Univision-owned KMEX in Los Angeles has named its main news studio in honor of trailblazing journalist Ruben Salazar, exactly 46 years after his death at the age of 42.  

The station unveiled a commemorative plaque naming the newsroom in his honor at an Aug. 29 ceremony that also included a documentary based on Salazar’s work and life and a panel discussion with that film’s director, Phillip Rodriguez.

“Ruben Salazar is a pioneering journalist whose legacy is that of a champion and a voice of the Hispanic community in Los Angeles,” Univision/Los Angeles general manager Luis Patiño said. “It is an honor to rename our news studio to commemorate his life and his work, and to inspire generations of Univision journalists and community members for years to come.”

Born in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico and raised across the border in El Paso, Texas, Salazar began his career in 1959 as a local reporter at the Los Angeles Times. He left Los Angeles to fill posts in Vietnam, the Dominican Republic and Mexico City, but was called back in 1968 to cover the city’s growing and increasingly vocal Chicano power movement.

Salazar died during the National Chicano Moratorium March against the Vietnam War on August 29, 1970 in East Los Angeles, after he was struck by a tear gas projectile fired by a Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputy. An investigation determined that his death was accidental.

The Aug. 29 ceremony was attended by Chris Peña, Univision’s senior vice president of news, local media; John Eck, chief local media officer; Patiño; and Univision/Los Angeles senior vice president and general manager Marco Flores.

When it comes to local news at 6 p.m. and 11 p.m. the nation’s No. 1 station delivers it all en español.

Univision-owned KMEX in Los Angeles outperformed not only local rivals KABC-TV, KNBC, Fox-owned KTTV and KCBS-TV with its early-evening and late-evening newscasts, but every other station in the nation among sdults 18-49 in September.

It’s KMEX’s third consecutive month as the top-rated station in the U.S. for early prime and late local news.

“Our local stations are the hearts and voices of their communities, and this is true nowhere more so than Los Angeles,” Kevin Cuddihy, Univision Communications president of local media, said. “Our KMEX team has done a remarkable job centering newscasts on issues that are important to our viewers in this market. I am proud to say that more people turn to Univision’s local evening news in Los Angeles than in any other market in the country, and our numbers keep growing. This proves the power of our deep ties with the L.A. community and solidifies our position as the pre-eminent source for critical information important to Hispanics.”

KMEX averaged 138,000 viewers for its 6 p.m. and 11 p.m. newscasts. By comparison, the top English-language station — KNBC — averaged 114,000 viewers.

Additionally, the average audience for KMEX’s Noticias 34 at 6 p.m. and 11 p.m. increased by 20% in September compared to the same period a year ago.

The strong afternoon and evening ratings for KMEX’s local news strongly contrast with its local news performance in mornings. The station’s primary Spanish-language rival, Telemundo-owned KVEA, has enjoyed top-dog status among all adults 18-34 with its two-hour block from 5 a.m. to 7 a.m. As a result, KMEX in June retooled its pre-Despierta América local wakeup programming with A Primera Hora.

A Primera Hora features segments on such topics as lifestyle, culture, entertainment, community affairs and technology, in addition to straight-ahead news, traffic and weather.

September Nielsen data for A Primera Hora was not released by KMEX and unavailable at press time.