I Was a TV Personality… for a Little While
(Well… sort of.)
Saying I was a "TV personality" might be stretching it a bit, but hey: I was on TV, and I have the videos to prove it.
In 2009, I started an initiative called Tecnología Libre. Under that name, I published Economía y Productividad con Software Libre, and launched INTELICA, a training program focused on open-source tools.
(Tecnología Libre, Inc. was technically a non-profit organization. We came close to getting the 501(c)(3) exemption… but yeah, paperwork. Never filed it.)
Let's rewind a bit more: in the late 90s, I was in charge of everything internet-related at TeleOnce, what's now Univisión Puerto Rico. I still have friendships from that time—and fun fact, that's where I met my now wife.
Years later, around 2010, I got a call from one of the reporters:
"We have an available slot in the noon newscast. Would you be interested in talking about technology?"
And just like that, out of nowhere, I ended up on television. In my head I thought: "If they give me the microphone, I'll take care of the rest."
The dynamic was pretty relaxed: a live segment every two weeks. I'd send the topic, some images or a supporting video, and show up. Everything was live, unscripted, and I did it for free, because honestly, it was guaranteed exposure.
But as expected, things started changing.
Production began suggesting the direction: they wanted trendy gadgets, market launches, consumer technology. Meanwhile, what interested me was education, digital freedom, and long-term technological literacy.
And although I did sometimes bring up or mention new products, I never got excited about what was "hot" in the gadget world.
And so, as casually as it started, it faded away. Little by little I stepped back, and they found someone more aligned with what they were looking for. Everyone won. No drama, no awkward exit.
I managed to archive most of the segments. If you're curious, they're all on YouTube.
INTELICA was the other free-tech project from that same era.
The Puerto Rico internet of the 90s, when I worked at TeleOnce, was where I wrote my first book.
Media wants trending gadgets. Platforms want the same thing — I wrote about why that's a bigger problem.
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