Cecilia Alvear facts for kids

Cecilia Alvear (born November 5, 1939 – died April 21, 2017) was an amazing journalist. She was born in Ecuador and later became an American citizen. She worked in TV news and was even the president of the National Association of Hispanic Journalists. She also worked as a producer for NBC News.

Early Career in Television News

Cecilia started her career in television news. From 1982 to 1984, she was the head of NBC's news office in Mexico City. She was the first Latina woman to hold this important job.

Covering Big News Stories

After Mexico City, she moved to Miami to be a Senior Producer for news in Latin America. Later, she worked on the West Coast. As a producer, Cecilia helped cover many big news stories around the world.

She reported on wars in El Salvador and Nicaragua in the 1980s. She also covered the big earthquake in Mexico City in 1985. She reported on protests and elections in countries like Chile and Peru.

Cecilia also covered the fight against drugs in Bolivia, Peru, and Colombia. She helped with an investigation about Josef Mengele in Brazil. She reported on events in Panama and even interviewed Fidel Castro in Cuba twice.

Her work also included sports events like the Pan American Games in Havana and the Barcelona Olympics. She covered the Zapatista rebellion in Chiapas, Mexico, and the assassination of a politician named Colosio.

In the Los Angeles area, she covered riots, earthquakes, and the famous O. J. Simpson trial. In 1998, she was part of the NBC News team that reported on Hurricane Mitch in Nicaragua and Honduras.

In 1999, she produced stories about Pope John Paul II's visit to Mexico. She also covered the earthquake that hit Armenia, Colombia. That same year, she reported on the Panama Canal being given back to the people of Panama.

Early Work in Los Angeles

Before joining NBC, Cecilia worked for local TV stations in the Los Angeles area. While working at KNXT (a CBS station), she was a producer for a show called Two on the Town. Her team won a local Emmy Award for their work on the show.

Helping Other Journalists

Cecilia was very involved in helping other journalists, especially those from Hispanic backgrounds.

California Chicano News Media Association

In the 1970s and early 1980s, she was a leader in the California Chicano News Media Association. This was one of the first groups for Latino journalists. She was honored in 1996 for her important work with this organization.

National Association of Hispanic Journalists

Cecilia was a member of the National Association of Hispanic Journalists (NAHJ) for many years. She often spoke at their yearly meetings and helped NBC News find new talent. In 1996, she was elected Vice President for Broadcast.

In 2000, she was elected President of the National Association of Hispanic Journalists for two years. That same year, she was named one of the "100 Most Influential Hispanics in the U.S." by Hispanic Business magazine.

Awards and Recognition

In 1988, Cecilia Alvear was one of only twelve American journalists chosen for the special Nieman Fellowship at Harvard University. She spent a year studying there. She was the first Latina to receive this important award.

Personal Life

Cecilia Alvear was born in the beautiful Galápagos Islands in Ecuador. She moved to the United States in the 1960s and became a U.S. citizen in 1984. She often visited the Galapagos Islands. She helped improve the public elementary school there, which her father, who was once the military governor of the islands, had started.

Death

Cecilia Alvear passed away on April 21, 2017, at the age of 77. She died from breast cancer.