As the leader of the Spanish Language Disinformation Coalition (SLDC), NHMC is on the frontline of defending against information fraud and protecting Latinos and other historically and intentionally marginalized communities from harmful narratives that undermine trust and equity.
In 2024, we released Seeing Beyond Information Fraud:Practical Transparency - A Guide for the Informed Individual, a holistic, bilingual (English-Spanish) living resource on information fraud for everyday consumers. We shared this critical resource with the public and with over 150 Members of Congress, including Senator Cortez-Masto, Representative Linda Sánchez, the Congressional Progressive Caucus, the Democratic Women’s Caucus, and many more trusted allies.
Our work didn’t stop there; our guide was highlighted in major outlets like The LA Times, AFP, and Voz de America, bringing national and international attention to this growing issue. NHMC’s subject matter experts were interviewed extensively on this issue by local, national, and international outlets including, The Associated Press, NBC News Latino, The Dallas Morning News, Matter of Fact with Soledad O’Brien, and more, resulting in over 206 million unique visitors per month (UVM) in audience reach. The Information Fraud Guide is available for the public to download for free on NHMC’s website.
SLDC’s efforts extended to advocating for stronger ad and scam regulations, supporting YouTube’s “Hit Pause” campaign, holding platforms accountable through meetings and letters advocating for transparency in content moderation practices, and hosting pivotal conversations with lawmakers and regulators to promote real change, reinforcing our commitment to integrity in online spaces.
In 2024, NHMC proudly launched the Latino Representation in Gaming Coalition (LRGC) to champion culture and belonging in the gaming industry, bringing together influential partners such as Representative Joaquin Castro, the Hispanic Heritage Foundation, Latinx in Gaming, the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute, MANA - A National Latina Organization, Latino Corporate Directors Association, and Hispanic Association on Corporate Responsibility. The Coalition’s September 12th launch at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. was a landmark event, spotlighted by a Variety feature, a syndicated EFE piece picked up by over 15 outlets, and coverage from Washington Hispanic, EnStarz Latine, and GamesIndustry.Biz—collectively generating over 189 million impressions. Recognizing that more than 70 percent of Latinos aged 13 and older identify as gamers, the coalition is tackling the industry’s lack of Latino representation head-on.
The LRGC seeks to transform the gaming industry into a space where Latinos are fully represented and celebrated. Through strategic dialogue with leading gaming companies, the Coalition advocates for transparency, authentic character portrayals, greater workforce representation, and an inclusive environment that reflects the diversity of Latino culture. These efforts bridge the gap between the Latino community’s significant engagement in gaming and their underrepresentation in the industry, ensuring Latinos are integral in shaping the future of this dynamic field.
In 2024, NHMC led impactful efforts as part of the Latino Representation in Publishing Coalition (LRPC), uniting Latino-led organizations to transform the publishing industry. The LRPC members are #DignidadLiteraria, Latino Corporate Directors Association, Latinx in Publishing, The Latinx House, Hispanic Heritage Foundation, and the National Association of Latino Independent Producers.
Following up from our successful meetings with the CEO of top publishing companies in 2023, which included Hachette, Penguin Random House, Simon & Schuster, McMillan, and more, the LRPC pushed for greater Latino visibility in published works and leadership roles within publisher organizations while tackling legislative challenges surrounding book bans to protect diverse stories. The LRPC held quarterly meetings to track progress, celebrated Latinx in Publishing’s ten-year anniversary at Penguin Random House headquarters in New York, and made significant strides toward fostering a more inclusive and equitable publishing landscape.
NHMC influenced major policy discussions through thoughtful public comments and federal engagements. Highlights included vocal support for the Artificial Intelligence Civil Rights Act of 2024 and participation in hearings on climate disinformation and tech leadership, ensuring new technologies align with civil rights protections. Notably, NHMC advised the Department of Justice and Federal Trade Commission on media mergers, solidifying our role as a trusted thought partner on issues of representation and workforce fairness in the evolving media landscape.
