National Hispanic Media Coalition
Encyclopedia
National Hispanic Media Coalition is a non-partisan, media advocacy and civil rights
organization in the United States that represents the interests of Latinos and other people of color in the media and telecommunications industries.
, California
as a response to the lack of Latino representation in local news. The founders included Armando Durón, Esther Renteria, and Alex Nogales. In the Summer of that year, KCBS-TV
announced a change in its news format to a 10-anchor, 20-minute “news-wheel.” KCBS-TV saw no need to include any Latinos, even though 32% of the local Latino population was estimated to be Hispanic.
Ever since, the history of NHMC has been filled with accomplishments in the advocacy for the Latino community. NHMC led boycotts against the advertisers of the syndicated “Howard Stern
” radio show as a means of getting Stern off the air when he offended the Latino community and the family of the late singing star, Selena Quintanilla-Perez, with his repugnant comments following the singer’s tragic murder.
Under Alex Nogales’ leadership, NHMC has filed over fifty petitions to deny broadcast licenses with the Federal Communication Commission (FCC), including one against a Spanish-language radio company for encouraging its DJs to air pornographic radio programming to boost their ratings. NHMC also led high-profile demonstrations against ABC and its parent company, Disney, for their lack of diversity and apparent exclusion of American Latinos as local news reporters and anchors, while also intensifying discussions with local TV stations across the country. As one of the more visible organizations under the umbrella of the National Latino Media Council (NLMC) – acting as secretariat and staff—NHMC was instrumental in the signing of Memoranda of Understanding with NBC
, ABC, CBS
and Fox
in the year 2000.
When Latinos in both English and Spanish language television were undercounted by the Nielsen Company, NHMC and the NLMC fought to force Nielsen to address this shortfall. Nielsen’s undercount limited Latino employment opportunities in English-language television as well as discouraged the development of Latino-themed programming. Fox Television, an ally in the fight, signed an agreement with Nielsen whereby Nielsen committed fifty million dollars to better train its field representatives to coach Nielsen households on how to correctly use their measuring equipment.
Currently, NHMC is evaluating the diversity performance of the four major television networks, pushing for diversity initiatives, and challenging media entities that are demonizing the Latino immigrant community to boost their radio and television ratings.
Indeed, in the past few years the NHMC has emerged as a leader in the fight against hate speech
in media. On the heels of the 2006 immigration debate – and the often violent and inaccurate anti-Latino rhetoric associated therewith – the Federal Bureau of Investigation
documented a 40% increase in hate crimes against Latinos. Not only has NHMC called on the government to examine the link between hate speech and hate crimes and to bring light to this serious problem, it has also commissioned the UCLA Chicano Studies Research Center to study the issue in the absence of government action.
At the same time, NHMC’s President and CEO, Alex Nogales, has met with top cable and broadcast television executives, urging them to ensure fairness and accuracy in their stories that on the Latino community. In late 2009, a meeting was held with CNN
President Jon Klein to urge him to hold Lou Dobbs
accountable as a credible journalist or to fire him for his racists remarks aired on CNN. Days later, Dobbs resigned from CNN.
In addition to the NHMC’s work on hate speech, the organization has increasingly engaged on media and telecommunications policies that impact the Latino community. NHMC is headquartered in Pasadena, California, with offices also in Washington, D.C. serving as the voice of the Latino community on such issues as diversifying media ownership, broadband deployment and adoption, network neutrality, and many other issues that affect how Latinos communicate and are perceived in mainstream media.
commitment of each of the four major television networks: ABC, NBC, CBS and Fox. The report card summarizes progress and shortfalls of the networks' diversity efforts each year. Networks earn overall diversity performance grades, as well as specific grades based on their employment of Latino actors in primetime scripted and reality programming, Latino writers, producers and directors in primetime programming, and Latino entertainment executives. Specific grades are also assigned for program development, procurement and network commitment to diversity and transparency.
Some of the most well-known awardees are Eva Longoria
, Robert Rodriguez
, Vikki Carr
, George Lopez
, Lupe Ontiveros
, Edward James Olmos
, Andy Garcia
,James Cameron
, Adam Rodriguez
, Wilmer Valderrama
, Justina Machado
, Freddy Rodriguez
, Rosario Dawson
, Salma Hayek
, and America Ferrera
.
Among Latino journalists who received the Impact Award are Kathy Vara
(NBC4), Vikki Vargas
(NBC4), Danny Romero
(KABC
), Gabriela Teissier (KMEX), Linda Alvarez (CBS2), Ruben Luengas (Telemundo 52), Tony Valdez (KTTV
), Sylvia Lopez
(KCAL
), Mario Solis (NBC4), Carlos Amezcua
(KTLA
), Ellen Leyva (KABC
), Rick Garcia (CBS2), Ana Garcia (NBC4), and many more.
