Cal State Fullerton communications professor Henry Puente spent a weekend during the fall 2025 semester absorbing information needed to teach the next generation of media professionals.
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Puente, whose coursework focuses on media diversity, U.S. Latino media and the entertainment industry, was one of only 18 educators nationwide be selected for an Alex Trebek Legacy Fellowship, a prestigious award given by the Television Academy Foundation.
The nonprofit organization selects media educators from minority-serving institutions to attend the annual Media Educators Conference.
Held Oct. 22-24 at the Television Academy Foundation in North Hollywood, the annual conference “aims to bridge the gap between academia and the television industry, ensuring that attending educators are well-equipped to teach the next generation of media professionals,” according to a foundation news release.
Puente said the sessions focused on the rapidly shifting media landscape and the challenges facing content creators and distributors as viewing habits continue to fragment.
“You get to … listen to trends that are happening within the streaming industry or television industry,” said Puente, himself a Cal State Fullerton graduate. You’re learning about information that you can go back and share with your students.”
The conference examined potential strategies to keep younger audiences engaged as their attention shifts toward social media.
Puente said one topic that stood out was the rise of vertical shorts, designed for short‑form, mobile‑first video formats that studios and platforms are still struggling to monetize.
Many of today’s media consumers have grown up consuming media in seconds-long bursts, and the industry is still trying to develop strategies to connect with these viewers, said Puente, who began teaching at CSUF in 2006.
“They were talking about challenges of capitalizing on content that’s 20, 30 minutes long,” Puente said. “This new generation (wants) content (that’s) 15 minutes. “How do we adjust to keep interest to the younger generation?” he said. “They’re on social media. … How do we keep this younger generation moving forward?”
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Established in 2021, the Alex Trebek Legacy fellowship is named for television icon and longtime host of “Jeopardy!”, who died from pancreatic cancer on Nov. 8, 2020, at age 80.
“The Media Educators Conference underscores our commitment to advancing excellence in media and television studies,” said foundation chair Tina Perry, president of the Oprah Winfrey Network. “We commend the professors selected as 2025 Alex Trebek Fellows. Their work ensures that students across the nation are prepared to engage professionally and meaningfully in the ever-evolving media landscape.”
Puente said many of his students are first‑generation college students, and while they’re enthusiastic about storytelling, they’re equally curious about how media organizations operate.
Puente, who teaches a variety of media-related courses, said the fellowship reinforced how quickly the field is evolving and how critical it is for students to understand the business behind the content they consume.
Many of his students want to work in film, television, live events, sports broadcasting or even theme parks.
“There is a pretty good entertainment umbrella of potential jobs out there,” he said. “A lot of them are interested in working in some capacity in the motion picture industry, with live events, with sports.”
Puente previously chaired the film department at CSUF before shifting his focus to entertainment studies.
In 2011, he authored “The Promotion and Distribution of U.S. Latino Films,” which examined the marketing and distribution strategies for U.S. Latino films.
Puente also authored “Marketing and Distribution Lessons from Hispanic Hollywood,” which probes marketing campaigns and box-office results of U.S. Latino-themed films from the “Hispanic Hollywood” era of the late 1980s.
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He is also in the process of writing his second textbook.