In his role, Mendez is responsible for advancing diversity strategies for the various properties within DATG, including the ABC Television Network, ABC Studios, Disney Channel Worldwide, SOAPnet, Toon Disney, Disney XD, ABC Family and Walt Disney Television Animation, among others.

He also serves as DATG’s key liaison on diversity matters with government officials, the creative community, advocacy groups and others.

An accomplished television industry attorney, Mendez has managed business affairs, legal affairs, contract administration and production agreements for such successful television series as Live with Regis and Kelly and Who Wants To Be A Millionaire.

Long committed to employment diversity in the television industry and other business sectors, Mendez is a past president of the Hispanic National Bar Association and currently serves on the boards of The Imagen Foundation, the International Radio & Television Society Foundation, and is a member of the Los Angeles County Fair Association.

Prior to his current position, Mendez was Senior Vice President, Business & Legal Affairs for Buena Vista Television, the television syndication division of The Walt Disney Company (TWDC) that distributes Live with Regis and Kelly and manages the production and/or distribution of Who Wants To Be A Millionaire, and Ebert & Roeper, among other programs.
His previous responsibilities also extended to the domestic distribution of TWDC’s film library and other television product on various platforms, such as pay-per-view, pay cable, network and Internet.

Earlier in his career, Mendez spent 15 years with Paramount Pictures Domestic Television, where he rose to the position of Senior Vice President, Business Affairs, and was responsible for contract negotiation for series ranging from Entertainment Tonight to Dr. Phil.  He has also been a senior attorney for NBC involved in litigation management on First Amendment and other issues, and was Deputy Attorney General for the California Attorney General’s Criminal Division.

A native of California, Mendez received his Juris Doctorate from the University of California Davis School of Law, and his Bachelor of Arts in English and Natural History from Pomona College. He is a member of the California State Bar.

In his role, McNeal oversees DATG’s Talent Development programs, including the Disney │ABC Television Writing Fellowship, the Disney |ABC DGA Directing Fellowship, and the Television & Film Summer Workshop at the Institute of American Indian Arts, among many others. He is also responsible for further expanding the scope of these programs across DATG to include Disney Channel and ABC Family. Additionally, McNeal serves as a liaison between DATG and diversity-related organizations, non-profit arts institutions, entertainment industry guilds, colleges and universities nationwide to identify and nurture talented, emerging writers, actors and directors.

Previously, McNeal served as Senior Vice President, Development, Tom Lynch Company, where he led the production company’s expansion from kid-centered entertainment to primetime television.

Earlier in his career, as Executive Vice President for HollywoodTicket.com, McNeal was responsible for the interactive entertainment start-up’s marketing and promotion. In 1994, he joined The WB, where he eventually rose to the position of Vice President, Drama Development, and was responsible for shepherding the development of the hit series Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Dawson’s Creek and Felicity.

McNeal received his Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from UCLA.

In his role, he oversees DATG’s Writing Fellowship, the annual Impact Summit, and the Institute of American Indian Arts (IAIA) Television & Film Summer Workshop. Gonzalez’s position has been integral to the development and launch of the key DATG talent development programs since the creation of the department in 2000.

In 2007, Gonzalez spearheaded the creation of the department’s now annual Impact Summit, which is produced in partnership with the International Radio & Television Society (IRTS) Foundation.  The primary goal of the summit is to heighten educators’ awareness of the ever-evolving and changing entertainment industry. Additionally, Gonzalez serves as the event producer, writer, and director.

Among the other programs Gonzalez is involved with are DATG’s Directing Fellowship, and the National Hispanic Media Coalition (NHMC) Latino Television Writers Program.  He also leads outreach efforts across the country and engages in numerous speaking engagements throughout the year.

Prior to joining DATG, Gonzalez worked in video, film and television production, and syndicated television marketing.  A well-rounded independent filmmaker, his breadth of knowledge also spans short film and documentary production.

A native of Southern California, Gonzalez earned a Master of Fine Arts degree from the UCLA Producer’s Program, and a Bachelor of Arts in Film Studies from the University of California, Irvine. 

In her role, Jones oversees DATG’s Directing Program, which is in partnership with the Directors Guild of America.  She is also involved in such programs as DATG’s Writing Fellowship, the Television & Film Summer Workshop at the Institute of American Indian Arts (IAIA), and the National Hispanic Media Coalition (NHMC) Latino Television Writers Program.  Additional responsibilities include leading outreach efforts to recruit new talent, overseeing all aspects of internal and external communications, and departmental branding efforts.

Jones is a talented, multifaceted television network executive with careers in current programming, scripted and unscripted development, production and publicity.  Prior to joining DATG, she served as Senior Vice President of Development for a Touchstone Television joint venture between the Slamdance Film Festival and award-winning producer Orly Adelson (Playmakers).  Previous to that, she was Senior Vice President of Television for Edmonds Entertainment where she oversaw development for comedy, drama and reality series as well as television movies. In that position, she also served as a Co-Executive Producer for the BET reality series College Hill.

Before delving into television development, Jones spent nearly eight years at The WB Television Network where she served as Vice President of Primetime Publicity prior to her transition into Current Programming. As Vice President of Current Programming, she worked on series such as What I Like About You, Sabrina the Teenage Witch, The Jamie Foxx Show and Felicity. As a publicist, Jones also spent time at Fox Broadcasting Company where she worked on the initial launches of Beverly Hills, 90210 and In Living Color. She later moved to NBC where she worked on campaigns for series such as ER, Frasier and Friends. Jones earned the Publicists Guild of America’s prestigious Maxwell Weinberg Showmanship Award for her work on the latter’s campaign.

A native of Los Angeles, Jones graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Mass Communications-Journalism and a minor in Sociology from the University of California, Berkeley.