Our advocacy extended to landmark comments supporting the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) Prevention and Elimination of Digital Discrimination rulemaking and championing the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) to bridge the digital divide, as part of our continued efforts to ensure safe and affordable broadband access for underserved communities. NHMC worked directly with Members of Congress to educate political leaders about the critical need for the continuation of ACP. Despite pleas to leadership and the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, the program has not yet received additional funding, and NHMC helped provide reliable information about the transition of the ACP to our community in April of 2024.
We helped shape federal telecom policy in more ways than one. NHMC submitted comments to the FCC as it reinstated Net Neutrality regulations based on the 2015 Open Internet Order. In addition, NHMC met with Commissioner Anna Gomez at an invite only roundtable to discuss the Latino community’s priorities for an open internet. In collaboration with the FCC, NHMC played a pivotal role in shaping Multilingual Wireless Emergency Alerts that were not only translated into Spanish, but also culturally adapted for Latino communities—bridging critical communication gaps in moments of urgency.
NHMC also worked with leaders across the country to protect children’s online privacy, advocating for stronger federal and state laws to safeguard young users.
Our groundbreaking and instructional media and entertainment guide, Seeing Beyond the Stereotypes: Telling Authentic Latino/a/x/e Stories: A Guide for the Entertainment Industry provided the entertainment industry with strategies to move beyond stereotypes and tell authentic Latino stories generating over 1.2 billion impressions. This guide is presented as a living document that will evolve with time. This media guide serves as a resource for development executives, showrunners, writers, directors, and other entertainment professionals on how to create authentic stories, guided by Latino voices. Along with the instructional media guide, NHMC facilitates private custom-designed sessions tailored to top-level executives. It will assist in shaping the viewpoints of those creating and watching these stories and inevitably lead to pushing the narrative of the true meaning of Latinidad. The media guide is available to the public to download for free on NHMC’s website.
NHMC also held institutions accountable, including working in coalition with distinguished organizations to make sure the 2028 Olympics accurately captures the myriad of cultures that Los Angeles represents by addressing representation gaps at the LA Times and raising concerns about the lack of Latino and Asian representation in the planning of the 2028 Olympics.
NHMC hosted a series of Impact Awards spanning from Washington D.C. to New York. During this series of ceremonies each year, we honor changemakers in media, businesses, social justice, publishing, and policy. The NHMC Impact ceremonies are a celebration of Latino and non-Latino individuals who have created a positive and meaningful impact for our community. At the NHMC Impacts Washington, D.C. ceremony, NHMC recognized advocates who are working to bridge the digital divide and enact practices that protect the interests and concerns of Latinos and people of color. Through our Impact Series, we strive to highlight those individuals and entities positively contributing to the media surrounding the Latino community. The 2024 Impact Series recognized Cid Wilson, President and CEO of HACR, Michelle Miller, CBS News National Correspondent & Author, The New York Women's Foundation, Hachette Book Group, TikTok Youth Council, Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett (TX-30), Hispanic Heritage Foundation and Minecraft Education, Janet Murguía, President & CEO of UnidosUS, and Emilio Gonzalez, Executive Director for Public Policy & Strategic Initiatives at Verizon. With keynote remarks from Luis A. Miranda Jr., Political Strategist, Philanthropist, Advocacy Consultant, and Author and California Congressional Representative Tony Cárdenas.
For over twenty years, the NHMC Series Scriptwriters Program (SSP) has helped launch the careers of more than 200 Latinx writers. The successful 2024 Series Scriptwriters Program celebrated Latino storytellers, culminating in a powerful closing ceremony showcasing their work. Ten diverse Latino writers nationwide are selected for an 8-week intense writers lab.
At the end of the program, these writers will have either a half-hour or hour-long original series pilot, which they will pitch to entertainment industry leaders, beginning with our SSP partners. Over the 8-week duration, writers work with professional writing mentors, meet and speak with professional industry executives, develop a pitch-ready script, and build a community of Latino writers. The program is officially conducted virtually. Our NHMC Alum writers have worked on shows that can be viewed on Netflix, CW, NBCUniversal, HBOMax, Hulu, Paramount Plus, Amazon Prime, Disney, AppleTV+ and more.
