San Diego, CA
How the demise of The Union-Tribune’s Spanish-language edition impacts San Diego Latinos
Latino journalists and news industry observers say Alden Global Capital’s quiet cancellation of The San Diego Union-Tribune’s Spanish-language weekly is a blow to the region’s second largest population at a critical time.
They argue the end of The Union-Tribune en Español comes in an era when more Spanish-language media is needed, not less, as the nation gears up for local, state and federal elections this year.
“It’s especially important during an election year for a publication to have information in both languages,” said Hiram Soto, former staffer and columnist of the U-T en Español when it was called Enlace. “(The closure) generates a gap in information that leads to less informed voters and leads to less engaged voters. It’s just really a slap in the face of the community.”
The Union-Tribune published its final edition of the U-T en Español on Dec. 30, marking the end of a nearly 25-year run in which the newspaper published a Spanish-language edition. Two reporters and an editor were let go as a result, according to sources within the organization.
Neither the Union-Tribune nor Alden, the private equity firm that bought the newspaper last year, issued a statement on the decision. Both ignored requests for comment from KPBS.
No numbers are available on the circulation of the U-T en Español, but it served a county where 35% of 3 million residents are Latino and 150,000 cross the border with Mexico each day. The Spanish-language edition began in 2000 and was widely read by Latinos from all walks of life, Soto said. He added that it was viewed as a public service and an attempt at inclusivity.
“Before this publication, the Union Tribune’s coverage of immigrant communities, of Latino communities, of border communities, were very centered on crime and drug trafficking,” Soto said. “When this publication opened, it broadened it to cover the arts, community leaders. It uplifted people that were doing real change in the community. It focused a lot on social issues impacting the community every day.”
News industry watchers say they are not surprised at the decision by Alden, which has a track record of making deep cuts to newspapers after purchasing them.
“They seem to have very relatively little interest in having anything more than sort of the bare minimum of a newspaper that will appeal to loyal forever readers,” said Rick Edmonds, media business analyst for the Poynter Institute.
Tim Franklin, director of the Medill Local News Initiative at Northwestern University, says the move to end the Spanish-language weekly was likely driven by the bottom line.
“Alden is going to jettison what it views as its most costly or least profitable pieces of its operation,” Franklin said. “They have a history of doing that across the country.”
Franklin added that the U-T en Español’s demise is consistent with a nationwide trend that has only accelerated in the pandemic era.
“In 2020, there were about 900 ethnic media outlets in the United States,” Franklin said, citing a Medill database on local news organizations that he maintains. “We’ve lost 173 of those in the last three years since the pandemic. And of the 173 that closed, 106 were Latino publications, most of those Spanish-language publications.”
He explained that many ethnic media outlets never recovered from the loss of advertising revenue during the pandemic when people stopped shopping, as well as the closures of small mom-and-pop retailers.
The National Association of Hispanic Journalists (NAHJ) is so concerned with the Spanish-language media decline that it has formed a rapid response team on the issue. Arelis Hernandez, vice president for print with NAHJ, said the group strives to meet with news organizations to understand “the reasoning behind” the decisions to shutter the outlets.
She said the U-T en Español closure, the disbanding of the Dallas Morning Herald’s Spanish-language newspaper last year and the discontinuation of The Washington Post’s Spanish-language podcast in 2022 don’t make sense.
“Latinos have grown to more than 19% of the population (nationwide), and we’re continuing to grow,” Hernandez said. “There is a migrant population that is increasingly needing resources in their language to navigate this new world of the United States. It’s just like we’re not understanding the economics of this either, $3.4 trillion is the purchasing power of Latinos.”
Art Castañares, publisher of the Spanish-language weekly La Prensa San Diego, says what’s also not well understood is that even many bilingual people like to read their news in Spanish.
“It’s not just the language,” Castañares said. “It’s understanding the culture, the impact and being sensitive to that.”
Soto, who is now in public relations, says it’s also about another intangible. Trust. He said the U-T’s Spanish-language newspaper painstakingly built trust with local Latinos over the years through reporters’ presence at pivotal events and how they wrote about the community.
He brings up a case in point. As wildfires ripped through eastern San Diego County in October 2003, it was Soto — assigned to cover the farm workers — who told them through smoke-filled air they had to evacuate.
“You couldn’t really breathe,” Soto said. “And they were still picking tomatoes and strawberries. They didn’t even know that there were evacuation orders.”
The publication also covered in-depth the migrants who were burned to death atop Tecate Peak during the 2007 fires.
“I remember being embedded with the rescuers,” Soto said. “We found the bodies of people who were burnt. We told the stories of people who were lost crossing the border and the stories behind it and how people in the community rallied and provided the resources for rescuers to go and find their loved ones.”
Soto said those pieces told the region’s Latinos that the paper cared about them. He worries ending the U-T En Español means that’s no longer true.
Remarkably, the San Diego State Aztecs can still win a share of the Mountain West title despite losing four of their last five games.
SDSU (19-10, 13-6) needs to beat UNLV (16-14, 11-8) on Friday night in its home finale and then have New Mexico win at Utah State on Saturday for a three-way tie.
The Aztecs had their destiny in their hands less than a week ago, but then lost at New Mexico (13-6) on Saturday and then again at Boise State on Tuesday night, pretty much snuffing out their NCAA Tournament at-large bid chances and apparently ending their hopes at the MW title in their final season in the conference.