Civil rights
Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from unwarranted infringement by governments and private organizations, and ensure one's ability to participate in the civil and political life of the state without discrimination or repression.Civil rights include...
organization in the United States that represents the interests of Latinos and other people of color in the media and telecommunications industries.
Mission
The National Hispanic Media Coalition has a three-fold mission:- to improve the image of American Latinos in the media;
- to promote the employment of American Latinos in all facets of the media industry;
- and to advocate for media and telecommunications policies in favor of the American Latino Community.
History
The NHMC was founded in the fall of 1986 in Los AngelesLos Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
as a response to the lack of Latino representation in local news. The founders included Armando Durón, Esther Renteria, and Alex Nogales. In the Summer of that year, KCBS-TV
KCBS-TV
KCBS-TV, channel 2, is an owned-and-operated television station of the CBS Television Network, located in Los Angeles, California. KCBS-TV shares its offices and studio facilities with sister station KCAL-TV inside CBS Studio Center in the Studio City section of Los Angeles, and its transmitter...
announced a change in its news format to a 10-anchor, 20-minute “news-wheel.” KCBS-TV saw no need to include any Latinos, even though 32% of the local Latino population was estimated to be Hispanic.
Ever since, the history of NHMC has been filled with accomplishments in the advocacy for the Latino community. NHMC led boycotts against the advertisers of the syndicated “Howard Stern
Howard Stern
Howard Allan Stern is an American radio personality, television host, author, and actor best known for his radio show, which was nationally syndicated from 1986 to 2005. He gained wide recognition in the 1990s where he was labeled a "shock jock" for his outspoken and sometimes controversial style...
” radio show as a means of getting Stern off the air when he offended the Latino community and the family of the late singing star, Selena Quintanilla-Perez, with his repugnant comments following the singer’s tragic murder.
Under Alex Nogales’ leadership, NHMC has filed over fifty petitions to deny broadcast licenses with the Federal Communication Commission (FCC), including one against a Spanish-language radio company for encouraging its DJs to air pornographic radio programming to boost their ratings. NHMC also led high-profile demonstrations against ABC and its parent company, Disney, for their lack of diversity and apparent exclusion of American Latinos as local news reporters and anchors, while also intensifying discussions with local TV stations across the country. As one of the more visible organizations under the umbrella of the National Latino Media Council (NLMC) – acting as secretariat and staff—NHMC was instrumental in the signing of Memoranda of Understanding with NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
, ABC, CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
and Fox
Fox Broadcasting Company
Fox Broadcasting Company, commonly referred to as Fox Network or simply Fox , is an American commercial broadcasting television network owned by Fox Entertainment Group, part of Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation. Launched on October 9, 1986, Fox was the highest-rated broadcast network in the...
in the year 2000.
When Latinos in both English and Spanish language television were undercounted by the Nielsen Company, NHMC and the NLMC fought to force Nielsen to address this shortfall. Nielsen’s undercount limited Latino employment opportunities in English-language television as well as discouraged the development of Latino-themed programming. Fox Television, an ally in the fight, signed an agreement with Nielsen whereby Nielsen committed fifty million dollars to better train its field representatives to coach Nielsen households on how to correctly use their measuring equipment.
Currently, NHMC is evaluating the diversity performance of the four major television networks, pushing for diversity initiatives, and challenging media entities that are demonizing the Latino immigrant community to boost their radio and television ratings.
Indeed, in the past few years the NHMC has emerged as a leader in the fight against hate speech
Hate speech
Hate speech is, outside the law, any communication that disparages a person or a group on the basis of some characteristic such as race, color, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, nationality, religion, or other characteristic....
in media. On the heels of the 2006 immigration debate – and the often violent and inaccurate anti-Latino rhetoric associated therewith – the Federal Bureau of Investigation
Federal Bureau of Investigation
The Federal Bureau of Investigation is an agency of the United States Department of Justice that serves as both a federal criminal investigative body and an internal intelligence agency . The FBI has investigative jurisdiction over violations of more than 200 categories of federal crime...
documented a 40% increase in hate crimes against Latinos. Not only has NHMC called on the government to examine the link between hate speech and hate crimes and to bring light to this serious problem, it has also commissioned the UCLA Chicano Studies Research Center to study the issue in the absence of government action.
