Media Moves: Michaela Pereira leaving KTLA mornings for CNN

CNN is getting some LA love, KTLA 5 Morning News favorite Michaela Pereira will be joining CNN in New York city after being part of the morning news show for the past nine years.

She is expected to leave at the end of May. 

Read more: http://ktla.com/2013/03/28/michaela-pereira-to-end-9-year-run-at-ktla/#ixzz2PFiJ7oO0

Do you think KTLA did the right thing by letting her go? 

- Latino PR Guy

MIAMI GOES ALL OUT FOR THE 2012 LATIN BILLBOARDS

Gerardo Ortiz and 3BallMTY are part of this year's 2012 Latin music Conference

More info at http://www.billboardevents.com/latin

HPRA PRemios Campaign of the Year- Technology

Talking "Tweet" in Real Life

If you have ever blurted out an #epicfail or #retweet in a real conversation you might be one of the thousands of people using 140 characters to communicate in real life. We may not realize it but the spillover of social media into our lives is happening, almost as if we wanted our lives to be measured in trending topics.

Here are a few tips for talking "Tweet" in Real Life:

• Get up to speed on what a hash tag is 
• Make it organic, it's not fun if you force it upon someone
• Make sure you're up to date on your popular hashtags
• Don't be afraid to use it in the workplace "let's retweet that"
• If you're totally corporate check out how to use twitter hashtags for business

Thank you @HeatherCinOC for inspiring this post.

Census: Huge Growth in Hispanic Markets

Portada’s Census Preview Report is out this week.  A few highlights below.

Hispanics will continue to grow and become the largest “minority” outpacing the growth of the general market

‒        The 2000 U.S. Census projected that by 2010 Hispanics would make up 16% of the total U.S. population and 24% by 2050. Some estimates predict that Hispanics will amount to 30% of the U.S. population by 2050. U.S. born Hispanics will drive the majority of growth.

Hispanics will be represented in more geographical areas of the U.S.

‒        The Hispanic population in states which traditionally had a relatively small number of Hispanics will grow exponentially

Age Distribution will show that Marketers targeting Gen Y need to think Hispanic

‒        22% of the U.S. population under the age of 18 is Hispanic and 18% of the U.S. population between the ages of 18 and 44

Spanish will continue to be the dominant language spoken among Hispanics

‒        In 2009, a significant percent of the market communicated only or mostly in Spanish (37%), a 68% change from the 2000 Census

Hispanics' wallets will continue to get fatter

‒        Hispanic spending power increased by 6.4% between 2005 and 2008 versus 2.9% for the general U.S. population. Small Business Owners are growing faster among Hispanics than in the General Market. Between 2002 and 2007 the number of Hispanic Business Owners increased by 43% vs. 14.5% for non Hispanics.

Hispanic consumer spending led overall U.S. market growth in the following categories

‒        Food business - Growth in Hispanic spending explains 30% of the growth of the overall market

‒        Education - U.S. Hispanics spent 58% more on education compared to 9% for non-Hispanics

‒        Entertainment - U.S. Hispanics increased their entertainment spend on fees and admissions by 14% as compared to a 7% decline for non-Hispanics

Tips for Effective Skype Interviews

Tips for Conducting a Virtual Broadcast Interview

If you're a PR professional, more thank likely you have noticed that interviews via Skype are increasing in popularity.  You might have also noticed that many of these are not done right.  Bad lighting, moving around too much, not enough eye contact, not speaking clearly...  these are things that you and your clients need to take into consideration when preparing for an online interview via Skype, MSN Messenger or any other tool that allows you to stream video.  Broadcast stations are allowing these type of interviews because it makes it easier for them, and having experts on call is invaluable.

Getting Started

Give your full attention to the participant as if  you were in the studio.  Make sure you're in a quiet area that is echo free where you will be free of distractions and free of disturbances.  Make sure your computer's background sounds are turned off or on mute (Outlook alerts, TweetDeck alerts, AIM, MSN Messenger and others sounds that your computer can make throughout the interview)

Treat this like a real interview

It's a real interview after all, being in front of your computer screen doesn't mean that no one is watching.  Keep the viewer in mind and also think about how video-conferencing works.  Usually there is a delay between when you and the broadcast station so make sure that above all you speak and elaborate when asked.  Learn to speak 

Do's of Webcam Interviews

1. Maintain eye contact with your camera

2. Get an HD webcam if possible.  With today's technology there is no excuse for you to have a low resolution webcam.  They run between $29 and $149, the Microsoft HD cam series is my favorite.  

3. Speak clearly and when addressed

4. Quit moving around so much.  You'll come out like nothing more than a blur

5. Make sure you're dressed for broadcast.  Just because you're in front of your computer doesn't mean that you can be on your pajamas.
6. Make sure you're excited about your topic.  Nothing can make a more boring subject than someone who's not excited about what they're talking about.
7. Learn to pause.  Say what you have to say and then stop, these cues will give the person doing the interview the chance to comment or ask questions.
8. Lighting is key.  Make sure that you're in a well light room to make sure you're not coming out as a dark shadow.
9. Do an mock interview before going live.  Make sure that your camera, mic's and everything else works before going live.  There is nothing more embarrassing than finding out that you've been talking and no one is listening.

Don'ts of Webcam Interviews

1. Don't yell at the camera.  These microphones are sensitive and can pick up most sounds, there is no need to shout.

2. Don't move around too much

3. Don't go into your closet or restroom.  Just because you can lock the door doesn't mean that these areas are good for an interview.  There is usually an echo in this room which will make your interview sound like you're far far away.

Above all have fun and stick to your key messages.  As PR professionals it is our job to prepare our clients for any type of interview, just because it is through webcam doesn't mean that you should take short cuts.  Stick to these tips and you'll be a producer's best friend.

The Latino PR Guy