In this issue:
- President’s Message
- 8th Annual Local Impact Awards Luncheon
- Washington, D.C. Update
- NHMC Recommends
- NHMC Thanks Luncheon Sponsors: Google and Univision
- NHMC Congratulates Jessica J. Gonzalez
- NLMC Writers Program
- ABC’s “Roving Reporter of the Year”
- NILC 4th Annual Awards Dinner
- Support NHMC
President’s Message
September 15th marked the beginning of Hispanic Heritage Month, a time when we all come together to recognize the contributions that American Latinos have made in the United States, and to celebrate the diverse histories and cultures of those folks who have come to this country by way of Mexico, the Caribbean, and the rest of Central and South America. The 2010 Hispanic Heritage Month theme is "Heritage, Diversity, Integrity and Honor: The Renewed Hope of America." Despite this hopeful theme, I lament our government’s failure to pass Comprehensive Immigration Reform, or even the Dream Act, in this 111th Congress. By most accounts, neither bill will pass, leaving millions of people to continue living in the shadows across the nation.
At the same time, I lament that hate crimes against Latinos are at an all time high. Over the past few months we have heard and read of multiple senseless murders in Baltimore, MD and New York, NY, and countless other assaults across the country. I have also witnessed innumerable misrepresentations of Latinos in the mainstream press, with pundits and now even political candidates urging people to "lock and load" and "take back our country."
With this in mind, we here at NHMC renew our commitment to fighting for accurate portrayals of Latinos in the media, knowing full well that dehumanizing anti-Latino rhetoric must not be normalized in this country.
And although our hearts are heavy as yet another year without immigration reform looms on the horizon, we embrace the theme of "Heritage, Diversity, Integrity and Honor: The Renewed Hope of America," as we regroup for 2011. We know that Latinos are an integral part of the social fabric of this greatly diverse nation, and it is with all earnestness that NHMC will continue to pressure our media to stick to the facts about the Latino community, so that hate crimes against Latinos continue to be seen for what they are – illegitimate and inhumane, regardless of one’s legal status. This is NHMC’s renewed hope, and we thank you for taking part.
8th Annual Local Impact Awards Luncheon
NHMC held its 8th Annual Local Impact Awards Luncheon on September 9, 2010 at the Pasadena Westin Hotel. By all accounts, the event was a great success. NHMC honored outstanding local individuals and entities that continue to make a difference in our Southern California community. KNBC 4’s Vikki Vargas received an Impact Award for
Lifetime Achievement in Television Broadcasting, Latin Heat Magazine’s Bel Hernandez received an
Outstanding Service to the Latino Community Impact Award, Telemundo’s Jose A. Ronstadt received a
Lifetime Achievement in Television Broadcasting Impact Award, and the Latino Theater Company received an
Outstanding Theater Company Impact Award. CBS 2 news anchor, Laura Diaz, and radio personality, "Big Boy," from KPWR-FM radio co-hosted the luncheon once again this year. NHMC thanks all the sponsors and contributors of the event and congratulates this year’s Impact Award recipients. Visit
https://www.nhmc.org/local-impact-awards to see more pictures of the 8th Annual Local Impact Awards Luncheon.
Washington, D.C. Update
This week Congress will break for recess and members will return to their districts until mid-November. Leading up to this recess, NHMC has been busy educating members about the importance of the Local Community Radio Act, a bill that, if enacted, will open up countless opportunities for regular folks across the country to apply for low power FM (LPFM) stations. NHMC anxiously awaits passage of this bi-partisan bill, as it will undoubtedly create greater prospects for Latinos to tell our own stories over the public airwaves.
This month NHMC also kicked off its internship program. NHMC is proud to present its fall 2010 legal interns: Michael Scurato, Monica Guzman and Melanie Garcia . You can read more about these aspiring attorneys on our web-site. NHMC created this program to help develop diverse young lawyers in the field of media and telecommunications law. Only a month into the program, these three talents are already contributing to NHMC’s work.
For instance, Monica helped draft NHMC’s comment to the FCC, urging the agency to reinstate collection of broadcaster’s equal employment opportunity (or, "EEO") data. Melanie is in the process of reviewing and analyzing the most current literature on hate speech and hate crimes in furtherance of NHMC’s campaign against hate speech in media. And last but not least, Mike has been preparing to draft another round of network neutrality comments on behalf of the newly-formed, Latinos for Internet Freedom, of which NHMC is a member.
Finally, last week NHMC was pleased to learn that the FCC adopted several of NHMC’s recommendations to improve its program that partially subsidizes internet connections in schools and libraries. NHMC applauds the FCC’s decision to allow government-funded school internet hubs to remain open after school hours for community use. In addition, NHMC was pleased to see the FCC adopt our recommendation to simplify the application process so that schools with scant resources can still access these discounts. The FCC order, which can be read here, cites NHMC’s comments in support of its conclusions on several occasions.
Click here for details about the work coming out of NHMC’s D.C. Policy Shop.
NHMC Recommends
Two outstanding plays dealing with anti-immigrant issues. The first is a LATC.LaVictimaclassic from the Latino Theater Company (LTC), La Victima, written by El Teatro de la Esperanza and directed by Jose Luis Valenzuela. The epic story follows a family in search of a better life, separated by borders, lost dreams and lost identity.To celebrate its 25th Anniversary LTC gets back to basics and performs their first production presented at Los Angeles Theater Center in 1986. Current immigration debate and Arizona’s recent anti-immigrant legislation makes La Victima as relevant today as it was then. La Victima opens October 2nd and runs through October 31st. Visit the Los Angeles Theatre Center for more information and to purchase tickets.
