Univision KPMR-TV Launches Local Newscast ‘Noticias Univision Costa Central’.
October 4, 2003
On October 27, 2003, KPMR-TV Univision, the leading Spanish-language television station in the Santa Barbara, Santa Maria-San Luis Obispo television market, launched its first live, local newscast, Noticias Univision Costa Central, which will air weekdays at 6PM and 11PM. The inaugural broadcast included live interviews with U.S. Representative Lois Capps and Fernando Gamboa, the Mexican Consul based in Oxnard, California, a taped interview with State Assemblyman Abel Maldonado and a live performance from Mariachi Alma de Jalisco de Serafin Mendoza, a Santa Maria-based mariachi ensemble.
NOTICIAS UNIVISION COSTA CENTRAL will provide Central Coast Hispanics and other Spanish-language television enthusiasts with the latest local and regional news, sports, weather and features. This nightly newscast will originate from KPMR-TV’s broadcast center in Goleta, California. Noticias Univision Costa Central will also maintain a fully-staffed news bureau in the City of Santa Maria, the heart of the Central Coast, to cover news and other events of interest to Hispanics in north Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties.
Anchored by Andres Angulo and Martha Saldana, Noticias Univision Costa Central relies on a team of several local and regional field reporters, including Maribel Roldan and Norma Flores, well-known broadcast journalists in the greater Santa Barbara market. Weather will be presented by Abir Sandoval, with Armando Romero, “El Senor de los Deportes” (The Sports Guy), reporting the latest news about local sports, Mexican and other Latin American soccer, baseball and other athletic news.
“Our mission is to provide Hispanics with information which they can utilize to lead better, more productive lives for their families and themselves,” said Andres Angulo, who also serves as News Director of Noticias Univision Costa Central. “There has been a huge gap in the Central Coast for Hispanic news and we are committed to filling this need by delivering a high quality newscast that serves the interests of the area’s Hispanic community.”
Chris Roman, General Manager of KPMR-TV, said: “We are very pleased to offer our audience a top-notch local newscast worthy of the Hispanic community in the greater Santa Barbara market. KPMR-TV has invested numerous resources in Noticias Univision Costa Central, including an experienced broadcast team, technical capabilities and promotion to ensure we deliver a news product that Hispanics can rely on and call their own. We are proud of our associates’ efforts in launching this newscast and look forward to serving our viewers.”
Noticias Univision Costa Central will offer daily reports on finance, top stories in Mexico, as over 95% of Hispanics in the market are of Mexican origin or descent, as well as relevant news from Sacramento and other California communities. The program will also prominently feature special reports on subjects ranging from health, education, immigration, entertainment, beauty, fashion, automotive reviews and local personalities.
Live guests will periodically appear to enhance the quality of the newscast. Noticias Univision Costa Central will air Monday through Friday from 6:00PM-6:30PM and 11:00PM-11:30PM. News updates will air daily inviting viewers to tune in to those telecasts.
