June 20, 2007
TV Azteca Reporter Shot
TV Azteca crime beat reporter David Cuéllar Montero was shot over the weekend in Mexico City. Upon arriving home from work, two men approached and asked if he was David Cuéllar. The men reportedly said, "This is from Ofelia," and shot Cuéllar three times. The men drove off in a Nissan Platina.
Cuéllar's ex-wife is named Ofelia, she drives a Nissan Platina and the two are embroiled in a custody dispute. All this is according to Cuéllar who survived the shooting and has spoken to colleagues. He is recovering in a local hospital.
In March, TV Azteca director of national sales Yordi Peralta Samper and his wife Mireya López Portillo were gunned down, also in Mexico City. At the time, authorities believed López, who was the daughter of a retired Mexican general, was the killers' principal target.
Monterrey-based TV Azteca reporter and cameraman Gamaliel López Candanosa and Gerardo Paredes Pérez have been missing since May 10. Monterrey and its outlying areas have been swept up in an alarming rise in violence related to the drug trade. Police reportedly have no leads on the whereabouts of the missing Azteca journalists.
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Wanted: Exec to Get Univision $1 Per Sub
Univision, looking ahead to some bruising cash-for-retransmission negotiations with cable operators over its top-rated Spanish-language stations, wants a new distribution chief to bang heads (or sweet talk) affiliates.
While nothing has been announced, executive VP of affiliate distribution Tim Krass has left the company and search firm Spencer Stuart has been interviewing possible replacements, people familiar with the situation say.
The problem, one potential candidate said, is not many high-profile distribution chiefs have experience doing contentious retransmission-consent deals. Getting cash for carrying its stations is “a top priority” for Univision’s new ownership group, led by Haim Saban. The new owners bought Univision in March for $12.3 billion.
Recently hired CEO Joe Uva, at Univision’s upfront presentation to advertisers in May, said Univision wants $1 per subscriber in retransmission payments in new deals, replacing those that mostly expire by the end of 2008.
Distribution executives say whoever’s hired will be “quote-unquote, working closely” with a key Univision consultant: Fred Dressler, the retired former top programming negotiator at Time Warner Cable.
One person likened the Univision gig to an Army doctor telling his family he’s headed for duty in Iraq and won’t be seeing them for two years. But the job likely includes equity, so the better the deals that get negotiated, the better the payout when Saban and his backers eventually sell out, executives say.
Univision, through a publicist, declined comment. Krass couldn’t be reached.
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Sports Coverage Kicks Up Higher Ratings
Soccer balls are flying fast and furious on Spanish-language television with Azteca America, Fox Sports en Español, Telefutura, Telemundo and Univision all getting a piece of the action. All of these networks have benefited in recent weeks and months from a flurry of league and international competitions.
Univision and Telefutura are currently airing the Copa de Oro, which features national squads from the Caribbean, Central America, Mexico and the U.S. The two networks will air matches of the more prestigious Copa América tournament, which begins later this month. Both networks aired matches from the qualifying rounds of the Mexican Soccer League championships.
Telemundo scored high ratings with the recent Mexico-Iran friendly and Azteca America benefited from airing the championship match of the Mexican Soccer League.
Tonight, Fox Sports en Español will air the final match of Copa Libertadores, the high-profile Latin American club tournament.
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Hispanic News Network to Launch in August
Davenport, Iowa, is home to the Hispanic News Network, which is scheduled to launch in August. The 24-hour Spanish-language news network, owned by Fusion Communications, has yet to finalize carriage agreements.
"We are negotiating with two cable carriers. We've talked with other Hispanic networks. We may do this under more than one title" said David McAnally co-founder of Fusion Communications which owns the majority of Hispanic News Network. "It will be available throughout the U.S. as well as Mexico."
Canadian firm Solutrea is the minority investor in Hispanic News Network. Solutrea put out a press release stating they are investing a total of $1 million for 40% ownership of the joint venture. The release goes on to state "HNN is anticipated to be cash flow positive within 60 days of broadcasting and has an anticipated first year revenue of over $2.7 million dollars."
HNN will compete directly against CNN en Español, which is distributed in the U.S. and throughout Latin America.
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Mi San Diego TV Wins Local Emmy
Last Saturday, Mi San Diego TV won the local Emmy for best evening newscast. The Spanish-language newscast is produced by NBC O&O KNSD. Mi San Diego TV airs on a low-power station and is carried on digital cable by Cox. Aside from the local newscasts, the programming is the same that airs on Telemundo-owned Los Angeles independent KWHY.
Asked why Mi San Diego TV beat out all the other English and Spanish-language newscasts, KNSD news director Greg Dawson responded, "It's a great show. It really is a terrific newscast."
Dawson also mentioned the newscast benefits from the rest of the station's infrastructure. The show has one anchor who does brief sports and weather segments. There is a daily interview segment to "really flush out bigger issues and look in-depth at some of the things that are going on in the community."
Once a month, according to Dawson, a guest is brought in to discuss an issue on-air and viewers are invited to call in and be briefed further by volunteers manning phone banks. Dawson believes the Emmy awarded to Mi San Diego TV is the first for a local Spanish-language newscast.
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AOL Readies Online ‘Fashionista’
AOL Latino is running an online competition, Fashionista, for young Hispanic fashion designers. Twenty contestants have been chosen and online voters will winnow the field to five semifinalists. The competition is sponsored by the automotive brand Mercury Milan.
"With this type of programming initiative there are two components. One is advertiser interaction and the other very important component is [whether] the programming is able to gather a critical mass of audience," said AOL Latino publisher Mark Lopez. "Both of those came together [with Fashionista], and that's how the concept was created."
