Carlos McConnie works every day for two weeks per month as host of Euromaxx, DW's lifestyle and culture TV program. He films both in Spanish, for viewers in Latin America, and in English, reaching a worldwide audience.
Image: DW / J. Röhl
A photoshoot in the courtyard of DW's Berlin studios results in a number of good shots after just a few minutes. Carlos McConnie is at home in front of the camera. He is a star in his home country of Puerto Rico, as he is in Latin America in general. He used to host the biggest entertainment show in Latin America and worked as a model. Countless fans follow him on social media.
An Internet search of the DW host brings up a number of images: McConnie on stage or the red carpet, interviewing Shakira or Antonio Banderas, always surrounded by glamorous celebrities.
Euromaxx host Carlos McConnie: "I like to captivate people."In real life he comes across as warm and grounded, open and easygoing, as one would imagine a person who grew up under the Caribbean sun. "Everything that I am, that I am made of, I learned in my home country Puerto Rico," he says. McConnie grew up there and studied business and communication. He became a host by chance, all because he was approached in the street one day.
His first audition was a bullseye, and a side job with MTV soon became a full-time job. He traded business attire for bright blazers, giving up his carrier as a marketing manager to become a television host. "The creative environment inspired me far more than the dull day-to-day life of a sales executive." He has since spent the past ten years in this business, hosting big shows and reality programs in Puerto Rico and recently in the United States as well. "I like to captivate people," the 34-year-old says. And most importantly: "I can be authentic, I can be myself." Isn't it hard, to always play the role of the entertainer, to always be in a happy mood in front of the camera? "It's the opposite. The camera has an almost therapeutic effect, making me push problems out of the way. It energizes me," McConnie says.
The last big show that he co-hosted was “Sábado Gigante,” Latin America's oldest and largest entertainment program. Back then, Europe was far from sight. "The television market in Latin America is completely different than that in Europe or Germany," says McConnie. It's more about entertainment, the boulevard and opulent staging in Latin America, where commercial media dominates.
What had McConnie glimpsed of Europe in Puerto Rico? Little - Latin America's focus is set on the North American market. The US counts among its most important external actors. He had only visited Europe twice. The second time was for his Deutsche Welle audition in Berlin, following an invitation from Carlos Delgado, the leader of DW's Spanish-language department. Why Europe? Why the switch to DW? "I wanted to experience something new," McConnie says. One year later he was still commuting between his shows filmed in Miami and Berlin. Only six months ago he eventually moved to the German capital.
"I believe that DW with its programming enriches the Latin American market, from both the optic presentation as well as its content. Latin America's media market is shaped by a culture of 'machismo' so the diversity of its society is rarely depicted. Latin Americans with dark skin-color are underrepresented in the media and in films and are discriminated against in this way." There are few educational programs, and Europe hardly plays a role at all. But McConnie is confident that "if we bring Europe closer to the people there, then they'll also become much more interested in it."
That was, after all, what happened to him. The diversity of Europe and the topics that make up Euromaxx - travel, art, fashion, architecture, music - mean that everyday there is something new. "Up to now I was in Europe first of all to work, but I am happy to finally get to see more of it," such as the Oktoberfest in Munich and the cathedral in Cologne. At the top of his list are the Greek islands.
Diversity, open-mindedness, tolerance - these values are important to McConnie, who was raised strictly Catholic in Puerto Rico. These are values that are also alive in Berlin, a facet that he values so much about the city. As well as the freedom it offers him - in Cuba, Venezuela or Puerto Rico he is always recognized when walking down the street. "Here I have my privacy, I'm not constantly being observed." Recently he was approached in Berlin for the first time, by a Chilean woman visiting her daughter. "She came up to me on the subway and said she knows my shows." The incident certainly brought a smile to his face.
