Myrna Sonora
Award winning television journalist, Myrna Sonora, considers she did not achieve her maximum success until she was able to shape the business of Arizona's major Hispanic television stations. Professionally trained as a journalist, Ms. Sonora began her career as a reporter for WLTV Univision 23 in Miami, where she rose through the ranks to become Central American Bureau Chief and Senior Correspondent for the Univision Network. After traveling extensively reporting on current events through Central and South America, her home city of Miami beckoned, and she accepted the position of Hispanic Affairs Director for Fox Affiliate WSVN 7, producing a weekly Hispanic affairs program with veteran CNN anchor Rick Sanchez. Spanish television, however, was Ms. Sonora's first love, and she returned to Spanish TV first as News Director for WSCV Telemundo 51, and eventually Vice-President for News and Public Affairs of her first station, WLTV Univision 23. Under her tutelage, Noticias 23, Univision 23's 6:00 and 11:00 PM newscast became the number one-rated news program in the market, in English or Spanish language. This significant achievement, a first for the veteran television network, got her noticed and promoted. Ms. Sonora became the first General Manager of a Univision television station to have come from the field of professional journalism. During her tenure, Univison 33 grew to become one of the top ten properties of the Univision Television Group, billing over $22 million, and won multiple awards, including the Best Newscast recognition from the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences. Running the business of television stations became Ms. Sonora's true passion. She has continued to flourish in Miami's business community where she returned in 2005 to start her own media consulting firm, Media Strategies, a multi-service broadcast consulting firm. In 2011 Ms. Sonora became the Vice President of the Hispanic Business Initiative Fund of Florida (HBIF) for the South Florida region. As such, she was responsible for establishing the organization's South Florida presence and since then, she has been in charge of overseeing the day to day operations and growth, promoting the HBIF brand, raising local support for the mission and building and managing a team of business consultants. Since opening the office, HBIF has helped: more than 2,000 local business owners receive one-on-one consulting services, conducted nearly 230 educational sessions with over 4,000 attendees and awarded over $280,000 worth of grants to help develop local small business. The future is bright for the role HBIF will continue to play in South Florida's economic eco-system. Ms Sonora has served as the Chair of the Economic Development Committee for the South Florida Community Development Coalition (SFCDC) for the last 2 years and more recently won a Hispanic Leadership Award from the South Florida Chamber of Commerce (SFHCC).