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Univision Presidential Debate
Univision's presidential debates have yet to prove a hit with candidates. None of the leading Democratic or Republican candidates have as yet agreed to participate in the events scheduled for Sept. 9 and 16.
Spanish-speaking Democratic candidates Sen. Chris Dodd (Conn.) and New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson quickly and eagerly accepted the invitation but both expressed dismay after Univision's "clarification" that all participants would have to respond to questions in English. Sen. Hillary Clinton (N.Y.) declined the invitation as did Rep. Tom Tancredo (Colo.).
Univision's media relations on this matter are being handled by outside agency Sard Verbinnen & Co. Agency employee Brooke Morganstein declined to comment on which or how many candidates had agreed to participate in the debate. She also declined to say if a minimum number of candidates exists below which the debate might be cancelled.
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Radio show host Eddie "El Piolin" Sotelo is one of the most important figures in all of Latino media. Cristina and Don Francisco may get more press, but "El Piolin" ("Tweety Bird") arguably has more tangible influence within the Latino community. Sotelo's morning drivetime show is heard in 27 markets throughout the U.S. and he is on a mission to push for what he describes as "fair and just" immigration reform. To that end, he organized a six week letter-writing on-air campaign in the hopes of gathering one million letters and e-mail messages signed by legal residents and U.S. citizens. He took the gathered letters on a cross-country caravan to Washington, D.C., for an event attended by Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-Mass.) among others. It turns out that the boxes used as a
backdrop at the press conference were not full and the bulk of the letters were left elsewhere because of "security issues." There has been no independent count of the letters and no way to independently confirm the final tally. If the 1 million-letter count is true, then it would constitute an astonishing feat. Particularly, considering that of the 41 million U.S. Hispanics the Pew Hispanic Center estimates at least 11.5 million are illegal immigrants. Furthermore, a third of the total Hispanic population is under 18. For the million letter count to be accurate, one in 20 of all legal adult Hispanic residents and citizens would have had to have sent in a letter or e-mail. There is no doubt, however, that Sotelo did in fact gather a very large number of letters and that his visit last
week to Capitol Hill elevated the profile of immigration reform. An edited transcript follows:
Q: How did the event go?
A: It went marvelously well. We left Los Angeles with more than a million letters calling for immigration reform and signed by legal residents and citizens. These two points are important because the politicians will know that the citizens can vote and that the residents can become future voters and here or anywhere else that carries a lot of weight. We presented the letters to Republican and Democratic senators.
Q: What was their reaction?
A: They were surprised. I mentioned my own experience living without documents. I know the fear that you experience when you don’t have papers and you want to triumph here in the United States and help your family. The fear of deportation. I myself was fired for not having papers. I told my story which is a reflection of the experience of many people and why so many want immigration reform.
Yes, they were surprised because they did not expect to see a million and a half letters from legal residents and U.S. citizens and they were very excited. They told me I had done a good job. But this is the work of all the people. Piolin is just a messenger and this is what we can do. We marched peacefully last year in several cities asking for immigration reform. I asked the lawyers what else can we do and they said letters are very important.
Q: What is your role in this debate? Activist, disc jockey, journalist or what?
A: I am not an activist, not a politician. I am someone who has undergone this kind of experience and received many blessings in my life and it is good to share those blessings with others. If people work, pay their taxes and demonstrate they can be good citizens, then why not give them an opportunity like I had.
We have to find the way to make a difference and to do so responsibly.
Q: You ask for a fair and balanced and humanitarian immigration reform. What does that mean?
A: First, we favor family reunification. Second, if a person has worked and demonstrated they can be a good citizen, then give them an opportunity.
I am just taking the voice of these people that have worked and deserve an opportunity.
Q: Have you been approached by a presidential candidate for an endorsement?
A: No. None. No.
Q: Would you consider endorsing a particular candidate?
A: Our show always offers an opportunity to people who have opinions different from mine or that of my team. We give an opportunity to all the candidates who request it. We learn from everyone. We even invited the Minutemen on our show. It is important to hear everyone out and understand different points of view.
Q: What did you make of California Gov. Schwarzenegger’s suggestion that immigrants turn off Spanish-language television?
A: (Laughter) Nah, no. Listen, who is going to do that? Nobody is going to do that.
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Pappas Tries New Spanish Programming
(Excerpted from a June 12 article on broadcastingcable.com)
Beginning July 1, Pappas Telecasting will try "a new brand of Spanish-language programming" on five of its stations that were formerly affiliated with Azteca America. The stations are KAZH Houston, KTNC San Francsisco/Oakland, KAZR Reno, KAZO Omaha and KAZJ Sioux City, Iowa.
"Our programming model follows that of other Hispanic independent stations which have demonstrated the ability to compete successfully for Hispanic audiences and ratings," said Fernando Acosta, Vice President of Pappas Telecasting’s Hispanic TV Stations Group. "In fact, such stations have regularly achieved higher ratings than the Azteca America Network and performed on par with TeleFutura and Telemundo."
Dish Adds TuTv in Puerto Rico
Three Spanish-Language Channels Join DishLATINO Package
(Excerpted from a June 13 article on multichannel.com)
TuTv and EchoStar Communications reached an agreement that will extend the availability of three Spanish-language channels to current and future subscribers to its DishLatino packages in Puerto Rico.
Starting today, De Película, De Película Clásico and Telehit are among the more than 30 Spanish-language channels available to DishLATINO customers in Puerto Rico.
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California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger surprised those present at a National Association of Hispanic Journalists event by suggesting immigrants should "turn off" Spanish-language television. The Sacramento Bee highlights the irony of the Governor's comments by noting his Spanish-language Web site, Hispanic media outreach and the sizeable contributions he received from former Univision CEO and controlling shareholder A. Jerrold Perenchio.
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