Univision, Disney Look to Target English-Speaking Latinos

By Nadine Arroyo Rodriguez / Senior Field Correspondent

Published February 8, 2012 at 9:29 AM PST

This story was published more than 12 years ago.

The plan is to launch the 24-hour news channel by the November 2012 presidential election. Media experts say the target audience would be second and third generation Hispanics, whose primary language is English. Latino Marketing strategist Claudia Goffan says Univision and Disney are onto something that’s never been done before. But -she cautions on the type of format they’ll build. “This is a very large demographic. And they’re saying we’re gonna do a 24-hour news to English dominant Latinos,” says Goffan. “Latino needs much more than that to be engaged into watching in this channel.”

Observers say part of the format would include political coverage targeting Latinos. That voting bloc is considered influential, especially in swing states in the Southwest with growing Latino populations.

Nadine Arroyo Rodriguez

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Nadine is a Senior Field Correspondent (Phoenix) who focuses on stories throughout the southwest and issues that directly affect Arizona’s Latino community. She is an Emmy-nominated journalist and a Telly Award winner. She is a graduate of Columbia College Chicago with a B.A. in Broadcast Journalism and earned a Masters in Education from Northern Arizona University. She comes from a lengthy background in communications. Her broadcasting career includes Arizona’s PBS station KAET-TV. She was a producer and correspondent for the public affairs programs Horizon and Horizonte. While in Chicago, she hosted on-air bilingual pledge drives for WTTW Channel 11 (PBS), making her the only bilingual pledge host at the time. She was a general assignment reporter for Tribune Company’s ChicagoLand Television News, Univision affiliate WCIU-TV Channel 26 and WYCC-TV. She also worked for Comiskey Park (now U.S. Cellular Field), the home of the Chicago White Sox and United Center (Chicago Bulls) Scoreboard Operations. She co-produced a bilingual television parenting program on both Chicago’s Telemundo and WYCC-TV Channel 20. Aside from her broadcasting career, she served in various roles in public relations, community outreach, and marketing. Her extensive public sector experience extends to several departments of the City of Chicago, Mayor’s Advisory Council on Latino Affairs, and the U.S. Congress. Other professional experience includes Vice President of Community Outreach for the Arizona Super Bowl Host Committee. Currently, she mentors and teaches public radio writing and reporting to inner city students and participates in journalism workshops for high school students throughout the Phoenix area. Her goal is to teach journalism in a higher education institution, while continuing her mentorship initiative. She was born in Puerto Rico to Puerto Rican and Belgian parents, and raised on Chicago’s southside in La Villita (a predominantly Mexican community). This diverse background taught her valuable lessons in various Latino cultures and informs her insight into issues of great interest to Latino families and business community.

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