Spanish-language broadcaster Univision is rebranding starting January 1, with a new logo and–for the first time– a tagline. The new logo takes the familiar colors and shape of the previous logo, but makes it three dimensional.

The tagline, “el latido del corazón hispano de Estados Unidos,” translates as “The Hispanic Heartbeat of America.”

The Hollywood Reporter‘s Marisa Guthrie has more information.

Univision is by far the number one channel for Spanish-language viewers, and that leadership extends to its news programming, which includes “Univision Noticias” and “Al Punto con Jorge Ramos.” It is also working with ABC News to launch a new cable news channel–in English–next year. As we reported last week, some of the names being considered for the channel are “Accent,” “VZTA,” “UNA” and “U&A.”

Exclusive: The new cable news channel from ABC News and Univision is closing in on its new name, someone familiar with the process tells TVNewser.

Currently there are a number of names under discussion, including “Accent,” “VZTA,” “UNA” and “U&A.” UNA and U&A are a play on the names of the two parent companies, while Accent and VZTA (pronounced like “vista”) are brand names that the joint venture could “own.” The goal is to have a name chosen by November, we are told, even though the channel itself won’t launch until 2013. The JV already launched online last month.

A check of the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office filings shows that the prospective names above were all filed September 21st by “Univision ABC News Network, LLC.” The filings are 1B, which indicates intent to use. Those four names are the only ones filed at the USPTO by the joint venture, though we hear other names are also being considered.

Univision Communications also filed applications for the names “Uni Mas,” “Uni Dos” and “Uni 2″ on the same day, though it isn’t clear if those are applicable to the new venture.

The upcoming cable news channel from ABC News and Univision will be based in Miami, the city is expected to announce tomorrow.

The Miami Herald has more details:

Gov. Rick Scott is scheduled to announce the decision at Wednesday’s annual meeting of the Beacon Council, Miami-Dade’s economic development agency. The organization helped the joint venture secure about $3.5 million in local subsidies for the new network over the next five years.

“If there is a place to have a 24-hour network for Hispanics, it’s Miami,’’ said Miami Mayor Tomas Regalado, who added he will be attending Wednesday’s announcement. “I think it’s fantastic, and I think it’s a natural.”

We noted back in July that the company was seeking millions of dollars in incentives from the local government in South Florida, and it appears it received those incentives. The company said it may originate from New York, Los Angeles or Houston if it did not receive the financial incentives, and the agreement ensures that the network will be in Miami, which is already home to Univision.

The ABC News/Univision project continues to develop, and we are beginning to get a sense of the tone that is being set. The network, which for now is just a sub-site on ABCNews.com, is launching a new series called “Arpaio Watch,” which is dedicated to monitoring the policies of Arizona sheriff Joe Arpaio, and the impact they have on the Latino community.

“The goal of Arpaio Watch is to monitor the effects of Arpaio’s policies on Arizona immigrant communities, and to report from the ground up about how immigration raids, disproportionate police stops and a disconnect between residents and law enforcement can impact a community,” writes the columnist.

In addition, the network has quietly put out a survey aimed at Latino immigrants. The goal is to determine which term is most appropriate for people “without authorization,” as the survey says.

Which term do you prefer be used when talking about immigration status: illegal immigrant, undocumented immigrant, or something else? *
¿Cuál frase prefieres para describir estatus migratorio: inmigrante ilegal, inmigrante indocumentado o algo diferente?

Viewers of the two Univision forums may have noticed the staunchly different tones. The interview of President Obama was relatively sedated, with a quiet crowd, both during the questions and answers. The Romney interview, on the hand, featured a crowd that would burst into cheers when the candidate answered, and booed the moderators when they asked a tough question.

It wasn’t a coincidence, according to BuzzFeed: While the Obama forum was comprised mostly of students, who won tickets through a lottery, the Romney interview featured a slew of Romney supporters, bused in from across Florida.

Salinas told BuzzFeed that tickets for each forum were divided between the network, the respective campaigns, and the University of Miami (which hosted the events) — and she said both campaigns initially agreed to keep the audience comprised mostly of students, in keeping with the events’ education theme.

But after exhausting the few conservative groups on campus, the Romney camp realized there weren’t enough sympathetic students to fill the stands on their night — so they told the network and university that if they weren’t given an exemption to the students-only rule, they might have to “reschedule.”
The organizers relented…

In any case, Romney’s team was allowed to bus in rowdy activists from around southern Florida in order to fill the extra seats at their town hall.

Today ABC News and Univision formally “sealed the deal” so to speak, having completed the agreement to form a joint venture cable news channel. The companies have been hammering out the details since May, when the tentative agreement was announced.

Not coincidentally, a number of details about the upcoming cable news channel have leaked as part of an application granting it $10.5 million in incentives from Miami-Dade County and the State of Florida. The incentives are meant to ensure that the channel will be based out of Miami. The application in question indicates that if the incentives were not approved, the company would consider basing its operations out of New York, Los Angeles or Houston.

The new company (identified as “Confidential Project ‘Vision’” in official documents obtained by TVNewser) says it will add 346 jobs in the county, with an average salary of over $81,000 a year. That is in addition to the 137 people currently employed by one of the parent companies there. The expected capital investment cost for the company is expected to be $275 million. As we have previously reported, the channel will launch online this year, and on TV next year.

The application does not mention Univision or ABC by name, but the description of the companies leaves little to the imagination. South Florida Business Journal‘s Brian Bandell has details:
Read more

We’ve all heard the saying “yellow and green make blue,” which isn’t actually true, as the combination creates something more akin to lime green. Nevertheless, the faux formula persists in some people’s minds, including a former member of the All England Club, who worried that yellow balls being smashed on green grass would create “bloody blue balls at Wimbledon.” Let’s hear venerable announcer Dick Enberg share the tale yesterday with fellow announcer Chris Evert, who responds, “OK, I’ll leave that one alone.”

PromaxBDA has announced its jury for the 2010 Sports Media Marketing Awards. The awards, set for November 18, 2010, will honor work from across the sports marketing field.

Among the judges: Dallas Mavericks owner and HDNet founder Mark Cuban, HBO Sports president Ross Greenburg, ESPN.com columnist Bill Simmons and Turner Sports president David Levy.

The other judges are David Droga from Droga5, Bob Garfield from NPR and Ad Age, Eric Markgraf from Fox Sports Media Group, Stephanie Smith from Comcast Sports Group and Jennifer Storms from Gatorade.

Comedian Jay Mohr will host the event, which will be held at the Angel Orensanz Foundation.

“It is fitting that the phenomenal work that has been submitted for the Sports Media Marketing Awards will be judged by some of the most respected names in sports,” said Jonathan Block-Verk, president of PromaxBDA in a statement. “We’re thrilled that this all-star jury is going to help us honor and celebrate the groundbreaking creative and strategic work being done in this area of media marketing.”