MarketInk: ESPN is closer to Germany than San Diego for TV news editor Mario Escovedo

Mario Escovedo in front of an ESPN sign Courtesy Marketink For years Mario Escovedo decided which San Diego news stories would be covered on the top-rated KFMB-TV Channel newscasts As assignment manager Escovedo was at the epicenter of deciding what makes news and what doesn t Every day was a test Escovedo notified Times of San Diego The assignment manager is supposed to know everything that s going on and where everyone is at any given moment I was supposed to know who can be reached right now to get information and confirmation You never know how each day is going to start or finish Every time a major situation happens despite any personal situations or predicament at home you have just moments to respond and get it right Every day was a challenge and I like that During his San Diego TV news career Escovedo admitted there were tough days on the job I hated calling families who had tragically just lost someone but that was just part of the job he noted Also the worst feeling in the world was to miss something big I remember one time the president was landing at North Island and the other local TV stations went live with his arrival But our live truck was stuck at the gate My boss yelled kicked a trash can and commented to me On a scale of to for screw-ups this was a My stomach was in knots for a week after that but I learned to never let it happen again At San Diego City College he was involved in producing the student-run television newscast Newscene One of his stories was about immigrants traversing the perimeter from Mexico and working for a limited dollars a week in the North County That story helped me get a scholarship to SDSU and a paid internship at KFMB revealed Escovedo a recipient of a Radio scholarship from the Radio Television Digital News Association I was hired as a writer when my internship ended Ray Wilson walked me into the building on my first day Wilson a fixture on KFMB-TV for years served as news anchor and later news director He joined the station in three years after it went on the air He retired in and passed away in at age At KFMB I worked with particular of the most of talented and dedicated people in the industry covering chosen giant moments in San Diego s history disclosed Escovedo who was hired by longtime news director Jim Holtzman who brought together the legendary anchor association of Michael Tuck Allison Ross and Ted Leitner I was fortunate to be part of a legendary era at KFMB At KFMB Escovedo won seven Emmy awards and one Golden Mic award It has been an honor to cover San Diego news for so long and to work so numerous great people he revealed Escovedo grew up in Chula Vista and attended Chula Vista High School San Diego City College and San Diego State University But in January Escovedo left San Diego s KFMB-TV and his hometown This day Escovedo lives in West Hartford Conn and commutes about minutes to Bristol Conn to the worldwide headquarters of sports architecture ESPN where his job since March has been as an international assignment desk editor In the close-knit San Diego news public Escovedo s departure was a surprise San Diego was my home for years and I will inevitably love it Escovedo declared But my wife is from Germany and we have a -year-old daughter We fly back and forth to Europe a couple of times a year From San Diego it is a -hour trip each way plus hours of jet lag So we decided to move to the East Coast and narrowed our search to West Hartford Escovedo announced he also interviewed for several TV news jobs in Connecticut and New York City In NYC I was up for a couple of different positions at CBS News but the whole reason we moved here was for family So it didn t make sense for me to commute two hours by train every day At ESPN Escovedo s job duties include supporting requests from ESPN s international bureaus including arranging live feeds coordinating equipment and hiring crews Everyday we coordinate and communicate with the U K Amsterdam Mexico City Brazil Argentina Australia and China he stated It is mind-blowing to grasp the number of feeds coming in and out on a daily basis My head was spinning the first insufficient weeks After all my years of experience and training I was humbled by the amount of tool available here and what we get done every day Eight weeks later I am starting to feel at home and even my Spanish has experienced a super-charged revitalization not to mention a crash class on La Liga and World Cup Soccer The Campeonato Nacional de Liga de Primera generally known as La Liga is a professional soccer league in Spain and the highest level attainable in Spanish football Real Madrid has won the La Liga championship a record times It has been eye opening for me to realize my interest and love in sports Escovedo commented I think sports inspires us all and keeps our mind off other things that we struggle with as a world population I love sharing stories of athletes who have overcome poverty and tough backgrounds to reach success and triumph I hope to develop more coverage for stories like that IABC s Communicators of the Year Julie Wright and Lt Grace Kording The San Diego chapter of the International Association of Business Communicators has named Julie Wright founder and president of W right On Communications as its