Mariana Atencio facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Mariana Atencio
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Atencio in 2018
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Mariana del Carmen Atencio Cervoni
April 2, 1984 |
| Nationality | American |
| Education | |
| Occupation | Journalist and Author |
| Spouse(s) | José Antonio Torbay (m. 2015; div. 2020) |
| Awards | Peabody Award, Investigative Reporters and Editors Award, Gracie Award, National Association of Hispanic Journalists Presidential Award |
Mariana Atencio, born on April 2, 1984, is an American journalist, TV host, author, and speaker. She used to work as a correspondent for NBC News. Mariana is from Venezuela and earned a master's degree from Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism. In 2020, she helped start GoLike, a company that creates different kinds of media.
Contents
Early Life and Learning
Mariana del Carmen Atencio Cervoni was born in Caracas, Venezuela. Her parents are Álvaro Atencio and Diana Cervoni. She is the oldest of three children.
Mariana earned a Bachelor's degree in Communications from the Universidad Católica Andrés Bello in Caracas. In 2008, she moved to the United States. She received a scholarship from Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism. There, she earned her Master's degree. Ten years later, Columbia University gave Mariana the First Decade Award. This award recognized her important work as a journalist.
Mariana's Journalism Career
In 2009, Mariana began her journalism career. She worked as a reporter at El Diario/La Prensa in New York City. This newspaper is part of Impremedia. She also worked as an anchor for the Vme-TV network. This is the only Hispanic public service TV station in the United States.
Working at Univision and Fusion (2011-2016)
Mariana started working as a guest anchor and correspondent for Univision News in 2011. She reported on the 2012 presidential election. Her reports were shown on the morning show Despierta America and the evening news, Noticiero Univision.
In 2012, she became an investigative reporter at Univision. Mariana was one of five reporters who worked on a documentary called Rapido y Furioso (Fast & Furious). This documentary won a Peabody Award. For this work, they also received an Investigative Reporters and Editors Award. In 2013, she was part of a team that won Univision's first Peabody Award. This was for their investigation into a gun scandal called Operation Fast and Furious.
In 2014, Mariana received a Gracie Award from the Alliance for Women in Media. This award was for her work on the Univision documentary, "Pressured: Freedom of the Press." She reported on and wrote this documentary.
Mariana became an anchor for The Morning Show on Fusion TV. This was a two-hour program with news, stories, and live interviews. She anchored the show until it ended in 2014. Her report called "Mexico Massacres" was recognized by The National Association of Hispanic Journalists.
She also worked as a field correspondent. Mariana led the network's reporting from Venezuela during the 2014 protests. She also contributed to ABC News from there. She covered many important events. These included the shooting death of Michael Brown in Ferguson. She also reported on the Umbrella Revolution in Hong Kong. Another event she covered was the 2014 Iguala mass kidnapping in Mexico.
In 2015, she reported from McAllen, Texas for ABC News. This was for a special online meeting with Pope Francis. It happened before his first visit to the United States. Mariana spoke with Pope Francis and translated live on TV. She helped new immigrants ask the Pope questions.
In March 2016, she was part of the anchor team for a debate. This debate was between Democratic candidates Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders. It was hosted by Univision and The Washington Post.
Reporting for NBC News (2016-2020)
In September 2016, Mariana moved from Spanish to English-language news. She became a correspondent for NBC. She was the only Latina correspondent on the cable network.
Mariana focused on reporting about the U.S. Latino community and immigration. She also did live translations from Spanish. She covered important stories. These included the Central American migrant caravans. She also reported on the child separation crisis at the border. Another major story was the ICE raids in Mississippi. These raids led to the arrest of many undocumented immigrants.
Mariana's live interviews with migrant mothers were nominated for two national Emmy Awards. This was during the Trump administration's family separation policy. Her coverage of the border also received nominations.
During the 2020 presidential race, she reported on Hispanic voters. She also covered the 2018 midterms and the 2016 presidential campaign. In 2019, she was part of a team of NBC reporters called Road Warriors. They won the First Amendment Clarity Award for their coverage of the 2018 midterm elections.
Mariana also covered major natural disasters. These included the earthquake in Mexico. She also reported on the aftermath of Hurricanes Maria, Harvey, Florence, Michael, and Dorian.
Other Projects (2020-Present)
Mariana Atencio was a Henry Crown Fellow at the Aspen Institute in 2021. In November 2021, she was named an official spokesperson. This was for the future National Museum of the American Latino in Washington D.C.
In 2022, she released an investigative podcast series. It was called Lost in Panama. The podcast looked into the disappearance of Kris Kremers and Lisanne Froon. They were two Dutch tourists who went missing on a hiking trail. During her investigation, Mariana found more than 50 other cases of women disappearing in the same area.
Personal Life
In 2020, Mariana Atencio became a U.S. citizen. As of 2019, she lives in Miami and New York City.
Mariana's father passed away in February 2018. He had complications from pneumonia after getting the flu. She wrote about his health struggles in a hospital in Caracas. She also wrote about the lack of basic medical supplies in Venezuela. This was due to a humanitarian crisis in the country.
See also
In Spanish: Mariana Atencio para niños
