The Latino Influence and Impact on the Public Relations Profession in the Era of Covid

Watch the program here (Approx. 2 hrs.)

On September 21, 2021 some of the PR profession’s leading Latino CCOs and agency leaders discussed how they are changing the landscape of our profession and positively impacting their momentum in the Museum’s 5th Annual Latinos in PR History event.

Some of the topics covered:

• What can we as communicators do to bring healthcare equality to the top of the national agenda? Surely, we've witnessed much disparity in treatment over the past 20 months.

• We have 47 Latino members in Congress today—the most we ever had. Do we feel well represented? What is the role of communications in political advocacy today?

• Latinos in PR, media, and related professions are moving up the ranks, but surely not as quickly as we ought to be progressing. What can we do to improve our stature in these professions?

• How has the media been portraying the Latino communities around the country? What has been the impact of figures like Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Pete Aguilar, and Joaquin Castro on the way the rest of Americans view the rising prominence of Latinos in society?

Featured Speakers

Panelists

“The Latino Influence and Impact on the Public Relations Profession” is brought to you in partnership with the Diversity Action Alliance.

Thanks to our sponsors

The Latino Influence and Impact on the Public Relations Profession is brought to you in partnership with the Diversity Action Alliance, and is sponsored in part by: L3Harris, Johnson & Johnson, The Bonnie Yablon Foundation, Hunter:, Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication Department of Advertising and Public Relations at University of Georgia, Page, The Arthur W. Page Center for Integrity in Public Communication, George Washington University Strategic Public Relations, The Latino Communications Institute CSUF, West Texas A&M University, RenewPR, Pat Ford, The Stevens Group, Pemberton, Asociación Relacionistas Profesionales de Puerto Rico, CommPRO, PRCA Americas, and Muck Rack.

Appearing in the Latino PR History header illustration

Fernando Oaxaca

• Founder of Coronado Communications, one of the first public relations  agencies in California to specialize in in the Latino market

• Co-founded Hispanic ad agency Cruz/Kravetz IDEAS. and owned Spanish-language radio stations

• Worked for a number of nonprofits, including the Mexican American Opportunity Foundation and the Mexican Cultural Institute

• A leader of the Hispanic coalition of the Republican Party, he served on the White House staff under President Ford, held posts under Presidents Nixon, Reagan, George H. W. Bush and George W. Bush, and served in the office of California Gov. George Deukmejian

• Founding director of HispanicVista.com, a Web site he helped start to promote discussion of issues relevant to Latinos

• Became the Chairman of the Mexican American Opportunity Foundation. MAOF today is the biggest Hispanic community services institution in the United States.

Sergio Bendixen

• Recognized as the preeminent expert in Hispanic public opinion research within the U.S. and Latin America

• Over 25 years of polling experience, specializing in gathering information about Latino public opinion

• Spent 14 years working as a national television political analyst

• First Hispanic to run a national campaign for U.S. President

• Mastered and implemented research methodologies and detailed techniques to formulate studies and polls to accurately gauge public opinion

• Recognized that English-only polls were missing the depth and richness of public opinions that multilingual polling provided

• Managed the National Hispanic campaign for Hillary Clinton’s campaign for presidential nomination; then to Barack Obama’s presidential campaign.

Julie Elizabeth Mendez

• A New York native raised in an Ecuadorian and Costa Rican household

• Started her career with Edelman’s multicultural practice as a senior account supervisor

• Developed and implemented communication programs in the beauty and healthcare industries

• Until her passing, she was an associate vice president of Tractenberg & Co. and board member of the New York chapter of the Hispanic Public Relations Association

• “She was a brilliant publicist. She had the unique ability to speak to a very targeted audience with authenticity and warmth.”

• “She proved that you can excel at your job, no matter the pressures or demands, and still be a great, kind human being.”

