OSA: Can you trace the development of your relationship with the arts and with media?

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1 Suzanna Sanchez Interview: Oct. 13, Griffith Park and Chinatown, LA, CA Suzanna Sanchez specializes in competitive business development and has primarily worked for national and international Fortune 500 companies helping them to identify their set of core competences and conceptualize a strategic direction for new market entries and growth. Her areas of expertise cover the following business/media categories: Broadcast network television, radio, print, newspaper, web project management/e-commerce, B2B, M&A, legal industry, biotech, architecture, consumer goods, community outreach and development. OSA: Let s talk about where you are right now in terms of your career, your outlook on life. SUZANNA: At this point in my career, I feel that I ve come full circle. For many years, I felt that I had to prove myself intellectually to so many different audiences in order for them to accept me. I always thought that if I continued to pursue more degrees, higher positions at work, and more money, then I was obviously on the right American Dream track. In time I discovered that there was one thing that continued to resonate within my being, and that is that I have always been an advocate for the Latino community. My passion as an advocate for the silent and growing majority has given me the opportunity to make a difference and to change perceptions while climbing the corporate ladder. My advocacy and the social responsibility in the media will remain a constant and a very important part of who I am throughout my career. My philosophy is very simple, just give back and do the right thing. My career and my outlook on life go hand in hand. OSA: Can you trace the development of your relationship with the arts and with media? SUZANNA: As a child, I always thought that I was going to be an artist, but when I expressed that interest I was laughed at and they d say, Well, you know artists don t Osa Hidalgo de la Riva, editor, Spectator 26:1 (Spring 2006):

2 SUZANNA SANCHEZ make any money. Well then maybe I ll be an Architect, my high school counselor s response to that was Humm? There is too much math involved for that not too encouraging. I was quickly disillusioned by the lack of support, so in the end, I decided to take another route and decided to get involved in business. Mergers and Acquisitions and business development strategies for national and international Fortune 500 companies became my focus. Right brain, left brain, I didn t want to compromise any of my dreams; I wanted to have it all. I was always interested in the power of mass communication and the influence that media has on our daily lives from the day we are born to the day that we die. Over time I realized that I didn t necessarily have to let go of the artistic or creative side of me. The entertainment television broadcast industry that I am currently working in requires that I think of not only creative ways of achieving quarterly profits but of ways to demystify the complexities of how technology has changed how we view and interact with the array of integrated media options. Balancing abstract and critical thinking skills seemed to fit my new definition of how media today is very much an art within itself. So I think, in a nutshell, I ve always tried to balance my corporate responsibilities of what I do for a living along with maintaining a creative element in the business models that I create. OSA: Where are you working now? SUZANNA: I m an advertising executive for an entertainment Hispanic television broadcast network in Los Angeles, CA. I wanted to experience the convergence of this media first hand. Television is a very powerful communication medium that is experiencing technological and evolutionary changes. There are many similarities in the companies that I worked with in the past that are also going through either restructuring or are in the transitional phase of a merger or acquisition. For some reason the communications industry is a little quieter about this convergence/transition. It s very subtle externally, time is a valued commodity, everybody wants it, and we have very little of it. Time and convenience is the driving force. The challenge lies in delivering multiple messages in a competitive landscape, while keeping it non-intrusive and seamless, and that is what caught my interest. The integration of television, radio, internet, podcasting, music and print.quite frankly can be a sensory overload, but it has become a way of life. Having worked with both the general market and the Hispanic market one observation remains constant. The inequities in the distribution of revenue for Hispanic media dollars have not changed very much. Many corporate business models do not reflect the proper ratios necessary to maximize their return on investment. Corporate projections, forecasting, and current expenditures don t seem to be in line with reality. Numbers are numbers and money does not have ethnic barriers. Activism always seems to creep up in how I view business models. It just doesn t make business sense to ignore our buying power, and to continue with antiquated ways of thinking. OSA: You use the word Hispanic many people have ideological problems with using the term Hispanic as opposed to Chicano or Latino, but in your world, the business world, Hispanic seems to be the more accepted terminology. Do you have an opinion about the words that are used to describe cultural identity? SUZANNA: To me, Latinos are Latinos. You can call us Mexican American, 44 SPRING 2006

3 Hispanics, Bilingual, Chicanos, Chicanas, oh! The most recent new term Nuevo Latinos to me it s all the same because we all have the same basic fundamental needs, desires and while our experiences in life may be diverse, we have more commonalities than differences. I think it just depends on each individual person, on what term they feel most comfortable using. I don t have a particular preference. OSA: You follow the Chicana art movement here in Los Angeles pretty closely. Can you speak about your involvement? SUZANNA: Art has always been a part of my life, as a child, Spanish was my first language and I loved that art was like a universal language, I connected immediately. My father exposed us to art and to museums at a very early age. Museums and art allowed me to venture off into my own fantasy world, it was very liberating. Art gave me the freedom to dream about the possibilities of what I could be in the future. In college I had the privilege of studying under Shifra Goldman- (UCLA), she taught me to appreciate the contributions of Chicano art and their influence in history. I eventually moved to Los Angeles, and became another Angelino. My activism in the arts was catapulted while serving on the Board of Directors for VIVA, whose sole mission was to showcase Latinos and Latina artists. I wanted to do my part to highlight and to give artists a voice. VIVA gave me the sense of community that I lacked while living in Los Angeles. Los Angeles can be a very big city, and if you don t connect to a group of people that share a common interest, it s an easy city to get lost in. Through this organization, I met a lot of wonderful friends that are now well known artists, in various disciplines Miguel Angel Reyes, GRONK, Frank Romero, Luis Alfaro who is now at the Mark Taper, Cherrie Moraga, Lourdes Portillo, George Yepes, Dyan Garza, Monica Palacios, just to name a few. I try to keep in touch with as many of them as possible; it s also exciting to see that a lot of our careers are still somewhat focused in the arts. OSA: You say you struggled to find a sense of community when you moved to Los Angeles, but weren t you born in LA? SUZANNA: Yes, I was born in Los Angeles, but as a child my family moved to Orange County. It was a completely different world. I always knew that I d go back to Los Angeles, after graduating from college most of my career was spent working in Los Angeles and on the East Coast. I spent some time in San Francisco, and it was at that point that I was able to experience the International business arena, finally all of the pieces were falling into place, but Los Angeles still remained my home away from home. OSA: You re a member of the Trojan family can you speak about some of your experiences here at USC? SUZANNA: USC s Marshall School of Business was instrumental in helping to put all of my experiences and future aspirations on the right track in more ways that just scholastically. The Alumni support is genuine and I find that when ever I need assistance or an objective point of view, I can call on any one of my fellow students for help. Dr. Laree Kiely, Professor Bill Crookston, and Dr. Sam Hariharan were excellent role models. The curricula was geared towards the integration of knowledge with holistic and analytical concepts highlighting the importance of the social, political and economic considerations that play an important role in the decision making process. SC prepared me to step into IMAGINING TRANSCULTURAL DIVERSITY 45