At the same time, NHMC’s President and CEO, Alex Nogales, has met with top cable and broadcast television executives, urging them to ensure fairness and accuracy in their stories that on the Latino community. In late 2009, a meeting was held with CNN
CNN
Cable News Network is a U.S. cable news channel founded in 1980 by Ted Turner. Upon its launch, CNN was the first channel to provide 24-hour television news coverage, and the first all-news television channel in the United States...
President Jon Klein to urge him to hold Lou Dobbs
Lou Dobbs
Louis Carl "Lou" Dobbs is an American journalist, radio host, television host on the Fox Business Network, and author. He anchored CNN's Lou Dobbs Tonight until November 2009 when he announced on the air that he would leave the 24-hour cable news television network.He was born in Texas and lived...
accountable as a credible journalist or to fire him for his racists remarks aired on CNN. Days later, Dobbs resigned from CNN.
In addition to the NHMC’s work on hate speech, the organization has increasingly engaged on media and telecommunications policies that impact the Latino community. NHMC is headquartered in Pasadena, California, with offices also in Washington, D.C. serving as the voice of the Latino community on such issues as diversifying media ownership, broadband deployment and adoption, network neutrality, and many other issues that affect how Latinos communicate and are perceived in mainstream media.
Writers Program
The NLMC Television Writers Program is an intensive five-week, total immersion scriptwriters workshop to prepare and place Latinos in writing jobs for the major television networks. The program is designed to familiarize participants with the format, characters and storyline structure of specific shows currently on the air. Writers are mentored and guided by former NBC V.P of Script Development, Geoff Harris. The workshop is conducted in Burbank, CA and a total of 10 writers are recruited nationwide. The program is a response to the lack of diverse writers in primetime network TV, it aims to form diverse writers to promote more diversity on TV.TV Network Report Cards
Annually NHMC—on behalf of the National Latino Media Council—issues Television Network Report Cards, which reflect the diversityDiversity
-Science and technology:*Biodiversity, the degree of variation of life forms within a given ecosystem, biome, or an entire planet.*Diversity Index, a statistic intended to assess the diversity of any population in which each member belongs to a unique group, type or species.*Diversity scheme, a...
commitment of each of the four major television networks: ABC, NBC, CBS and Fox. The report card summarizes progress and shortfalls of the networks' diversity efforts each year. Networks earn overall diversity performance grades, as well as specific grades based on their employment of Latino actors in primetime scripted and reality programming, Latino writers, producers and directors in primetime programming, and Latino entertainment executives. Specific grades are also assigned for program development, procurement and network commitment to diversity and transparency.
Impact Awards
The National Hispanic Media Coalition hosts annual Local and National Impact Awards ceremonies to honor individuals and entities whose achievements have greatly benefited the Latino community in California and nationwide.Some of the most well-known awardees are Eva Longoria
Eva Longoria
Eva Jacqueline Longoria is an American actress, best known for portraying Gabrielle Solis on the ABC television series Desperate Housewives...
, Robert Rodriguez
Robert Rodriguez
Robert Anthony Rodríguez is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, cinematographer, editor and musician. He shoots and produces many of his films in his native Texas and Mexico. He has directed such films as Desperado, From Dusk till Dawn, The Faculty, Spy Kids, Sin City, Planet...
, Vikki Carr
Vikki Carr
Vikki Carr is an American singer and humanitarian from El Paso, Texas. She has performed in a variety of music genres, including jazz, pop and country, but has enjoyed her greatest success singing in Spanish.-Career:After taking the stage name 'Vikki Carr', she signed with Liberty Records in 1962...
, George Lopez
George Lopez
George Lopez is an American comedian, actor, and talk show host. He is mostly known for starring in his self-produced ABC sitcom George Lopez. His stand-up comedy examines race and ethnic relations, including the Mexican American culture...
, Lupe Ontiveros
Lupe Ontiveros
Lupe Ontiveros is an American film and television actress. Ontiveros has acted in numerous films and television shows, most often playing a maid or, more recently, an all-knowing grandmother; she estimates she has played a maid between 150 and 300 times on screen.-Early life:Ontiveros was born...
, Edward James Olmos
Edward James Olmos
Edward James Olmos is an American actor and director. Among his most memorable roles are William Adama in the re-imagined Battlestar Galactica, Lt...
, Andy Garcia
Andy García
Andrés Arturo García Menéndez , professionally known as Andy García, is a Cuban American actor. He became known in the late 1980s and 1990s, having appeared in several successful Hollywood films, including The Godfather: Part III, The Untouchables, Internal Affairs and When a Man Loves a Woman...
