Communication-Journalism Cristina Saralegui Cristina Saralegui

Communication-Journalism

Cristina Saralegui

Cristina Saralegui is a 30-year veteran journalist who is recognized as one of the most influential role models for today's Hispanic woman. She is determined, successful, savvy and committed to making a difference (Know Cristina, 2008). Cristina was born on January 29, 1948, in Havana, Cuba. She is the granddaughter of Don Francisco Saralegui, a Cuban magazine publisher. She came to the United States with her family in 1960, and arrived in Miami at the age of 12. She later attended the University of Miami and learned about the publishing business while working at Vanidades magazine. She eventually joined the staff of Cosmopolitan en Espanol in 1973 and became its editor in chief in 1979 (Cristina Saralegui Biography, 2006).

Since holding the top spot at Cosmopolitan she has become one of the most powerful Hispanic women in the United States today. Saralegui grew up in family that was enthralled in the media business. Her grandfather published several of Cuba's most important magazines. Her father was a classmate of Fidel Castro and participated in the movement against the Batista dictatorship before fleeing Fidel Castro's revolution in the1960s. While at the University of Miami, Saralegui got her start by working at Vanidades, a Spanish-language magazine her family once owned (Cristina Saralegui, n.d.).

Cristina was one of 5 children that were raised by very strict, traditional parents. She was taught that women should take a back seat to men. That lesson was made very clear to her when she was in college. With just nine credits to go before graduation Cristina's father told her that he was strapped for cash, and that he thought it was his duty to give her brother an education before he gave her one. It was at that point that Cristina decided to never depend on a man for her income. This independent streak is what prompted Cristina to seek out her own career. She became a writer and eventually worked her way to the top post at Latin Cosmopolitan magazine (Look out Oprah: Here Comes Cristina, 2001).

Cristina Saralegui is truly the definition of what it means to be an up and coming woman. Saralegui is the first and only Latin women to ever have a successful radio show, a widely circulated magazine, and a talk show, rated number one on Spanish-language television, all at the same time. Also as a respected journalist, Saralegui is on the board of director's of the National Association of Hispanic Journalists. She has received numerous awards for her achievements including the Outstanding Communicator of the Year Award from the NOWC (National Organization of Women in Communication) for her dedication to bringing the concerns and opinions of the Latin community to mainstream media. She has also received the Distinction for Leadership and in Communications and Broadcasting Award from AMFAR (American Foundation of AIDS Research) for her commitment to AIDS education in the Spanish-speaking world (Breaking the Glass Ceiling, n.d).

Like Oprah Winfrey, to whom she is often compared, has become a brand. Her brand includes Cristina La Revista, the magazine she started in 1991; a talk show, which has won 11 Emmys and an estimated 100 million viewers worldwide; a Miami television studio; Casa Cristina, and a growing acting career that has included an appearance on ABC's George Lopez. Her bilingual website receives an average of 50,000 hits a day. Her book Cristina! My Life as a Blonde is out in Spanish and English. And she runs a foundation, Arriba la Vida/Up with Life, which aims to educate Hispanics about HIV (Dequine, 2005).

With her husband and manager, Marcos Avila, Saralegui has created a substantial media and licensing business. Through Cristina Saralegui Enterprises, Inc., she has made agreements for her own lines of furniture and clothing and operates her own television production facility called Blue Dolphin Studios. She has also written an autobiography and hosts a radio program. With such a broad spectrum of products and programs, it's no wonder that she was named one of the "25 Most Influential Hispanics in America" by Time magazine in 2005. As dedicated as she is to her work, Saralegui is equally dedicated to her charitable efforts. She and her husband created the Arriba la Vida/Up with Life Foundation to promote AIDS education in the Latino community and to help other AIDS-related causes. She also serves on the National Council of the American Foundation for AIDS Research (Cristina Saralegui Biography, 2006).

For 12 years, Cristina's talk show has been the hottest thing on the United States' largest Spanish-language network, Univision. She's captivated some of the most popular Latino stars, along with millions of viewers in the Spanish-speaking world. Cristina is now famous around the world for doing in Spanish the same kind of provocative talk show Americans have grown to love. She gives her audience programs on cheating spouses, sexual abuse and of course interviews with well-known stars. Her show has been described as groundbreaking, empowering, raunchy, and soul-baring. Cristina says it as all of those things and more. She is often referred to as the Spanish Oprah (Look out Oprah: Here Comes Cristina, 2001).

Cristina says her show has also helped her become a better mother and wife. She and Avila have raised three children together and have now been married for 18 years.

The couple is also business partners, with Avila serving as co-executive producer of Cristina's TV Show. Together they've created a multimillion-dollar business that also includes a syndicated radio program and the monthly magazine. Off the air, this fun-loving businesswoman is deeply serious about her career. She's built a new $10 million film and TV studio, one of only a handful of women in history to do so. She and her husband hope to develop major projects in the future (Look out Oprah: Here Comes Cristina, 2001).

Aside from her career as an Emmy award-winning talk show host and CEO of a media and licensing empire, Cristina devotes her time to a multitude of social causes. She and her husband founded the "Arriba la Vida/Up with Life Foundation" in 1996, which is a private foundation dedicated to AIDS awareness and education among Hispanics, as well as other AIDS related causes that touch the lives of Hispanics everywhere. The foundation attempts to remains as flexible as possible to respond to unique challenges, ideas and projects that fulfill the ideals and vision of its founders. Funding for the foundation's mission is provided by the personal contributions of its founders, and through a broad range of media-related fund raising activities (Know Cristina, 2008).