Lori Montenegro, the head of Noticias Telemundo’s Washington, D.C. bureau, is one of the most influential and experienced journalists in Spanish-language television with more than 40 years in the media industry.

Prior to her role, she was a correspondent in the U.S. capital for Noticias Telemundo, a position she held since 2006. An empowering journalist, throughout the years Montenegro has been on the front line covering the issues that are most important to Latinos, and her most notable career interviews includes a sit-down with former U.S. President Barack Obama in 2013. In addition, Montenegro collaborates with other NBCUniversal news organizations, including NBC News and MSNBC.

Before joining Noticias Telemundo, Montenegro spent three years at Univisión as the Washington correspondent for 25 of its affiliates. Between 1991 and 1993, she served as Foreign Policy Correspondent for the U.S. Information Agency (USIA). Montenegro was named one of 100 outstanding Hispanic journalists in the country in 2001 and 2002.  She also received the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute’s Latina Leader Award and the UnidosUS Rubén Salazar Award, among other accolades. She has received a Media Trailblazer Award presented by the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC). Most recently, she was honored by the Radio Television Digital News Association with the First Amendment Clarity Award, a recognition presented to a journalist who goes to extraordinary lengths to provide meaning and context to complicated news stories or issues of extreme public importance.

Resolution:

Whereas; Mrs. Lori Montenegro joined the National Association of Hispanic Journalists on March 21, 2002 and is a Lifetime member and an active member of the Washington D.C. Chapter,

Whereas; Mrs. Montenegro has advised our chapter, mentored our members, donated and hosted a chapter meeting at the Telemundo Network Capitol Hill Bureau in 2012,

Whereas; Mrs. Montenegro helped tremendously in preparing the national and local chapter in how to interact with staffers in the Obama, Trump and Biden administrations and securing Julio Vaqueiro to co-moderate the chapter’s White House panel discussion,

Whereas; Mrs. Montenegro moderated a plenary session with Democratic Presidential Candidate Hillary Rodham Clinton at the National Association of Hispanic Journalists and National Association of Black Journalists joint convention in Washington, D.C. on August 5, 2016.

Whereas, former NAHJ President Mekhalo Medina honored Mrs. Montenegro with the NAHJ Presidential Award of Visibility at the NAHJ-NABJ joint convention in 2016,

Whereas; Mrs. Montenegro shared her experience covering the Trump White House during the 2018 National Association of Hispanic Journalists convention in Miami.

Therefore be it resolved; the board of the National Association of Hispanic Journalists Washington, D.C. Chapter and it’s members-in-good-standing signed below, hereby nominate Lori Montenegro for the National Association of Hispanic Journalists Hall of Fame.

We the undersigned, being board members of the Washington, D.C. Chapter approved the resolution passed on Wednesday, April 19, 2023 during a membership meeting.

Brandon Benavides
President

Estefania Mitre
Secretary

Jason Zaragoza
At-Large Officer

Silvia Foster-Frau
Vice-President

Clara Dominguez
Treasurer

We the undersigned, being members in-good-standing signed below, approved the resolution.

Monica Alba
Rolando Arrieta
Priscilla Alvarez
Mauricio Casillas
Felix Contreras
Gloria Contreras
Pedro Cota
Jenny Cushman
Patricia Guadalupe
Fin Gomez
Susan Flores
Rafael Lorente
Maria Lucchini
Melissa Macaya
Ed O’Keefe
Joseph Olmo
Maria Pena
Yamila Pino
Sulema Salazar
Rafael Suarez
Cristobal Vasquez
Lucio Villa