But then Utah State (14-5) was routed at UNLV and New Mexico lost at home to Nevada, setting up the possibility of a three-way tie. It’ll be moot, however, if the Aggies beat the Lobos, which will give them the title outright and the No. 1 seed in next week’s conference tournament in Las Vegas.
That’s life in the MW, which the Aztecs and Aggies are leaving after this season to join the new-look Pac-12, along with Boise State, Fresno State and Colorado State.
The big picture
The Aztecs were voted the unanimous preseason favorite to win the regular-season title, based on a loaded roster under coach Brian Dutcher, including the return of Miles Byrd and Magoon Gwath after pulling out of the NBA Draft, and Reese Dixon-Waters after missing last year with a foot injury.
But it’s been a rough go from almost the start, when a rough showing in the non-conference schedule put them on the bubble for an at-large NCAA Tournament berth.
They started to find themselves early in league play by running off a seven-game losing streak, but then lost consecutive games at Grand Canyon and Utah State. Their current skid includes a surprising home loss to Grand Canyon and then a startling road loss to Colorado State.
They routed Utah State at home last week before losing at New Mexico on Saturday and then being routed at Boise State on Tuesday night, when they were outrebounded 37-15.
The last three games were all Quad 1 opportunities in the NCAA NET Rankings, but going 1-2 in those games further hurt their already weak chances at an at-large tourney berth. Those rankings are used by the NCAA Tournament Selection Committee as the primary sorting tool for selection and seeding for March Madness.
Now they’ll almost certainly have to win three games in three days at the MW tournament to claim the automatic bid to reach March Madness for the sixth straight year.
Key facts
The Aztecs will be facing UNLV for the final time in the regular season, as the Runnin’ Rebels will be remaining behind in the MW.
The teams will meet for the 86th time overall, with the Aztecs leading the series 45-40. SDSU is 21-14 against the Runnin’ Rebels in San Diego and 18-8 on Steve Fisher Court.
Below is a look at how to watch UNLV at San Diego State
How to watch UNLV at San Diego State
Date: Friday, March 6
Game time: 7 p.m. PT
Where: Viejas Arena | San Diego
How to watch: CBS Sports Network
How to listen: San Diego Sports 760 (local)
On Thursday, the average price of a gallon of self-serve regular gasoline in San Diego County recorded its largest increase since Sept. 28, 2023, rising 8.7 cents to $4.894, its highest amount since Nov. 13.
The average price has increased 15 consecutive days, rising 28.7 cents, including 7 cents on Wednesday, according to figures from the AAA and Oil Price Information Service. It is 22.4 cents more than one week ago, 38.6 cents higher than one month ago and 14.5 cents greater than one year ago.
The average price has dropped $1.541 since rising to a record $6.435 on Oct. 5, 2022.
“Gas prices are rising primarily due to a recent surge in crude oil following strikes on Iran by the U.S. and Israel,” Kandace Redd, the Automobile Club of Southern California’s senior public affairs specialist, told City News Service. “Any conflict with Iran can send oil prices higher, as Iran is a major oil producer and about a fifth of the oil consumed globally travels through the Strait of Hormuz between Iran and Oman.
“Gas prices are increasing because of seasonal factors too. Refineries are beginning the switch to more expensive summer-blend fuel, and demand is picking up as we head into the spring break season with more people on the road.”
The national average price rose 5.3 cents to $3.251, its highest amount since Sept. 11, 2024. It has risen five consecutive days, increasing 26.9 cents, including 8.9 cents on Wednesday.
The national average price is 26.8 cents more than one week ago, 36 cents higher than one month ago and 14.4 cents greater than one year ago. It has dropped $1.765 since rising to a record $5.016 on June 14, 2022.
UNLV Rebels (16-14, 11-8 MWC) at San Diego State Aztecs (19-10, 13-6 MWC)
San Diego; Friday, 10 p.m. EST
BOTTOM LINE: UNLV faces San Diego State after Kimani Hamilton scored 24 points in UNLV’s 92-65 victory over the Utah State Aggies.
The Aztecs have gone 13-2 in home games. San Diego State is eighth in the MWC with 9.0 offensive rebounds per game led by Miles Heide averaging 2.0.
The Rebels have gone 11-8 against MWC opponents. UNLV ranks eighth in the MWC shooting 34.4% from 3-point range.
San Diego State averages 79.1 points per game, 0.6 more points than the 78.5 UNLV gives up. UNLV averages 7.2 made 3-pointers per game this season, 1.9 fewer made shots on average than the 9.1 per game San Diego State allows.
The teams play for the second time in conference play this season. San Diego State won the last meeting 82-71 on Jan. 24. Miles Byrd scored 23 points points to help lead the Aztecs to the win.
TOP PERFORMERS: Reese Dixon-Waters is shooting 35.9% from beyond the arc with 1.6 made 3-pointers per game for the Aztecs, while averaging 13 points. Byrd is averaging 10.2 points and 5.1 rebounds over the past 10 games.
Dra Gibbs-Lawhorn is shooting 50.9% and averaging 20.6 points for the Rebels. Hamilton is averaging 1.4 made 3-pointers over the last 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: Aztecs: 5-5, averaging 74.9 points, 28.9 rebounds, 13.7 assists, 6.9 steals and 4.2 blocks per game while shooting 46.4% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 69.0 points per game.
Rebels: 6-4, averaging 84.1 points, 32.3 rebounds, 14.7 assists, 6.4 steals and 4.8 blocks per game while shooting 50.0% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 80.8 points.
___
The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
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