYC, Face the Nation, Fusion, Univision and Telemundo. He has made numerous national TV appearances.
In 2015, the National Association of Hispanic Journalists honored Julio with its inaugural DALE Award, “given to an individual or company that steps up and goes above and beyond to ensure Latinos are fairly and accurately represented.” In 2018, Inquilinos Boricuas en Acción named Julio one of Boston's top Latino leaders.
He was also a contributing reporter at The Boston Globe and a top publishing executive. Julio graduated cum laude from Harvard College and was Sports Editor for The Harvard Crimson from 1988-1990.
