ESPN Deportes Unveils Programming Initiatives for the 2010-2011 Upfront Season

NEW YORK, May 21 /PRNewswire/ -- ESPN Deportes, the most-watched and highest-rated Spanish-language sports cable network in the U.S., enters the 2010-2011 Upfront Season with continued focus on revolutionizing the way sports are covered on Spanish-language television.  The network, which earlier this week announced the launch of its first studio show to be produced from Los Angeles, is unveiling a series of additional initiatives, highlighted the acquisition of marquee soccer programming and the introduction of a new prime-time newsmagazine.

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ANNOUNCEMENTS

STUDIO SHOWS

ESPN-Investiga (working title): ESPN Deportes is committed to long-form investigative sports journalism and will launch of ESPN-Investiga as, the first prime-time newsmagazine sports program exclusively dedicated to this type of journalism on Spanish-language television.  Modeled after E:60, ESPN's Emmy-award winning newsmagazine, ESPN-Investiga will combine investigative reporting, in-depth profiles of intriguing sports personalities and features on emerging star athletes.  The newsmagazine will be anchored by a team of award-winning journalists, led by ESPN Deportes personalities Jorge Ramos, Jose Ramon Fernandez and David Faitelson.  

ESPN-Investiga will take fans behind-the-scenes and into the world of the reporters in action.  Each segment will meld the stories with a glimpse of the reporters' experiences – pitching the story, creating the structure with producers and interviewing their subjects.  Reporters will interact with fans by "blogging" their experiences from the field.  ESPN-Investiga will be the television and online Spanish-language newsmagazine where in-depth treatment of the best stories in sports comes full circle.  

ESPN-Investiga will be produced by a team of seasoned and award-winning documentary producers, with content distributed across multiple ESPN Deportes platforms, including ESPNdeportes.com, ESPN Deportes Radio, ESPN Deportes La Revista and ESPN Deportes Movil.  

E:60 debuted on ESPN May 2007. Earlier this month, the newsmagazine won its first two Sports Emmy Awards. The newsmagazine has received 13 Sports Emmy Award nominations, seven this year – the most for any show in sports television.  Nominations have ranged from long-form storytelling to investigative journalism, graphic design and music.

Nacion ESPN: On the heels of the success of SportsNation, ESPN's Sports Emmy-Award winning, fan-interactive program, ESPN Deportes announced earlier this week the launch Nacion ESPN, an original Spanish-language, culturally relevant sports television show fueled by fan interaction and focused on fun.  Produced from ESPN's facility at L.A. LIVE in Los Angeles, Nacion ESPN will cater above all to the voice of the fan.  Co-hosted by ESPN Deportes' David Faitelson and Adriana Monsalve, two of the network's most recognized sportscasters, Nacion ESPN will feature discussion of the stories that generate buzz on the Internet but often aren't seen on television.

Nacion ESPN will inform, interact, and amuse, to serve fans with the information they want --highlights, statistics, expertise and analysis with the difference being analysis of fan opinions alongside wins and losses.  Producers will rely on fans to provide ideas and angles covered in the show.  Fans will be able to interact with the hosts before, during and after the show by e-mail, phone, and other social media outlets. Produced from the entertainment capital of the world, Nacion ESPN will be the meeting place for sports and entertainment on ESPN Deportes. Each show will also feature a sit-down interview with a high-profile Hispanic athlete or celebrity. The one-hour weekday show debuts in the first quarter of 2011.  

EVENTS and LAUNCHES:

Copa America:  ESPN has acquired Spanish-language radio rights to Copa America, the South American Football Confederation's main national team soccer tournament..  ESPN Deportes' agreement grants ESPN Deportes Radio, the only 24/7 Spanish-language sports radio network in the U.S., exclusive rights to the event and it will broadcast live and on location all 26 matches.  

Organized every two years in a different country in the region and featuring 10 national teams, the 43rd edition of Copa America will be played across eight venues in Argentina from July 3-July 24, 2011. Featured teams include multiple FIFA World Cup champions Brazil and Argentina, along with special invitees Japan and Mexico.

ESPN Deportes Radio has also launched in the San Antonio market, the eighth largest Hispanic market in the U.S., on 103.1 FM as ESPN Deportes Radio KHHL F.M.   With this new affiliate, ESPN Deportes Radio now has 43 affiliates nationwide and covers approximately 51 percent of the U.S. Hispanic population.  During the past 12 months, ESPN Deportes Radio has launched on numerous affiliates nationwide, including San Diego, Orlando, Tampa and Salt Lake City.  

Jungle Fight Championship: ESPN Deportes will also air exclusive, Spanish-language telecasts of Jungle Fight Championship, one of the top Mixed Martial Arts competitions in the world, taking place in Brazil, the birthplace of MMA. The event, launched in 2003 by former MMA and JiuJitsu Champion Wallid Ismail, features some of the country's best fighters.  

Under the terms of the agreement, ESPN Deportes will air Jungle Fight Championship events as two-hour shows. The first telecast will be Saturday, May 22 at 9 p.m. ET.  

Jungle Fight Championship events have been held through the last seven years in throughout Brazil to sellout crowds and record-breaking pay-per-view audiences.  Some of today's top Brazilian MMA fighters to have hailed from Jungle Fight Championship include former UFC light heavyweight champion, Lyoto Machida, heavyweight contenders Fabricio Werdum, and Gabriel Gonzaga, current UFC welterweight contenders Paulo Thiago, and Evangelisto Santos and WEC champion Jose Aldo, considered one of the best pound-per-pound.  Jungle Fight Championship donates a portion of its proceeds to promote education and protect the endangered Amazon rainforest.

SOURCE ESPN Deportes