William C. “Willie” Velasquez

• After organizing strikes at the Rio Grande Valley of Texas, he became founder and director of the Mexican America Unity Council in San Antonio

• 1970: he was named field director of the Southwest Council of La Raza

• 1972–1974: he concentrated his efforts on building the Southwest Voter Registration Education Project

• He helped popularize the motto “Su Voto Es Su Voz” (Your Vote is Your Voice)

• SVREP has cultivated 50,000 community leaders and successfully litigated 85 voting rights law suits and conducted 2,300 nonpartisan voter registrations

• Voter registration has grown from 2.4 million registered Latinos in 1974 to 7 million nationwide in 1998

• 1995: he was the second Latino to earn the Presidential Medal of Freedom, awarded by President Bill Clinton

• He was a founding member of the Mexican American Youth Organization (MAYO)

Donald G. Padilla

• Started his career in print and broadcast journalism

• From 1954–1955 he was an associate news director for Washburn Crosby Company (television)

• Before starting his own firm, he worked as publicity and promotion director for Minnesota Statehood Centennial Commission

• Co-founder and president of Padilla and Speer Inc. based in Minneapolis

• It is known that he and the firm pronounced his name with the double “L” as “Pa-dill-a”; Traditionally the correct Spanish pronunciation would be “Pa-dee-ya,” where the double “L” is _spoken as a “y”

• From 1971–1983 he held the position of president, chairman and CEO of Padilla and Speer Inc.

Pablo Sánchez

• Started his career in national broadcast journalism, working tirelessly to inform, educate and empower the underserved Latino community.

• The pro-bono co-host of a Spanish-language medical call-in program called “Hablemos de Salud” or “Let’s Talk About Health,” aired locally, and then nationally, for 18 years on MHz, advising the Hispanic community about health issues and medical innovations.

• Covered political events and major stories at Univision on his beat at the White House, Capitol Hill, State Department, Pentagon and many agencies of the federal government from 1987 to 2019

• Emmy winner and a nominee eleven times for his documentary production, reporting and writing.

• Writer and editor at Voice of America, producer and reporter at National Public Radio, Televisa Network, and beloved mentor for many colleagues and interns that learned from his expertise and knowledge about the television industry.

Esther Renteria

• In 1959 became a reporter for the newspaper “Alhambra Post-Advocate” specializing in Latinx stories

• Served as a reporter and editor for the East Los Angeles Tribune and Gazette until 1968

• The first Latina to appear in a nightly newscast with the premiere of “Ahora!” on KCET-TV in 1969

• Produced some of the earliest talk shows dealing with Latino issues for KCBS-TV and worked as associate producer on “The Siesta Is Over,” a groundbreaking KCBS-TV series addressing the issues and significance of Latinos

• Worked as an information officer for East Los Angeles College, 1970–1983

• Co-founded the HPRA in 1985 and the National Hispanic Media Coalition in 1986

• Won numerous civic awards and was included as one of the “100 Most Influential Hispanic Leaders in the USA” by Hispanic Business Magazine in 1987

• As a Latinx activist, founded a nonprofit group the Hispanic Americans for Fairness in Media, that lobbied for more Latino representation on TV and movies, and created a scholarship foundation for Latino journalism students in 1999.

Diana Munatones

• Diana was the highest-ranking Latina in television broadcast management

• Her broadcast career started in 1973 as the host of “Bienvenidos” and co-host of "It Takes All Kinds" on a CBS owned and operated channel

• 1977: she was reporter/associate producer/host of the “Today Show”

• She was associate producer for Emmy Award nominated “Noticiero Estudiantil”

• By the end of 1977 she was director of community broadcast relations for KNXT and director of special projects for CBS Inc.

• 1988: she became director of communications for Los Angeles Unified School District and worked with KLCS-58 to develop a weekly television newscast of district news in English and Spanish

• She selected 25 local ethnically diverse community groups to receive the Ralph M. Parsons Foundation’s first $16 million in grants

• Diana was appointed to serve as a member of the Foreign Policy Advisory Commission under President Jimmy Carter.