Mayor Bill de Blasio Appoints Cynthia Lopez as Commissioner of MOME

Mayor Bill de Blasio Appoints Cynthia Lopez as Commissioner of The Mayor's Office of Media & Entertainment

Mayor de Blasio today appointed Cynthia López as commissioner of the Mayor's Office of Media and Entertainment. A native New Yorker, López brings more than two decades of experience in New York City's film and television industries and a commitment to nurturing talented, up-and-coming filmmakers and forging partnerships with top national media companies. As commissioner, López will build upon the city's legacy as a film and television hub, with a focus on investing in new projects to diversify and build a more inclusive entertainment industry, and expand educational and training opportunities for the film and television industries.

López currently serves as executive vice president and co-executive producer of American Documentary and the critically acclaimed documentary series, POV, where she is responsible for all aspects of the organization's development, including programming, community engagement communications, marketing and digital strategies. Over the course of her career, López has made it a priority to promote the work of filmmakers from traditionally underrepresented groups, and mentor first-time filmmakers.

About Cynthia López

Cynthia López has served as executive vice president and co-executive producer of American Documentary and the award-winning documentary series POV (Point of View) since 2006. At POV, she has successfully implemented outreach strategies that increase public awareness about issues vital to the American public. Her ability to forge strategic partnerships among corporate and public interest media has been a signature of her work. The impact of the documentaries POV presents is palpable, and López has worked with key stakeholders in education, public policy and community development. López has been at American Documentary and POV since 2000, previously holding the positions of vice president and communications director.

During López's tenure, POV has earned numerous awards. In 2013 alone, it was one of only 13 nonprofit organizations worldwide to receive a $1 million MacArthur Award for Creative and Effective Institutions. Among its other honors are a Special News & Documentary Emmy Award for Excellence in Television Documentary Filmmaking, two IDA Awards for Best Continuing Series, 32 additional Emmy Awards, 15 George Foster Peabody Awards, 11 duPont-Columbia Broadcast Journalism Awards, three Academy Awards®, the Prix Italia and the Webby. López is the recipient of eight News & Documentary Emmy Awards.

Prior to joining POV, she served as acting executive director of the Deep Dish Satellite TV Network and executive producer of Hunter College's Satellite TV Network, which included university, municipal, and public access channels that distributed Latino public interest programming. López is the founding chair of the board of directors and a trustee of the National Association of Latino Independent Producers (NALIP). She also serves on the board of directors for Latino Public Broadcasting (LPB).

The daughter of Puerto Rican parents, López grew up in Sunset Park, Brooklyn and currently lives in Jackson Heights, Queens. She received her B.A. from Hunter College.

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