Michele Ruiz

Michele Ruiz (born January 21, 1965), is an entrepreneur, award-winning broadcast journalist, author, public speaker and former Los Angeles news anchor for KNBC-TV. She is co-founder and CEO of BiasSync, a SaaS technology company that helps organizations identify and eliminate biases in the workplace. She is also President and CEO of Ruiz Strategies, a communications firm that develops and executes content marketing strategies for businesses, government entities and executives. She is also the founder and former President/CEO of SaberHacer.com, a bilingual educational broadband website for US Hispanics. She maintains a self-titled blog on the site MicheleRuiz.com.

Early life Ruiz was born in Glendale, California on January 21, 1965. Her parents were Panamanian, and Ruiz described a difficult childhood growing up in Southern California dealing with racism, discrimination and poverty, an upbringing that she credits for making her "scrappy" and determined.

Broadcasting career Ruiz began her broadcasting career in 1989, co-anchoring Channel One News. The program initially began as a pilot program broadcast in four high schools, before its national debut in 1990.

From 1991 to 1998, Ruiz worked at KTLA in Los Angeles, California as a field reporter and morning anchor for the station's KTLA Morning News.

In 1998, she joined KNBC-TV as a general assignment reporter. In 2001, she was promoted to an anchor position, where she co-anchored the station's nightly 6:00 pm newscast with Chuck Henry.

Journalism awards Ruiz has received 19 Emmy Award nominations, and is a five-time honoree, as well as a four-time Golden Mike Award-recipient. and two Golden Mikes. In 2003, she won two more Emmys for her work on NBC4 news specials "Journey to Africa" and "LA Riots: Rubble to Rebirth." She has received numerous honors, including two Golden Mikes, for her work on NBC4's "Beating the Odds" series, and in 2002 was presented the LA Press Club Award for a series on autism.

Ruiz Strategies In 2011, Ruiz started Ruiz Strategies, a strategic communications and content marketing services company that uses social media, new media, traditional media and virtual technologies to help companies and individuals promote themselves.

Author In January 2016, Ruiz published her first book, a guide to legal marketing and advertising entitled Content Marketing For Lawyers.

Charity work

Ruiz has served on the Board of Directors for the non-profit agency Para Los Niños for 13 years.

Awards and recognition Ruiz was given two commendations for "Outstanding Citizenship for Civic Contributions" and "Dedication to the Community" by the City of Los Angeles. She was named "Latina of the Year" and "Comision Femenil De Los Angeles". She also received the Certificate of Congressional Commendation from the U.S. House of Representatives, a commendation letter from the United States Senate, and a Certificate of Recognition from the California State Senate.

Ruiz was honored in 2006 with Cal State Fullerton's Vision & Visionaries award. The Distinguished Alumni Award is the highest honor that the university bestows on its graduates. It has been presented to titans in business, science, education, communications and the arts, and brings to the forefront, the vision, achievements and philanthropic efforts of Cal State Fullerton's graduates.

In 2013, Ruiz was named "Inspiring Latina" and featured in Latina Magazine. Also in 2013, Ruiz was named as a Champion of Diversity, by DiversityBusiness.com.

Film appearance Ruiz had a cameo role as a television reporter in the 1993 film Rising Sun, based on Michael Crichton's novel of the same name.

Personal Ruiz lives in Los Angeles.