HH&S director Buffington among 100 Most Influential Hispanics in America

Los Angeles – Feb. 08, 2012

HH&S Director Sandra de Castro Buffington was named one of the 100 Most Influential Hispanics in America by Poder Hispanic magazine for her work in helping to improve the health of TV audiences.

Buffington “connects [writers and producers] with all kinds of health professionals and specialists, helping showrunners build not only believable storylines, but ones beneficial to the viewers as well,” the magazine said.

Those on the list “reflect the breadth and depth of U.S. Hispanic diversity ... and come from almost every sector of society, including business, government and politics, media, sports, entertainment and non-profits.”

Also among those honored: Soledad O’Brien, anchor and special correspondent for CNN; Antonio Villaraigosa, mayor of Los Angeles; Mariano Rivera, pitcher for the New York Yankees; Sofia Vergera, co-star of TV’s “Modern Family”; Monica Lozano, CEO of Impremedia; Sonia Sotomayor, associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court; Salma Hayek, actress and producer; Hilda Solis, U.S. secretary of Labor; Gustavo Dudamel, conductor of the Los Angeles Philharmonic; Jose “Joe” Chavarria, chief of domestic investigations for the U.S. Marshals Service; Emilio Azcárraga III, chairman, president and CEO of Grupo Televisa; and Jose Gomez, archbishop of Los Angeles.

HH&S, a program of the USC Annenberg Norman Lear Center, offers consultations and briefings for entertainment industry professionals on subjects that include cancer, tuberculosis, malaria, obesity, HIV-AIDS, school violence, smoking and climate change.