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PBS en Español
 WMFE CEO José A. Fajardo is hoping to add locally produced Spanish-language programming in a couple of years. [Photo: Gregg Matthews] |
In March, Orlando's public broadcasting TV station, WMFE, became one of only a handful of PBS stations nationwide to launch a Spanish-language channel. V-me un servicio de WMFE, pronounced veh-meh for short, brings a mix of educational programs from Spanish-speaking countries and English-language programs dubbed into Spanish. V-me comes from the Spanish phrase ve me, which means see me. Programs range from children's educational shows to public affairs reports to contemporary Spanish-language films.
WNET in New York, where V-me gets its content, looked to the Orlando market because of central Florida's growing Hispanic population, says WMFE President and CEO José A. Fajardo. Hispanic residents make up about 22% of central Florida's population, and the number of Spanish-speaking residents grew 170% from 1990 to 2000, U.S. Census figures show.
Eight other markets with fast-growing Hispanic populations will carry V-me's programming, including Miami, Los Angeles and Chicago.
WMFE plans to add locally produced programs to V-me in the next 18 to 24 months, Fajardo says. The station launched the channel using its existing staff and will add positions as V-me grows.
The V-me addition is one of several changes taking place this year at WMFE, which also operates public radio station 90.7 FM. Fajardo, formerly WMFE's president and general manager, was promoted to the station's second-ever CEO at the beginning of the year, replacing Stephen McKenney Steck. WMFE also brought in former San Diego newsman Brian Johnson in March as executive producer for local programming.
