A portrait of Jenny
The many-faceted Jenny Scordamaglia: TV presenter, motivational speaker, retreat owner, naturism advocate…
INTERVIEW: JENNY SCORDAMAGLIA
A PORTRAIT OF JENNY
TV presenter and executive, motivational speaker, retreat owner, naturism advocate… Paul Rouse talks to the many-faceted Jenny Scordamaglia and traces a career path that has taken her from New Jersey via Miami to Mexico’s Mayan Riviera.
Firstly, how do you describe yourself?
I'm not much of a title person, but since I do a bit of everything, I would just say ‘entrepreneur.’ I love learning, and even if I can’t always be an expert, I’m always keen to find out more about what goes on behind the scenes. In TV, that includes everything from editing to production, and in property, it’s understanding some of the complexities of real estate and construction.
And how did it start?
I was born in Jersey City, but we moved to Uruguay, which is where I grew up. I came back to the States as a teenager, but I was pretty lost for a while, promoting nightclubs in Miami for fun. I went to college to study fashion design and did a few modelling and acting gigs. But it wasn’t until I met my husband (TV producer Enrique Benzoni) and we set up Miami TV that things started to take off.
Like your clothes?
Yes! In the early days, around 2008, I was the main presenter, and we focused on travelling and filming entertainment for our subscribers, in English and Spanish. Streaming was basically just starting and even YouTube was in its infancy.
This is our baby, which has grown through the years, delivering interviews and coverage of live events that were often outside the mainstream. We broke protocols with nip slips, me in skimpy clothing and - in the case of reports from naturist beaches, night clubs or carnivals - full nudity, which wasn't as accepted as much then as it is today.
We also launched Miami TV Latino, which is a Spanish-language over-the-air channel in Europe and Latin America, again with the emphasis on pure entertainment: no news, no politics, no topics that divide us, but just something that puts a smile on people’s faces.
What restrictions, if any, are placed on the content? And nudity?
That’s the beauty of us owning the station. No one can tell me what to say, or wear. Any cable channel airing our signal knows there’s nudity after midnight. I don’t think I could ever work for a regular TV station. I don’t like being told what to do! I like freedom. And the same applies to whoever joins our team. We’re about fun, and positive entertainment.
So what are some of the most fun things you have done naked on TV?
That’s a tough one. However, one of my favourite events has to be Fantasy Fest in Key West. There’s a little bit of everything there, from nudists, to trans, to fetish and simply curious tourists. But it’s great to see everyone coming together in such a liberal and respectful way, with nobody there trying to impose their ideas on you (apart from a couple of protesting church groups) and everyone just enjoying the liberating atmosphere.
You’re obviously very relaxed about nudity. Has that always been the case?
Enrique helped. He told me that to be comfortable naked on camera, I first needed to be comfortable with myself. So, he recommended I walk around naked as much as I could within the studio, and our apartment, with as many mirrors set up as possible. He certainly wasn’t complaining! But it worked. I started to accept my body as it is, and feel confident. You don’t necessarily notice it consciously at first, but as time passes you realise your confidence levels have soared and it’s the perfect way to relax. I then visited a nude beach for the first time, in Miami, and like everyone else, you think people will stare at you all the time. But it’s all in your head and no one cares, so you give in fairly fast.
And now you’re a big fan of naturist beaches?
Haulover is the only beach in Miami where you can be naked, and it’s a shame there aren’t really many other options nearby. However, I have been lucky enough to visit over a hundred locations in different countries for filming, much of it naked, and one that stands out is Vera Playa in Spain: a small town, communities of nudists, and it’s right on the beach. In Mexico, even Tulum has its limits. But we have made alliances with the right people to allow nudity in certain locations. And in the jungle or on remote beaches, there’s nobody there to object to you being natural in nature.
What is your response to some media descriptions of you as saucy or outrageous?
It used to annoy me, but now, I love it! It's really hard for me to get offended nowadays. I believe that you have to live your life fully, and if you’re happy, that’s what’s most important. Let others have whatever opinion they want to have about you, but in the end they don’t know me, so why should I get upset? If someone is talking about you (good or bad) it means you are at least making an impression.
But there’s also a serious side to your work.
Without a doubt. We set up Misionenergia as a foundation to channel the positive energy of our bodies. We travel to various locations to hold seminars with the primary aim being to help those with porn, drug, alcohol or gambling addictions. We believe the solution is not necessarily to focus on the actual problems, but on countering negative thoughts and energy, and on what we can personally do to improve ourselves.
And this led on to Energy Tulum?
This is what takes up most of our time today. We never planned on moving to Mexico, but the pandemic had us stuck in Tulum, and the more time we stayed in the jungle, the less we wanted to go back home, so now we live here and vacation in Miami.
After travelling around the world to hold our seminars, we decided we wanted a place where people could visit. Three years ago, without a defined project or set plans in hand, a piece of Tulum's jungle happened to come up for sale, and has ended up as our energy ‘heaven.’ Visitors can come and feel what we feel all the time: bliss, peace, happiness in nature, positive energy. And of course, they can do it naked.
We describe it as a holistic tantra centre, for those who want to rediscover their feelings, about themselves and each other. It’s aimed at couples going through sexual distancing or negativity, but also works for any type of mental health problems within a relationship. Experiencing tantra sexual energy is a proven way of healing by generating positivism.
You’re obviously a very positive person?
I’d like to think so! The body is a powerful energy source, and we can all do more to harness that. A lot of nudists I’ve met can still be very guarded on the subject of sex. It’s almost as if it’s prohibited withing a nudist environment. Maybe it’s because for some, it’s been so hard for them to ‘come out’ as nudists and for their choice of lifestyle not to be confused with perversion. But shouldn’t we all be past that by now?
© Paul Rouse 2022