Our Careers in Entertainment Youth Program introduces careers in entertainment to high school students by providing workshops featuring guest speakers in various fields of media such as acting, writing, music production and performance, public relations, and talent management. This program helps build the confidence of the students by providing them with mentors and building a sense of community.
NHMC’s prestigious Fellowship Program continued to offer paid positions for students and recent graduates to work directly to support the social justice mission of NHMC. These positions are designed for individuals at a range of levels and include professional development, technical training, and mentorship. Fellows' work focused on a range of areas, including telecommunications policy, media advocacy, communications, and more. We have had a successful pipeline established, where former fellows have proceeded to work for NHMC, the FCC, congressional offices, other agencies, and media companies.
Held annually in Beverly Hills, the Impact Awards Gala celebrates the outstanding individuals dedicating themselves to creating a more inclusive entertainment industry through the positive portrayal of the Latino community, both in front of and behind the camera. The Impact Awards Gala was created to recognize and highlight Latino talent as we have historically been kept out of awards ceremonies and received little nominations, let alone wins. The 2024 Gala honorees included Issa López, Fede Alvarez, Tatyana Ali, Tubi, The Umbrella Academy, Harvey Guillén, Tubi, and The Los Angeles Football Club, hosted by Annie Gonzalez and Mayan Lopez. In 2024 we garnered a reach of 1.9 billion impressions, and plan to expand the high level recognition of the Latino community.
In celebration of Women’s History Month, NHMC reaffirmed its commitment to elevating Latina representation in Hollywood, D.C., and beyond. Hosted by Emmy Award-winning journalist MJ Acosta-Ruiz, the first woman of color to host a show at the NFL Network, the panel explores the interdimensional identities Latina athletes carry in the industry, shining a light on representation and finding a support system of powerful women, including Diana Flores, Captain and Quarterback of Mexico’s World Champion National Flag Football team and Nicco Montaño, Professional mixed martial artist.
NHMC was honored at LAFC’s Hispanic Heritage Match on Wednesday, October 2nd during their on-field community spotlight for their community work and impact. NHMC staff was on site to receive this recognition and was featured on the big screen before the match began.
This electrifying event celebrated the remarkable achievements of women who are redefining the future of business, community and culture in Southern California. The awards ceremony was the evening’s crowning moment, honoring over 300 nominees and recognizing trailblazers across ten categories, including Nonprofit, which NHMC President and CEO, Brenda Castillo, was nominated for.
NHMC partnered with the Native American Media Alliance for the annual film festival, LA Skinsfest. NHMC connected our network of industry professionals in production, marketing, writing, social media, and many other fields within the industry for the Opening Night of the film festival at the TCL Chinese Theater in Hollywood, CA.
NHMC joined forces with media advocacy organizations and Gracenote, the content metadata business unit of Nielsen, for equitable representation in media on a new Studio System feature, Diversity Spotlight. The enhancement leverages insights from IllumiNative, Gold House, RespectAbility, National Hispanic Media Coalition, and Coalition of Asian Pacifics in Entertainment (CAPE) to highlight people and projects that meet a range of diversity-specific criteria and open new casting, funding and collaboration opportunities. By raising the visibility of diverse talent and representative projects among Studio System’s broad industry user base, Gracenote and its advocacy group partners are accelerating efforts to bring more equitable representation and authentic content to viewers.
In partnership with Apple Films, NHMC hosted a panel discussion for their community to watch clips of the critically acclaimed film, Killers of the Flower Moon with the leading ladies of the project. Tantoo Cardinal, Cara Jade Myers, JaNae Collins, and Jillian Dion touched on important themes of culture, language, and family throughout the film.
In partnership with NBCUniversal, NHMC hosted a panel and space for our community to watch and uplift the launch of Season 2 of Lopez v. Lopez. Panelists included Debby Wolfe (Showrunner), and actors George Lopez, Mayan Lopez, Selenis Leyva, Matt Shively, Brice Gonzalez, and Al Madrigal. The event had a red carpet, guest talent in attendance, and a mixer after for guests. Lopez v. Lopez has been renewed for a third season, which premiered in the fall of 2024 and is currently ongoing.
