The 2016 Miss Universe Puerto Rico Pageant is heading to WAPA Television.
The San Juan, P.R., broadcast-TV station and its U.S. cable network, WAPA America, have nabbed the exclusive rights to the event, set for Nov. 12 at Centro de Bellas Artes in San Juan.
WAPA and WAPA América will both broadcast the coronation ceremony live. The pageant winner will represent Puerto Rico at the 2016 Miss Universe pageant, to be held in Budapest, Hungary.
Rights for Miss Universe Puerto Rico were previously held by Telemundo-owned WKAQ-TV in San Juan.
“The Miss Universe Puerto Rico pageant is the biggest television event in Puerto Rico, and we’re thrilled to have it back on WAPA,” Alan J. Sokol, president of WAPA Television parent Hemisphere Media Group, said. “We look forward to the opportunity to bring this highly anticipated event to our U.S. viewers on WAPA America.”
Desireé Lowry, co-director of the pageant, added: “Our team is extremely excited to be working with WAPA, and we are confident that 2015 will mark a new phase in the development of our beloved competition.”
WAPA Television will also air a special program covering the lead-up to the main event, which will feature each candidate’s elaborate preparation process.
The 2016 pageant will also feature Miss Princess Puerto Rico, which offers young girls between the ages of 5 and 8 an opportunity to participate in the pageant. “Princesses will be judged on values such as love, hope, charity, peace, happiness, affection, patience, tenderness, valiancy, respect, equality, and tolerance, among other qualities,” the network noted in a release. Miss Princess Puerto Rico will air live in September as an online-only offering, available at www.wapa.tv.
