Telemundo Sets Digital News Election Plans

Noticias Telemundo on Monday unveiled details of its digital operations plans for Decision 2020, its biggest-ever electoral coverage. This year, Noticias Telemundo’s editorial team doubled its size with the incorporation of a team of multi-media journalists to produce stories for digital, social and linear platforms, hired several former New York Times en Español reporters and established a first-ever collaboration with the Des Moines Register in Iowa.

“Our web, app and social platforms will feature three times the volume of political content in comparison to 2016,” said Maria Luisa Tabares, director of digital news content, who joined the team three months ago.

Digital plans for Decision 2020 also include a complete redesign of NoticiasTelemundo.com with improved social integration and navigation experience. The new website will involve a close partnership with NBC News that will deliver simultaneous content among both platforms.

“In 2020, Noticias Telemundo will become the main source of electoral information for U.S. Latinos, and digital is at the center of our Decision 2020 strategy,” said Gemma Garcia, VP of network and digital news.

Other digital initiatives include:

• The recent hiring of three former New York Times en Español journalists to produce original content for all Noticias Telemundo platforms with emphasis on the 2020 elections.
• The launch of brand-new programming in 2020, including a daily YouTube native newscast in English and the only news showproduced by a Hispanic network for the digital platform Quibi.
• Partnerships with fact-checking organizations PolitiFactand Animal Politico.
• Partnership with the Des Moines Register.

“Latinos are increasingly consuming most of their political news online or via mobile devices,” said Romina Rosado, S VP of digital media at Telemundo. “Our expanded digital operations will get us even closer to our audience during a critical electoral year.”

Since moving to Telemundo Center in April 2018, Noticias Telemundo has undergone an expansion process to prepare for the elections, including the launch of its award-winning studio, the hiring of veteran media executive Patsy Loris as senior vice president, elections 2020 as well as the appointment of Romina Rosado as the head of digital news.

These investments have already yielded positive results in the airing of what it says was the first sit-down interview granted by President Trump to a Spanish-language network and the first and most watched Democratic debate of the season.

In addition, last month the network released Noticias Telemundo’s State of the Latino Vote Poll – One Year Out, the first of many comprehensive polls measuring vote intention, sentiment and perception on multiple issues among Latinos.