Aguilar inducted into Hall of Fame

National Association of Hispanic Journalists 

By Simon Pruitt

Rebecca Aguilar is a singular talent. After 41 years as a journalist, she’s built an indisputable reputation including seven EMMY Award wins and being elected as the Society of Professional Journalists 105th President, the first of Latina descent and the first woman of color. 

On Saturday, August 6, her 41 years were commemorated. The National Association of Hispanic Journalists (NAHJ) nominated and inducted Aguilar into their prestigious Hall of Fame. 

Her induction is a long time coming. Aguilar says she’s been a member of NAHJ since the early 1980s and has witnessed the number of journalists that cycled through.

“I’ve seen people go from small town reporter to a CNN correspondent,” Aguilar said, “The beauty is that you grow up with these journalists.”

While the recognition of Aguilar’s career seemed inevitable, it’s not her achievements that keep her running after a lifetime of work. Aguilar has sought to lead by example to aspiring journalists of Latin descent. 

Aguilar’s success has done just that, paving the way for a number of Latino voices to find their way into a media culture that previously rejected them. 

“I’m tired of the cliche, ‘voice for the voiceless’,” Aguilar explained passionately, “We’ve always had a voice.”

Aguilar’s fiery drive to inspire cultural change through media was ignited at a young age. “My parents were undocumented workers who came over here in the ’50s,” she continued, “They taught me that I could do anything.”

Aguilar’s father, Alfredo, spent the first few years of her life doing labor work in hot Ohio fields. After recognizing the lack of representation for his race and culture in the country he lived in, he created one of the first Spanish radio stations in the entire state. 

The station capitalized on an audience of migrant workers who suddenly felt the fraternity and unifying power of media that was made for them, by them. Alfredo Aguilar became that unifier. Using his influence, he organized a number of protests against unfair treatment of migrant workers. 

“Not only did I see the power of a microphone, my father spoke broken English!” Aguilar explained, “But when he spoke in English, he had no fear.” 

Borrowing from her father Borrowing from her father’s strategic thinking, Aguilar s strategic thinking, Aguilar forged her way into an industry that has been undoubtedly changed by her, and the countless other Latino voices in media. Hall of Fame or not, her passion remains just as strong as it ever was.