José Enrique "Kike" Cruz Díaz (born 28 December, 1952), better known as Enrique "Kike" Cruz, is a Puerto Rican television journalist. A former news director of Canal 4, Cruz is in the

Guinness Book of World Records ''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a reference book published annually, listing world ...

as having the longest career as a television news director, being the news director of Canal 4's news show, Noticentro 4, for 42 years.

Early life

Cruz was born in Orocovis, Puerto Rico, the son of businessman Carmelo Cruz and homemaker Berta Díaz.Enrique “Kike” Cruz volvería a nacer orocoveño-VÍDEO - Primera Hora
/ref> In high school, Cruz used to do the school announcements on the school's public speaker. He was selected as class, student council and Catholic students body president.Enrique “Kike” Cruz celebra su pasión - Primera Hora
/ref> At the age of 19, Cruz debuted as a radio news journalist at WIAC, a radio station in

San Juan San Juan, Spanish for Saint John, may refer to: Places Argentina * San Juan Province, Argentina * San Juan, Argentina, the capital of that province * San Juan, Salta, a village in Iruya, Salta Province * San Juan (Buenos Aires Underground), ...

. Cruz during the era also took curses at the University of Puerto Rico, where he wanted to study medicine at first, but from where he graduated with a bachelor's degree in general studies instead. He then worked for WKAQ radio and for 11Q, which were two other San Juan radio stations. Soon, however, his life would change when he met

Alfred D. Herger Alfred Domingo Herger (born November 4, 1942) is a Puerto Rican television show host and a psychologist. He has been labeled ''the Ed Sullivan of Puerto Rico'' in local media, due to his strong influence on Puerto Rican popular culture and his suc ...

, who, alongside

Evelio Otero Evelio Otero (March 13, 1920 – February 12, 1988) was the first television anchorman in Puerto Rico and one of the first in Latin America. Early life Otero was born on March 13, 1920, in Santiago de Cuba, Cuba, to a Galician father and Can ...

, invited Cruz to join television's Canal 4 as a news reporter on their television news show, "Noticentro 4".

Television news journalist

"Kike" Cruz started at WAPA-TV during 1976. He was a news anchorman at Noticentro 4, along with others such as

Guillermo Jose Torres Guillermo () is the Spanish form of the male given name William. The name is also commonly shortened to 'Guille' or, in Latin America, to nickname 'Memo'. People *Guillermo Amor (born 1967), Spanish football manager and former player *Guillermo Ar� ...

Pedro Rosa Nales Pedro Rosa Nales (born December 3, 1956 in Fajardo, Puerto Rico) is a Puerto Rican journalist, news anchor and a recognized martial artist. As a journalist he has received over 20 awards. Journalism He started working at radio station WMDD in ...

and Luz Nereida Velez. On 10 November, 1980, he was named vice-president and director of the channel's news department. Cruz reported on many international news as a Noticentro 4 journalist. Among the news that really left a personal impact on him were the

Jonestown Massacre The Peoples Temple Agricultural Project, better known by its informal name "Jonestown", was a remote settlement in Guyana established by the Peoples Temple, a U.S.–based cult under the leadership of Jim Jones. Jonestown became internationa ...

Guyana Guyana ( or ), officially the Cooperative Republic of Guyana, is a country on the northern mainland of South America. Guyana is an indigenous word which means "Land of Many Waters". The capital city is Georgetown. Guyana is bordered by the ...

and the Maria Hurricane in Puerto Rico.https://www.pressreader.com/puerto-rico/el-nuevo-dia1/20180812/281509342017670 In the Jim Jones suicide-murder case at the so-called "Jonestown", Cruz flew to Guyana to cover the news and he reported in Guyana from a helicopter live to Puerto Rican audiences, and viewing the bodies of the dead from the helicopter affected him. Another important news event Cruz covered live was the arrival of Pope John Paul II to Puerto Rico in 1984, in a transmission in which he was also the general producer. That moment was the first, and, as of 2023, only time a Pope has visited Puerto Rico. Cruz retired as a television journalist at canal 4 in the early 2010s. During 2019, Cruz made a brief comeback to his career as a television journalist, rejoining Noticentro 4 for a bit while, while the channel found someone else to do that job. He then proceeded to, in 2021, join Canal 11's news department.El director de noticias Enrique “Kike” Cruz y extalentos de “Dando Candela” llegan a TeleOnce - El Nuevo Día
/ref>

Personal life

Cruz married Ligia Serrallés. The couple had three children: daughter Maria Margaríta (born in 1979) and sons José Enrique, Jr. (born 1990) and Jorge Juan (born 2000).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cruz, Enrique 1952 births Living people People from Orocovis, Puerto Rico Puerto Rican television journalists University of Puerto Rico alumni

Early life

Television news journalist

Personal life

See also

References