September 2014

• A recent study by the Media Insight Project found that a majority of Latinos and African-Americans don’t think news coverage on their communities is fair or accurate.

• Clear Channel, the nation’s biggest owner of radio stations, recently changed its name to IHeartMedia. NHMC has long called out the corporation for the hate and stereotyping against Latinos, other communities of color and LGBT people perpetuated on its stations’ airwaves. Testifying before Congress in June 2014, NHMC’s Executive Vice President & General Counsel Jessica J. González denounced Clear Channel’s hate profiteering as an example of the harms of consolidation of media ownership. Watch her testimony here.

• U.S. Senator Robert Menendez joined Jersey City Mayor Steven Fulop to help launch an effort aimed at providing internet access to low-income students in New Jersey.  We applaud Senator Menendez and Mayor Fulop for their leadership.

• NPR’s LatinoUSA recently featured NHMC’s Executive Vice President & General Counsel Jessica J. González to discuss how the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has failed to enforce the same standards in Spanish-language media as in English-language media. Listen to the interview here.

NHMC Media/Telecommunications Policy Shop Update
As DC starts to cool down for the fall, the policy team is preparing for an end-of-the-year push on a number of important issues. But it has been our steadfast protection of the Open Internet that has kept NHMC DC busy in September.
As the FCC continues to contemplate new Open Internet rules, NHMC and others have been busy urging the FCC to treat Internet Service Providers as common carriers and prevent blocking, discrimination, and paid fast lanes online. NHMC et al. also urged the FCC to issue the same protections to consumers, regardless of whether they access the Internet from a home computer or a mobile device. The FCC’s current proposal would exempt mobile Internet access from most rules.

On September 10, NHMCparticipated in the much-talked-about Internet Slowdown. TheInternet Slowdown was a day of action where dozens of participating companies, including Netflix and reddit, and organizations displayed an icon representing a slow-loading Internet on their websites. The Internet Slowdown generated hundreds of thousands of calls to Congress and millions of comments filed at the FCC all in support of strong Open Internet rules.
On September 15, NHMC filed reply comments on behalf of Voices for Internet Freedom and many more, rebutting a number of arguments made by parties opposing common carrier regulations in the first round of comments. Specifically, NHMC explained why common carrier regs, under Title II of the Communications Act, wouldn’t harm investment or broadband adoption rates. To read the full comments, click here.

And, finally, we’d be remiss not to recognize the tremendous testimony given by friend-of-NHMC Ruth Livier before the Senate Judiciary Committee. Ruth, an actress, producer, and writer, explained to the Committee that, without an Open Internet, she would have never been able to launch her award-winning and stereotype-defying web series, Ylse. To view Ruth’s full testimony, click here.
There is still time to make your voice heard on this important issue! To share with the FCC why an Open Internet devoid of discrimination is important to you, click here.
 
 
2014 NHMC Local Impact Awards Luncheon

NHMC honored seven media professionals at the 12th Annual NHMC Local Impact Awards Luncheon at the Hilton Universal City in Los Angeles on September 11. FOX 11 news anchor Laura Diaz and CBS2 news anchor Rick Garcia were the event’s masters of ceremonies.
This year’s honorees were José “Pepe” Mantilla, the Spanish-language radio commentator for the Los Angeles Lakers; Mekahlo Medina from NBC4 Southern California; Talaya Trigueros from 94.7 The WAVE, A Martínez andAlex Cohen from 89.3 KPCC; Norma Roque from Univision 34; and Alysha Del Valle from ABC7.  
Read more about the honorees here.  To view pictures of the event, click here.
2014 Luncheon Sponsor

2nd Annual Latino Scene Showcase
On September 3, the 2nd annual Latino Scene Showcase, presented by NHMC and the Los Angeles Theatre Center, featured seven scenes written by NHMC TV Writers Program alumni and performed by Latino actors before an audience of television network executives, agents and managers. The annual event aims to infuse more Latino talent into the Hollywood pipeline.

To view the seven scenes, click here. Pictures can be viewed here.

Special Thanks To Our Sponsors

Latino Premiere Club Recommends ABC’s Cristela and CW’s  Jane the Virgin
The Latino Premiere Club, a new partnership between the National Hispanic Media Coalition (NHMC) and the LatinHeat Media Institute, held two screenings in September.

