Casa Cristina
May 17th, 2011
Cristina Joins Telemundo
The Twelve-time Emmy-award-winning media icon to develop, executive produce and host a weekly variety program
May 17, 2011 – Miami, FL –Telemundo network announced today the addition of Cristina Saralegui to its exclusive roster of talent. The twelve-time Emmy-award-winning media icon will develop, executive produce, and host a weekly variety program slated to debut later this year. The announcement puts into evidence the network’s commitment to high quality content for its growing base of viewers in the United States and throughout the world.
"I've admired and respected Cristina for years. She personifies the American dream and she inspires and empowers Hispanics throughout the US. Her coming to Telemundo is truly a dream come true,” said Don Browne, President of Telemundo.
"I am thrilled to be joining the Telemundo family in this next chapter of my career," said Cristina. "Together, I look forward to creating ground breaking television that will entertain, inform, and inspire my people."
Cristina, a 30-year veteran journalist, was selected byTime Magazine as one of the “25 Most Influential Hispanics in America,” and Home Furnishings News Magazine (HFN) named her one of the “50 Most Influential People in Design and Home Furnishings.” For 21 years Cristina was the host and executive producer of "The Cristina Show" one of the highest rated programs on Spanish-language television, which earned her many accolades including becoming the first Spanish-language television personality to receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and the first Latina to be inducted into the Broadcasting & Cable Hall of Fame, where she joins such television legends as Walter Cronkite, Barbara Walters and Johnny Carson. In 2004, Cristina created the Casa Cristina® Collection, the first complete collection of home furnishings inspired by her personal style, and which is comprised of home decor, accent furniture, dinnerware, lighting, bedding, bath and mattresses.
Cristina has devoted her time to a myriad of social causes. She and her husband Marcos Avila founded the “Arriba la Vida/Up with Life Foundation” in 1996, 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. In recognition of her pioneering efforts in educating her viewers on gay and lesbian issues as well as AIDS awareness and education, in September of 2005, Cristina received the Valor Award from the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD). She’s on the Board of Directors of The Museum of Television & Radio and is a member of the National Council of the American Foundation for AIDS Research (AmFar).
Telemundo Communications Group, LLC & Subsidiaries (“Telemundo”), a division of NBCUniversal, is a world-class media company, leading the industry in the production and distribution of high-quality Spanish-language content across its multiplatform portfolio to U.S. Hispanics and audiences around the world. Telemundo’s multiple platforms include Telemundo, a Spanish-language television network featuring original productions, theatrical motion pictures, news and first-class sports events, reaching 94% of U.S. Hispanic viewers in 210 markets through its 14 owned stations, 1 independent station (WKAQ in Puerto Rico), 46 broadcast affiliates, and over 1,000 cable affiliates; mun2, the preeminent voice for bicultural Hispanics in the U.S., reaching over 35 million U.S. TV households nationwide on digital and analog cable, satellite and free television; Telemundo Digital Media, which leverages Telemundo’s original content for distribution across digital and emerging platforms including mobile devices and www.telemundo.com and www.holamun2.com; and Telemundo Internacional, the company’s international distribution arm which has positioned Telemundo as the second largest provider of Spanish-language content worldwide by syndicating content to more than 100 countries in over 35 languages.
