Monthly Archives: March 2007

Upon Univision’s $13-billion-sale (which was completed today), disgruntled partner/content provider Grupo Televisa on Thursday announced it sold its minority interest in the U.S. Spanish-language network for about $1.1 billion. And though I’m sure Televisa’s Chairman Emilio Azcárraga Jean (above) has … Continue reading →

You can be short, a little fat and completely void of talent, but if your Spanish is poor you can kiss your beauty crown good-bye. That was in a nutshell the bitter experience of a poor Orlando girl who travelled … Continue reading →

For a second, I thought there was some kind of mistake. Tonight, while watching Univision’s newest telenovela, Destilando Amor, I found myself reading subtitles in Spanish while the actors (all Mexicans, of course) were engaged in long conversations in English. I’m still not familiar … Continue reading →

Kudos to fellow journalist Luis Clemens, whose most recent posting is a brilliant showcase of what happens when writers and editors who do not speak Spanish (and do not understand the Hispanic market) are assigned to write or edit stories on … Continue reading →

The editors of 02138, the glossy magazine “of and for Harvard graduates” published by media mogul David Bradley, have unveiled the inaugural Harvard Hubris Hall of Fame in its spring issue.  The list, described as a collection of “the most egregious cases of … Continue reading →

I am officially depressed. It turns out marketing research firms do not want anything to do with me. Imagine how happy I was this morning when my friend Mercedes forwarded me the following posting from Craigslist: Needed Mexican women for focus group, … Continue reading →

In an effort to alert young Latinas about the growing incidence of statutory rape, the Virginia Department of Health has opted to produce a fotonovela; Its title, though, almost gives the story away: Gracias, Papi. The story starts out like most … Continue reading →

It’s good to see marketers are finally moving away from abuelitas, piñatas and moustaches. Now, it seems, the buzz word is: wrestling, or rather Lucha Libre. While the Cartoon Network is getting ready to launch an animation series featuring Mexican legend El … Continue reading →

In his self-published book, Secretos de Impacto, former Univision reporter Pablo Padula speaks of rivalries among celebrities, “biased” news coverage and even some juicy sex gossip involving top executives during the 14-plus years he worked at the Spanish-language network. Granted. … Continue reading →

Just as marketers and the media keep celebrating the so-called Latino Boom, some politicians cannot help but remind us that Hispanics are just one naughty bunch. Take Marc LeVine, a borough councilman in New Jersey, who recently claimed that the trouble … Continue reading →