Cristela
On September 16, the Latino Premiere Club held a screening at ABC/Disney Studios of the network’s upcoming sitcom Cristela. The pilot episode introduces Cristela, played by breakout comedienne Cristela Alonzo, who stars as a woman laughing her way to the new American dream in a family comedy loosely based on her life and stand-up routine.  Alonzo breaks new ground with Cristela as the first and only Latina to have a TV show in which she not only stars, but is also co-creator, co-executive producer, and writer. Cristela premieres Monday, October 10 at 8:30 p.m. / 7:30 p.m. central.
Read more here.

CW’s Jane the Virgin
Following a screening held at CBS Studios on September 18, Latino Premiere Club members overwhelmingly voted (96%) to recommend the upcoming CW comedy-drama Jane The Virgin, which features actress Gina Rodriguez as the lead and title character. The audience also included eight teenagers, 100% of whom said they would recommend this show to friends and family.  Both the teens and adults in the audience cited Rodriguez’s likability as a major factor to the success of the show. Jane The Virgin did not disappoint and is living up to what the trades are calling “one of the most promising new shows of the fall season.” The series premieres Monday, October 13 at 9 p.m. / 8 p.m. central.Read more here.

Alex Nogales, Jennie Snyder Urmann, Gina Rodriguez, Whitney Davis, Bel Hernandez, Tiffany Smith-Anoa’i (Photo Credit: Laura Sixtos)
National Latino Media Council Releases Progress Report on Latino Inclusion at the Four Major Television Networks

The National Latino Media Council (NLMC) released the 2014 NLMC Television Network Diversity Report. The report rates Latino inclusion and diversity performance of ABC, CBS, FOX, and NBC in the 2013-2014 television season, based on the employment of Latino actors, writers, producers, directors, and entertainment executives; program development; procurement; and commitment to diversity and transparency.Read our press release.

To view the full report, which includes summaries of diversity performance and recommendations for improvement for the four networks, click here .

For the 2013-2014 television season, NLMC assigned “Good,” “Mediocre” and “Bad” ratings for each of the above eight categories for Latino inclusion, which provided the basis for overall scores for each network:

• ABC: Mediocre – ABC had the most Latino scripted actors, and it also led the pack in terms of Latino writers and producers. However, the network underwhelmed with regard to Latino directors and unscripted talent. ABC is to be commended for its excellent quantity of initiatives to infuse more people of color into its ranks.
• CBS: Mediocre – CBS’ performance is lagging in nearly every category, including Latino on-screen talent in scripted and unscripted roles. The network shows promise with regard to Latino writers, producers, and directors, but progress remains slow. However, CBS stands out with a Latina entertainment executive, entertainment chairman Nina Tassler, at the helm.
• FOX: Mediocre – FOX has made great strides in augmenting the amount of Latino actors, as well as improving portrayals. Behind the camera, the network showed little improvement in hiring Latino writers, producers and directors. After two years of refusing to supply its diversity data to the coalition, Fox’s commitment to diversity had been in question — but the network is once again cooperating and showing a commitment to inclusion.
• NBC: Mediocre/Good – NBC showed great improvement with Latino actors in scripted roles and cast members in unscripted roles. The number of Latino writers and producers increased slightly, but the network had fewer Latino directors. NBC’s commitment to diversity shows in the programs it continues to support to help prepare diverse talent to work in the industry.

NHMC Television Writers Program
Congratulations to the ten participants selected from among more than 350 applicants from throughout the nation for NHMC’s 2014 Television Writers Program. The writers are: LauraAlexander, Sabrina Almeida, Alexander Felix, Zayre Ferrer, Valen Hernandez, Frank Nestor, Edlin Ortiz, Daniel Perez, Jorge Perez,and Claudia Restrepo.

The 2015 NHMC Television Writers Program submission period will open in April 2015.

In the meantime, read more about our alumni’s experience in the writers room:

Rob Sudduth (2008) is an Executive Story Editor on FOX’s new comedy-drama series Red Band Society. Read more about him by visiting our blog.

NHMC Welcomes  Fall 2014 Legal Intern
NHMC recently welcomed Maya Burchette, a rising third-year Tulane University Law School student, to its fall 2014 Legal Internship. Maya is originally from Denver, Colorado and is the proud product of a Mexican- American and African-American biracial family. She has served as the Vice President for Tulane’s Alianza Del Derecho and is an active member of the Black Law Student Association, Entertainment and Arts Law Society, and the Sports Law Society.
To read more about Maya, click here.
 

NHMC Welcomes New Baby to the Family

On August 26, NHMC’s Director of Programs and Special Events Nilda Muhr gave birth to a healthy baby boy last month. Both baby and mom are doing well. NHMC is very excited and congratulates Nilda and her family with their new addition.