Communicator of the Year and Navy Lt Grace Kording as its Junior COTY recipient IABC noted its COTY awards now in its th year recognizes outstanding achievement in the field of business communications and celebrates individuals who have demonstrated excellence in their work Their dedication passion and innovative contributions to the field of business communication set a remarkable standard of excellence IABC San Diego president Melissa Eckmann commented of Wright and Kording We are truly honored to celebrate their achievements and look forward to seeing their continued impact on our industry Wright began her career as a radio news anchor in British Columbia after receiving her master s degree in journalism from the University of Western Ontario Later she led inhabitants relations marketing branding advertising and group relations for a financial institution Julie Wright of W Right On Communications Courtesy Marketink She founded W right On in and relocated to San Diego in The strategic communications agency s clients include leaders in hardware clean vitality legal services tourism healthcare and senior living I m deeply honored to receive the Communicator of the Year Award explained Wright This recognition is a testament to the hard work and dedication of my incredible band at W right On Communications as well as the unwavering backing of our clients and partners I am grateful for the opportunities I ve had to contribute to the field of business communication and I look forward to continuing to innovate and inspire others in our industry Lt Grace Kording Courtesy Marketink Kording serves as assistant society affairs officer to Vice Admiral Brendan McLane commander Naval Surface Force U S Pacific Fleet A native of Baltimore Kording graduated from Villanova University Naval Reserve Officers Training Corps with a bachelor s degree in computer engineering in She earned her aviation wings of gold in May and served in the Navy s tactical electronic attack public flying EA- G aircraft She transferred to constituents affairs qualified as a masses affairs officer and earned a Certified Meeting Professional designation in She now leads corporate communications for Navy ships around the globe plans media engagements for Navy leaders and guides a company of professional communicators I am truly humbled and grateful to receive the Junior Communicator of the Year Award noted Kording This acknowledgement from IABC San Diego underscores the incredible sponsorship and mentorship I have received throughout my career I am honored to be part of such a distinguished public of professionals and look forward to contributing to the field of communication in the years to come IABC San Diego explained its Junior COTY award recognizes an emerging professional who has demonstrated outstanding prospective and achievement early in their career The award celebrates the contributions of a junior communicator who has shown a commitment to excellence and a passion for the field Wright and Kording will be recognized at a reception starting at p m Wednesday May at Gravity Heights in Sorrento Valley Pacific Heights Blvd San Diego Cost to attend is for members and for nonmembers More event information can be detected here El Latino San Diego celebrates th aniversario A composite image showing different covers from El Latino s history Courtesy Marketink El Latino San Diego a Spanish-language weekly newspaper in recent days marked its th anniversary of continuous publication The local media outlet was founded by Fanny Miller on Cinco de Mayo May With a weekly circulation of about El Latino is considered the state s largest Latina-owned Spanish-language newspaper Fanny Miller of El Latino Courtesy Marketink Being a bus for information and locality connection for this long is challenging noted Miller director and president of El Latino But we ve perpetually remained focused on our role to uplift and inform We are part of the public We think in English but feel in Spanish and we speak from the heart A announcement announced that El Latino San Diego from its inception has addressed the pressing and ongoing necessities of its readers from immigration updates and civic engagement to guidance and family information The need for immigration information is still critical so is offering a space where readers can voice concerns understand how the coaching system works and get help navigating it reported Miller These necessities haven t changed Specific areas of the county are still underserved and we ve known that from the beginning Topics regularly featured in the newspaper include news schooling fitness and family business sports entertainment beauty and classifieds Miller disclosed El Latino which is free to readers in print and online has remained a community-first platform It s incredibly fulfilling to be able to help she stated The business has evolved tremendously but we never forget our essence I dependably say the paper belongs to the public I just manage it Readers call us bring us stories and share their concerns That s how we grow together And everything we ve accomplished is thanks to the people who believe in us and above all thanks to God who has guided us every step of the way Rick Griffin is a San Diego-based masses relations and marketing consultant His MarketInk column appears weekly on Mondays in Times of San Diego