Also premiering is CASA 0101’s new play by award-winning playwright and co-screenwriter of the hit HBO movie Real Women Have Curves, Josefina Lopez. DetainedintheDesertDetained in the Desert is a satirical drama set in Arizona and explores Arizona’s controversial Senate Bill 1070.Detained in the Desert parallels Sandi Sanchez (a 2nd generation Latina) and Lou Becker (a Hate Talk radio host) – two people on opposite sides of the immigration debate. Sandi is arrested as an "illegal" by an Arizona policeman after refusing to show her identification in protest. While being deported to Mexico, the I.C.E. bus transporting her crashes, leaving her stranded in the desert. Lou personally experiences the fallout of his actions when he is kidnapped by 3 siblings whose brother was killed by white anti-immigrant vigilantes riled up by his radio show. Through a series of deceptions and mishaps, Sandi’s and Lou’s paths converge in the Sonoran Desert where they come to understand the true severity of the plight of undocumented immigrants. Detained in the Desert opens October 1st and runs through October 24th. Visit Casa 0101 online for more information and tickets at www.casa0101.org.
NHMC Thanks Luncheon Sponsors: Google and Univision
NHMC thanks Google and Univision for their gracious contributions, which will go not only to supporting the luncheon, but also to reinforcing the Coalition’s ongoing efforts to open doors for Latinos in the media, improve the image of Latinos in the media, and advocate for media and telecommunications policies that benefit the Latino community and other communities of color.
In this month’s newsletter NHMC will feature Google, and next month, Univision. So now, with no further adieu, a word from one of our sponsors:
When Larry Page and Sergey Brin founded Google, they set out to solve a problem. How could they organize the web and make it accessible to users who wanted quick, relevant search results? How could they build a search engine which would "understand exactly what a user meant and give back exactly what they wanted?"
The answer? Focus on the user and all else will follow. It’s the mantra that lead Larry and Sergey to develop Google’s first search algorithm 12 years ago, and it’s a cornerstone of their philosophy today. Users are at the heart of everything Google develops – from products like Gmail, Google Calendar, and Google Docs to services like YouTube, and of course, search. Their tools make it simpler for users to share information and get things done.Google believes that access to information should be universal. They offer the Google search interface in more than 110 languages, and the Google Translate service provides instant, free translations between 57 different languages.
The Android mobile platform is helping more people get access to the Internet by encouraging opensource innovation. And to spread the growth of cutting edge technology, Google is investing in local communities to see how Broadband can transform small businesses, health care, and education.
Google has come a long way since they started crawling the web, but there’s always room for more innovation and they are determined to push the limits of technology and continue building tools that are useful and accessible.
NHMC Applauds Congressman Raul Grijalva
NHMC applauds Congressman Raul Grijalva (D-AZ), for urging the FCC to "ensure that internet providers cannot control what consumers access" online "based on political or corporate preferences."
Thank you, Congressman Grijalva, for looking out for the people over giant corporations.
NHMC Congratulates Jessica J. Gonzalez
NHMC congratulates Vice President of Policy and Legal Affairs, Jessica Gonzalez, for being voted Secretary of the Board of the Media and Democracy Coalition.
The Media and Democracy Coalition is a collaboration of over two dozen local and national organizations committed to amplifying the public’s voice in shaping media and telecommunications policy.
NLMC Writers Program
The 2010 NLMC Television Writer’s Program submission period is now closed. This year we received over 160 applications which are currently being reviewed by our expert judges at ABC, NBC, and mentor, Geoff Harris. The ten winners will be announced on Wednesday, October 27, 2010 and the program will commence on November 8, 2010.
Click here for more information about this exciting program, and if you have additional questions please contact Tatiana Arizaga at tarizaga@nhmc.org.
ABC’s "Roving Reporter of the Year"
Alex Pena submitted a first-hand report on the
Mexican Drug Wars and how citizens were using Twitter to stay informed when traditional media outlets were stifled by escalating violence in the region. That reporting caught the attention of
ABC News on Campus producers and earned him "Roving Reporter of the Year" status.
ABC News on Campus is a partnership with top journalism schools designed to educate and mentor talented college students. Congratulations to Alex, and to ABC.
NILC 4th Annual Awards Dinner
The National Immigration Law Center (NILC) will hold its 4th Annual Awards Dinner on Thursday, October 21, 2010 at the Millennium Biltmore Hotel in Los Angeles, CA. NILC will recognize individuals and groups for their extraordinary contributions to advancing the rights of low-income immigrants.
NILC continues its efforts to defend and advance the rights and opportunities of low-income immigrants and their families, as they envision a society in which all people-regardless of race, gender, immigration and economic status-are treated fairly and humanely, and have equal access to rights, freedoms, and opportunities that enable them to achieve their full potential as human beings.
For sponsorship opportunities for NILC’s Awards Dinner click
here.
Support NHMC
Support NHMC’s mission to:
– Open doors for Latinos in media
– Improve the image of Latinos in the media
– Advocate for media and telecommunications policies that benefit the Latino community and other communities of color.]]>