4 SUZANNA SANCHEZ the competitive business world. When ever I meet another Trojan, not much else needs to be said to connect. OSA: Did you ever feel any kind of discrimination or cultural insensitivity? SUZANNA: No, but now that you mention that, maybe that s why I felt I needed to prepare myself academically by attending top notch academic institutions, it was always my motto to work for only the very best Fortune 500 companies, I wanted to learn from the best and to be in the company of excellence, they had to be number one in their industry. I didn t want anyone to ever say to me that I was not right for the position because of my gender or ethnic background, so education was my insurance. My self imposed high standards were perhaps a way of protecting myself from anyone who might want to discriminate against me in the future. OSA: On occasions when you do face discrimination, do you have a strategy for dealing with it? SUZANNA: I don t have a set strategy any more. I think I used to, early on in my career. I did not like that I had to prove myself over and over again, especially when I was in a Directorship role in business. Discrimination and lack of respect can happen in very subtle and indirect ways, and sometimes it comes from the people that you least expect it from. When I do experience it, I just feel sorry for that person, I watch them dig their own hole, and they end up embarrassing themselves without me having to say anything. I don t feel the need to prove anything to anyone. Intentions, actions and results speak for themselves. OSA: Let s cut to the future where do you see for yourself down the line? SUZANNA: I m very happy with the career choices that I ve made thus far. I ve traveled an awful lot; I ve met wonderful people throughout California and the US. There isn t a place that I don t feel I can go to and not fit in, and that s because I am willing to feel uncomfortable and vulnerable, I have learned to embrace and to confront the changes that naturally come while experiencing life. I think as far as what I see in the future for myself is to continue to be involved in a career that genuinely gives back to the community, whether it s in broadcast or corporate America. But I will never, ever let go of the advocacy that I feel in my heart and soul for Latinos, having been so deeply affected by the struggles that my father and my mother went through when they first came to the United States from Guanajuato, GTO, Mexico has made me a stronger woman, I feel that we all have a certain sense of social responsibility, to not just our people, but to other people as well. I think that with all of the national and global tragedies that are currently happening in Louisiana, in Pakistan, Latin America, and in so many other parts of the world, we need to re-shift our priorities. Having experienced the loss of co-workers in New York s 9/11 was horrible, and we are no different from anybody else. So I think, people are people and it s our responsibility to continue to move forward. I am confident in myself that I have the tools that it takes to succeed and to move forward in what ever venture I decide to take on next. OSA: As someone who works in television and advertising, what do you see as the media s role in society? SUZANNA: I think that television, and the advertising industry is a very powerful communication medium that has the ability to shape our perceptions about many things that will forever change our lives. It is a medium that shouldn t be taken for granted or exploited. Television 46 SPRING 2006

5 can be used to educate communities through the integration of social content carefully woven into the story lines. This can help set the path to ignite change, socially and economically. I was highly inspired by the landing of the shuttle that happened about two months ago, I loved that it was a woman pilot that landed the shuttle. I thought, my God I remember as a child wanting to be an astronaut second to an artist, and I thought kids and their parents need to see more positive images of women in unconventional roles. I presented the idea to our producers and they gave me the go ahead to arrange an interview with someone in that position, it didn t mater if she was an astronaut or an engineer, I made my contacts with several aerospace facilities. For the most part the idea was well received. I then thought to myself, had I seen something like that on television when I was a little girl I think I might have been inspired to think, wow!, maybe one day I too can do that. I did not want to let this historical moment fade away, let s not let this momentum die, science is an important part of our educational cycle, not only that, but can you imagine, it s the images like the landing of a shuttle piloted by a woman and then televised throughout the world, well, that can have a lasting impression on almost anyone. It s important to put positive images on television in order to create that spark of light or dream in someone s life at a very young age. I can t think of any other communication medium that can have a cultural impact on our society while covering a wide audience base. It s easy to measure ratings, but how do you measure and analyze the intrinsic value that goes well beyond a television series or a newscast, why not take advantage of it in a positive way. IMAGINING TRANSCULTURAL DIVERSITY 47

Chavez. Maria Elena. OSA: Tell me your name, where and when you were born.

Chavez. Maria Elena. OSA: Tell me your name, where and when you were born. Maria Elena Chavez Interview: Oct. 5, 2005 South Central, LA, CA Maria Elena Chavez is a writer, director, and visual media artist and has been greatly influenced by having been born and raised within