María E. Martin, a fierce advocate for Latino representation in journalism, died Dec. 2 at the age of 72.
Martin fought her entire career to bring more diverse voices into newsrooms and spotlight important stories from underrepresented areas like Central America.
She got her start at KBBF in California — the first bilingual public radio station in the U.S.— and became one of the first Latina news directors in the U.S.
Martin co-founded Latino USA in 1992, the longest-running Latino-focused program on the radio.
Martin spoke about her start in radio and journalism during her first interview with Fronteras in November 2020 to discuss her memoir, Crossing Borders, Building Bridges: A Journalist’s Heart in Latin America.
“When I discovered radio, I discovered that information was as important [as] a welfare check or a Medicare card,” she said. “It gave you the information that people didn’t get in those days, especially if they were speaking Spanish.”
Martin lived in and reported on Guatemala. She continued to train journalists there after leaving NPR and later founded the GraciasVida Center for Media.
To bring historical context and bring attention to Central America, Martin produced a 12-part radio documentary series, After the Wars/ Despues de las Guerra.
“Coverage of Latin America, of Central America, has been cyclical throughout history,” she said during a Fronteras interview in July 2023. “I wanted to at least produce this series, this podcast, so that there would be one place that had more in-depth coverage of the region.”
Martin’s final podcast project before her death was SOS Central America, produced by Latino Radio Rebels.
The lone episode released last June focused on the 2022 arrest of Guatemalan journalist, José Rubén Zamora.
Tune in Dec. 22 to hear from some of the San Antonio journalists Martin helped train. Those classes came to an abrupt end with her death.
Listen to María Martin’s past interviews on Fronteras:
A Conversation With María E. Martin
Journalist María Martin 'sounds the alarm' on the tumultuous state of journalism in Central America
