Alberto Avendaño

President

An award-winning journalist, writer, and translator, Avendaño has been on the news and business side of print and broadcast companies in the U.S. and Spain.  He has reported from 10 countries and three continents. Avendaño was the Executive Editor for The Washington Post Spanish-language Content from 2004 to 2016. He was Washington Bureau Chief and White House Correspondent for the National Association of Hispanic Publications, and in January 2018 he became President of Latino Impact Media. In June 2017, Avendaño received an Emmy Award for a video-story published in Washingtonpost.com.  He has received several José Martí Awards for Excellence in Print Journalism, and other awards for his literary work as a poet and fiction writer.  He is the recipient of an International Translator Award (IBBY, 2000). In 2012, Avendaño was appointed by Governor Martin O’Malley as Commissioner for Maryland Public Television, where he served until 2015. Avendaño serves as Chairman of The Plaza Institute, a social enterprise in Washington, D.C.  He is the founder of The Ñ Group, a Washington-based strategy consulting firm focused on media. He is also a founding member of The Harris Institute for Hispanic & International Communication at Texas Tech University, and a member of the North American Spanish Language Academy. A former lecturer on Spanish Language and Literature at Johns Hopkins University, Avendaño studied Germanic Philology at University of Santiago de Compostela (Spain) and graduated Magna Cum Laude in Broadcast Journalism from Texas Tech University.

Eduardo López

Founder

As the Founder of Latino Impact Media, Eduardo has nearly 30 years of experience working on behalf of Latino families.  Eduardo is the Co-Director and Co-Producer of Harvest of Empire, an award-winning documentary that examines the direct connection between the long history of U.S. intervention in Latin America and the immigration crisis we face today.  Chosen by the American Library Association as one of 15 “Notable Videos for Adults” in 2015, Harvest of Empire has won several national awards, including the prestigious Imagen Award as Best Documentary for Film or Television in 2013, and the ABC News Source Award from the International Documentary Association.

Since 1990, Eduardo has also been the Producer of Línea Directa, an award-winning Spanish-language television series that provides Latino families living in the Washington metropolitan area with information on their rights, as well as on important health, education, legal, and social service issues.  The program has now become one of the nation’s longest-running Spanish-language television series dedicated to social service, broadcasting crucial messages directly into the living rooms, kitchens, and bedrooms of thousands of Latino households.  Eduardo is an immigrant from El Salvador, and has lived in the U.S. since 1967.

Andrea Sarralde

Línea Directa Host

Andrea Sarralde is an independent Multimedia Producer, Communications, and Social Media Specialist who provides services across media platforms to improve communication between companies and their clients within the Latino market. She is the former Producer of the Voice of America’s daily Spanish-language newscast, and the Producer of Acceso, a unique social media television program that aired on Telemundo. For eight years, Andrea worked for Telemundo Washington as an anchor and news reporter.  She is a native of Colombia, and has a degree in Mass Communications and Journalism from the highly respected Pontificia Universidad Javeriana in Bogotá, as well as a Master’s Degree in Community Manager and Social Media from the University of Barcelona in Spain.

Wendy Thompson-Marquez

President Emeritus

J. Wendy Thompson-Marquez is the President and co-founder of the Onyx Media Group, a film production company. Her first film, Harvest of Empire, opened to excellent reviews in such major newspapers as The New York Times, Los Angeles Times, and The Washington Post. Ms. Thompson-Marquez is currently working on her second documentary, Music Got Me Here, which illustrates the power of music therapy to transform, inspire and enrich lives. Prior to founding the Onyx Media Group, she was the Vice President and General Manager of ZGS Broadcast Holdings, a broadcasting company where she supervised the daily operations and advertising sales of eleven Telemundo network affiliates. Ms. Thompson-Marquez has been featured in several newspapers, including The Washington Post and the Washington Business Journal.  For her commitment and dedication to public service, the National Conference for Community and Justice honored Ms. Thompson-Marquez with the Media and Community Service Award.  She also received the Bridge Builder Award from the Virginia Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, in recognition for her work in the Latino community.  Ms. Thompson-Marquez is currently on the Board of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute, 100 Women Strong, and the George Mason University Board of Visitors.