Eva Longoria Says Networks are Scared of Latino Shows
Mexican-American actress Eva Longoria said networks are scared of programming diverse shows, according to Fox News Latino.
The "Desperate Housewives" star said, "What I found over the years is that networks are so committed to developing diversity, but they're very, very scared about actually programming it."
Eva is producing "Devious Maids" for Lifetime. She will also star in "Telenova" which was originally created for ABC by "Desperate Housewives" creator Marc Cherry but landed on cable instead.
Some of the roles she plays relate to the immigration issues in the United States while most of them show a more glamorous life, Los Angeles Times reported
In "Desperate Housewives" Eva's character is proud to find out that a Latino busboy's son is in college.
"Wow, his son's in college," she says in the show. "That's the American dream. That's why people come here. It's not to rape and pillage our social systems."
Longoria also plays in "Frontera," where she is a poor Mexican farmer who tries to sneak over the border in search of her husband.
"I dyed my hair black. I gained a little weight. I spoke Spanish - I've never spoken Spanish in a movie. I was unrecognizable, and I loved that," the actress said bout her role in "Frontera."
"We're not trying to solve the immigration debate with this movie," she said. "We're just trying to tell a love story, and what people will do for love. That it happens to be set on the border is what makes it topical and eye-opening."
The actress and activist received a master's degree in Chicano studies from Cal State Northridge. When hearing about "Frontera" she said that she would be honored to play in the film.
An Associated Press analysis of television diversity has found that ABC, Fox and NBC have a higher percentage of blacks on prime-time TV, according to Fox News Latino.
The report also finds that there are more blacks on those networks than Latinos despite the fact that Latinos outnumber the population of blacks in the United States.
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