Telemundo Launches Nationwide Citizenship Drive

WASHINGTON — The Spanish-language television network Telemundo launched a nationwide voter registration drive Wednesday to encourage Hispanics to vote in the 2008 election.

"We have the obligation to not only inform but empower our viewers," said Jorge Hidalgo, Telemundo's senior executive vice president for sports and news.

The voter drive includes many of the network's biggest stars, including Andres Cantor, famous for his soccer play by play, and a strong push by the network's youth-oriented cable channel, Mun2.

News anchors and entertainment talk show hosts will appear in public service announcements, directing voters to a Website — www.yahootelemundo.com/votaportufuturo — where they can download registration information.

Some of the ads were unveiled at a press conference Wednesday. They were upbeat, sometimes emotional pleas for Hispanics to take charge of their own future. One said that voting will help Latinos defend their rights and another echoed the famous chant by labor leader Cesar Chavez, "Si se puede," or "it can be done" which has become a rallying cry for groups seeking immigration reforms.

Telemundo officials said that the campaign was not a direct result of the immigration debates in Washington and around the country, but acknowledged that those events have changed the political landscape and may motivate many immigrants to vote.

The campaign — "Vota Por Tu Futuro" or "Vote For Your Future" — will also include spots in local newscasts and entertainment shows about the importance of voting and how to register. The network will also provide online support to guide people through the process.

Telemundo officials said that campaign was a nonpartisan effort to promote civic participation. In an effort to encourage more young Latinos to vote, the network has partnered with Rock the Vote, a voter registration drive that involves popular actors and musicians. Other partners in the voter registration drive include the League of United Latin American Citizens and the United States Hispanic Leadership Institute.

A Mun2 deejay known as Crash said that the campaign will target the 50,000 Hispanics who turn 18 every month. "This year, we're going to make a difference," she said.

Telemundo also released the results of a poll of Spanish-dominant viewers in large cities. It said that they tend to have a more favorable view of a candidate if the person speaks to voters in Spanish. In addition, the poll showed that the viewers trust television news more than newspapers, radio or the Internet for obtaining information about the presidential election. Telemundo is owned by NBC Universal.

Together with a citizenship and registration drive by its rival, Univision, the Spanish-language networks could have an impact on the election, political experts said.

Nathan Gonzales, an analyst at the nonpartisan Rothenberg Political Report, said that registering people to vote is only the first step in a long process of turning Latinos into a political power house.

"There is a big difference between registering voters and turning out voters," he said.

However, if Hispanic voters are unified on a certain issue — such as immigration — they could have an impact, he said.

For example, Hispanic voters could make a difference in potential 2008 battleground states such as Florida, Colorado, Nevada, and New Mexico, Gonzales said.

Latinos have traditionally had low rates of voting. In 2004, about 16 million Latinos were eligible to vote, but only 7.6 million cast ballots, according to the Pew Hispanic Center, a nonpartisan research group in Washington.

On the Web:

Telemundo voter registration drive: tv.telemundo.yahoo.com/votaportufuturo/

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