Nielsen has formed the Hispanic/Latino Advisory Council, an independent advisory group to help inform and enhance the rating company’s efforts to recruit, measure and accurately report on U.S. Hispanic TV households, officials said Wednesday.
The first meeting of the HLAC is scheduled for March 4 in New York.
“Nielsen is committed to pursuing outreach efforts that are as diverse as the communities we serve in order to ensure that every viewing choice counts in the television ratings system,” Catherine Herkovic, Nieslen senior vice president and managing director of National Television Client Services, said in a statement. “By providing invaluable third-party insight and expertise on the Hispanic community, the Hispanic/Latino Advisory Council will have an important role in helping us successfully achieve these goals.”
The HLAC comprises industry, community, and business leaders drawn from across the U.S. Its ranks include:
Jenny Alonzo, executive vice president of marketing/brand of Mio.TV;Juan Andrade, president and executive director of the U.S. Hispanic Leadership Institute; Dr. David Hayes-Bautista, professor of medicine and director of the Center for the Study of Latino Health and Culture at the School of Medicine, UCLA; Ernest W. Bromley, chairman and CEO of Bromley Communications; Jose del Cueto, CEO of Del Cueto Media Group; Guarione Diaz, president and CEO of the Cuban American National Council; Henry Flores, senior policy analyst for the William C. Velasquez Institute; Luís Miranda Jr., managing partner of The MirRam Group; Lillian Rodríguez López, president of the Hispanic Federation; Catherine Pino, co-founder and principal of D&P Creative Strategies; and Susana Valdez, chief of staff to Miami Mayor Manny Diaz
According to Nielsen, Hispanics remain the fastest-growing national segment of the population, with TV households increasing by 4.4% in 2007 versus. the previous year.
Nielsen has implemented a number of quality initiatives to improve the training of its bilingual field recruitment staff, the translations of its materials for Hispanic television households and its understanding of the diverse Hispanic communities across the country.
Last year, Nielsen also established a first-of-its-kind relationship with the nationally recognized Hispanic research and policy organization, the William C. Velasquez Institute. Their academic team of nationally recognized Latino social scientists worked with Nielsen to analyze all aspects of the Nielsen measurement system, including systems design, sampling, recruitment and field training.