,James Cameron
James Cameron
James Francis Cameron is a Canadian-American film director, film producer, screenwriter, editor, environmentalist and inventor...
, Adam Rodriguez
Adam Rodriguez
Adam Michael Rodríguez is an American actor and director. He is best known for his long running role as Eric Delko on CSI: Miami.-Life and career:...
, Wilmer Valderrama
Wilmer Valderrama
Wilmer Eduardo Valderrama is an American actor and television personality, known for the role of Fez in the sitcom That '70s Show, hosting the MTV series Yo Momma, and voicing the character of Manny in the children's show Handy Manny.-Early life:Valderrama was born in Miami, Florida the son of...
, Justina Machado
Justina Machado
Justina Machado is an American actress. She is perhaps best known for her role as Vanessa Diaz in the HBO drama series Six Feet Under.-Early life:...
, Freddy Rodriguez
Freddy Rodriguez
Freddy Rodriguez is an American actor known for playing the characters Hector Federico "Rico" Diaz on HBO's Six Feet Under and El Wray in Robert Rodriguez's Planet Terror...
, Rosario Dawson
Rosario Dawson
Rosario Isabel Dawson is an American actress, singer, and writer. She has appeared in films such as Kids, Men in Black II, 25th Hour, Sin City, Clerks II, Rent, Death Proof, The Rundown, Eagle Eye, Alexander, Seven Pounds, Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief and Unstoppable.-Early...
, Salma Hayek
Salma Hayek
Salma Valgarma Hayek Jiménez de Pinault is a Mexican film actress, director and producer. She received an Oscar nomination for Best Actress for her role as Frida Kahlo in the film Frida.-Early life:...
, and America Ferrera
America Ferrera
America Georgina Ferrera is an American actress, best known for playing the lead role in the television comedy series Ugly Betty...
.
Among Latino journalists who received the Impact Award are Kathy Vara
Kathy Vara
Kathy Vara is a morning news anchor. She has joined KNBC Channel 4's early-morning newscast as the sole anchor of the recently expanded 4:30 a.m.-5 a.m. newscast, and joins her fellow anchors from 5 a.m. to 7 a.m. as a "contributing anchor" with anchors Chris Schauble and Alycia Lane. Schauble...
(NBC4), Vikki Vargas
Vikki Vargas
Vikki Vargas is a native of Orange County, California. She is a graduate of Sonora High School, and Cal State Fullerton. She has long been with the Los Angeles affiliate of NBC as a reporter and in recent years, the Orange County Bureau Chief for KNBC...
(NBC4), Danny Romero
Danny Romero
Daniel Gregorio Romero was a former world champion professional boxer. His nickname is "Kid Dynamite".Romero is a devoted Catholic...
(KABC
KABC
KABC may refer to:* KABC , a radio station licensed to Los Angeles, California, United States* KABC-TV, a television station licensed to Los Angeles, California...
), Gabriela Teissier (KMEX), Linda Alvarez (CBS2), Ruben Luengas (Telemundo 52), Tony Valdez (KTTV
KTTV
KTTV, channel 11, is an owned-and-operated television station of the News Corporation-owned Fox Broadcasting Company, located in Los Angeles, California. Serving the vast Los Angeles metropolitan area, KTTV is a sister station to KCOP , Los Angeles' MyNetworkTV station...
), Sylvia Lopez
Sylvia Lopez
Sylvia Lopez was a French model and actress.Born Tatjana Bernt, she was raised in Paris, where she began a career in modelling. Eventually she modeled for couturier Jacques Fath, the first French fashion designer to export his creations to the United States...
(KCAL
KCAL
KCAL may refer to:*KCAL , a radio station licensed to Redlands, California, United States*KCAL-FM, a radio station licensed to Redlands, California, United States...
), Mario Solis (NBC4), Carlos Amezcua
Carlos Amezcua
Carlos Amezcua is the co-anchor of the KTTV FOX 11. newscast. Amezcua joined KTTV in September 2007.Amezcua, a Southern California native,studied at BYU and San Diego State College....
(KTLA
KTLA
KTLA, virtual channel 5, is a television station in Los Angeles, California, USA. Owned by the Tribune Company, KTLA is an affiliate of the CW Television Network. KTLA's studios are on Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood, and its transmitter is located atop Mount Wilson...
), Ellen Leyva (KABC
KABC
KABC may refer to:* KABC , a radio station licensed to Los Angeles, California, United States* KABC-TV, a television station licensed to Los Angeles, California...
), Rick Garcia (CBS2), Ana Garcia (NBC4), and many more.