NAHJ Statement on selection of 2016 Debate Moderators
Official Statement from NAHJ President Brandon Benavides on No Presence of Hispanic Moderators for the 2016 Election Debates: The National Association of Hispanic Journalists is disappointed theCommission on Presidential Debates has once again failed to select aHispanic journalist as a moderator of the 2016 general electionpresidential and vice presidential debates. According to the U.S. Census from November 2015, “More than 55 millionpeople—almost one-fifth of the U.S. population—are Hispanic.” It’simperative to hear Hispanic voices on the national level, given theimpact of this election cycle. This is not the first time NAHJ has addressed this issue. After noHispanic journalists were selected in 2012, representatives from NAHJinsisted on a meeting with the co-chairman of the Commission onPresidential Debates, Mike McCurry. Intensive discussions were heldduring this meeting and our concerns were shared. We concluded that itis important Latino journalists should not be left out of thepresidential debates in the coming years. Again, it is imperative that a Hispanic moderator is present toprovide fair input on our issues and accurate representation of theLatino communities. We are dissatisfied no progress has been made in the past fouryears and once again we have been overlooked. Despite this outcome, wewill continue to advocate and speak for our communities ourjournalists cover across the country and the unique and crucialperspective we bring to the debates & 2016 elections.
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