By Leonard Rodriguez
This column highlights inspiring stories of Latino leaders. For more than 500 years, Latino men and women have positively influenced the face of United States society. Let us celebrate these outstanding hispanics.

Sally Jessy Raphael

Radio and TV personality Sally Jessy Raphael began her career reading school news on the air. After studying at Columbia University and at the Actor’s Studio in New York, Raphael worked in numerous broadcasting jobs before landing an anchor position for a miami morning TV show and hosting an afternoon radio interview show.

By 1976, she was co-hosting a New York radio show where she talked her way into a trial radio call-in show. Finally finding her niche, her career rocketed and she was chosen for a TV version in 1983. With more than 30 years in broadcasting, Raphael is the recipient of a 1989 Emmy Award for Outstanding Talk Show Host and a 1990 Emmy for Best Talk Show.