Mariana Atencio (born April 2, 1984) is an American journalist, television host, author and speaker who was formerly a correspondent for NBC News.

[6] In 2014, Atencio received a Gracie Award from the Alliance for Women in Media for her work on the Univision documentary, "Pressured: Freedom of the Press," which she reported on and wrote.

[12][13] She has covered the shooting death of Michael Brown in Ferguson, the Umbrella Revolution in Hong Kong, and the 2014 Iguala mass kidnapping, where 43 students went missing in Mexico.

In 2015, she was a reporter in McAllen, Texas for ABC News’ virtual town hall with Pope Francis ahead of his first visit to the United States.

[15] In March 2016, she was part of the anchor-team for Univision and The Washington Post’s debate between Democratic candidates Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders.

[18] She reported on notable stories such as the Central American migrant caravans, the child separation crisis at the border and the ICE raids across several Mississippi chicken plants that led to the arrest of 680 undocumented immigrants.

Atencio's live interviews with migrant mothers during the Trump administration's family separation policy and her coverage of the border were nominated for two national Emmy Awards.

[22] Atencio covered major natural disasters including the earthquake in Mexico, as well as the aftermath of Hurricanes Maria,[23] Harvey, Florence,[24] Michael,[25] and Dorian.

[27] In November 2021, she was named as an official spokesperson for the future National Museum of the American Latino in Washington D.C.[28] In 2022, she released the true crime investigative podcast series Lost in Panama, which documented the disappearance of Kris Kremers and Lisanne Froon, two Dutch tourists who went missing on a hiking trail.