'Horizonte' marks 10 years of news through Hispanic lens

Eight, Arizona PBS marks the 10th anniversary of its weekly public affairs program "Horizonte" – a show created to address issues of particular interest to the local Hispanic community. The show is hosted by José A. Cárdenas, senior vice president and general counsel of Arizona State University. The Eight original production was launched Sept. 18, 2003.

"Arizona Horizon/Horizonte" coordinating producer Mike Sauceda explains the show’s genesis. “The Eight, Arizona PBS management team recognized the importance of the Hispanic perspective within Arizona's community and wanted a program that presents that perspective," Sauceda says. "A committee from Eight, Arizona PBS met with Hispanic community leaders to determine what kind of issues we would cover and who might be a good host.

"It was decided that 'Horizonte' would be a show that would deal with issues ‘through a Hispanic lens,’ and that the show would be produced in English so that it could have an audience not only among Hispanics, but also among the wider community, since many of the issues covered by 'Horizonte'  are of broad appeal,” says Sauceda.

To commemorate the 10-year milestone, "Horizonte" will feature a special retrospective episode on Sept. 19, including clips from the show’s archives and guests on the following topics: immigration, politics and arts and culture.

The immigration segment will include a look back at a discussion on SB 1070 before it became law, and the “Protect Our City Initiative,” which required Phoenix police officers and other city employees to enforce federal immigration laws. Featured guests include Lisa Urias, co-chair of the Real Arizona Coalition, and Daniel Ortega, attorney and past chairman for the National Council of La Raza.
 
The politics segment will feature video clips from earlier broadcasts on Senator Russell Pearce’s recall election and Ethnic Studies Law HB 2281, which targets an ethnic studies program in a Tucson school district, as well as discussion about legislation between Arizona Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Horne and House Assistant Minority Leader Kyrsten Sinema. Featured guests include: Bettina Nava, partner with FirstStrategic Communications public affairs firm, and John Loredo, political consultant and former Arizona state lawmaker.
 
The arts and culture portion of the broadcast will include highlights from earlier interviews with Edward James Olmos and Cheech Marin, as well as current guest artist Zarco Guerrero.

The retrospective episode will also feature interviews with local Hispanic leaders and others in the community commenting on what "Horizonte" has done for the community, what topics wouldn't be covered if it weren't for "Horizonte" and why people watch "Horizonte."

Additionally, Cárdenas will appear as a guest on Eight’s "Arizona Horizon" Sept. 18, to discuss the anniversary of "Horizonte."

In the show’s 10 years on air, Cárdenas has interviewed a veritable who's who of Arizona newsmakers. Governor Janet Napolitano, Congressmen Ed Pastor, Jeff Flake and Raul Grijalva, Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon, Bishop Thomas Olmsted, political consultant Alfredo Gutierrez, Maricopa County Attorney Andrew Thomas and his successors Rick Romley and Bill Montgomery. U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor and Arizona Supreme Court Justice Ruth McGregor and more have all joined Cárdenas in the "Horizonte" studio to discuss issues ranging from public policy to education.

Other memorable guests include: Ray Suarez of "The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer," Jorge Ramos of "Univision" and actor, director and Olympic gold medal winner Henry Cejudo.

Prior to his tenure as senior vice president and general counsel of ASU, Cárdenas was chairman of the law firm Lewis and Roca LLP, where he practiced in the areas of commercial and civil litigation, and transactional/international law. Cárdenas is a longtime member of Los Abogados Hispanic Bar Association, having served on its board for several years and as president for three years, and is a graduate of Stanford Law School.

He has been appointed to various committees, commissions, task forces and boards by the Board of Regents, the Arizona Supreme Court, the Arizona State Bar and various Arizona Governors. He is also a member of the boards of Xico Inc. and the Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen), having served 10 years as chairman of the TGen board.

Sauceda’s voice may be as familiar as his work on "Horizon." In addition to his full-time duties as a "Horizon" producer, he is a well-known news anchor on KTAR radio. Sauceda has been with "Horizon" since 1990. He arrived with many years of local radio experience. Sauceda is an Arizona native and favors the classic style of reporting: to truly dig up what’s behind a story and then craft it into a segment the community can understand and learn from.

Laarni Fernandez-Nuez is the Producer of "Horizonte." Prior to producing for "Horizonte," Fernandez-Nuez was a special projects producer and assignment desk manager at the CBS affiliate in Phoenix. She also worked at the ABC affiliate in Phoenix and for television stations in Chicago. Laarni earned a master's degree from the University of Phoenix and a bachelor's in Mass Communications from the University of Illinois at Chicago.