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AFP joins Inter American Press Association board of directors
Maria Lorente, AFP bureau chief for Buenos Aires (Argentina) and Asuncion (Paraguay), was elected to the board of directors of the Inter American Press Association for 2020-23, during the 76th general assembly of an organisation that brings together the heads of the main Latin American press groupings and United States media.
The Inter American Press Association is a non-governmental organisation defending press freedom on the American continent (South, Central and North America) that was founded in 1942 and is based in Miami, US.
“The election of Maria Lorente is a tremendous sign of the recognition of AFP’s work”, said Pierre Ausseill, AFP Director for Latin America, “It is incredibly rare for a member of a global news agency to be represented on the board”.
With a degree in information sciences from the Complutense University in Madrid, Maria Lorente was an AFP reporter in Los Angeles and Brussels before taking the role of AFP’s editor in chief for Latin America (2013-19). In this role she oversaw the digital transformation of the region, the development of a video service and digital investigation, in line with AFP’s strategic priorities. From a commercial perspective, she developed client loyalty strategies as well as relationships with other media and business markets. She also took part in several conferences and presentations on new audiences, digital transformation and the fight against disinformation. As a special envoy and as part of multimedia organisation and co-ordination missions, she took part in the coverage of major Latin American stories, such as the Venezuela crisis, Mexican elections in 2018, the impeachment of Dilma Rousseff in Brazil, and the death of Fidel Castro in Cuba in 2015.