Univision, Disney In Talks To Create 24-Hour News Channel In English For Latinos: Sources

MIAMI — Univision and Disney are in talks to create a 24-hour news channel for Latinos in English, two sources close to the negotiations said Monday.

Both sources declined to go on the record because they were not authorized to speak.

The goal would be to begin broadcasting before the November presidential election. That would give the network plenty of time to provide political coverage geared toward Hispanics, who are considered influential swing voters in states like Florida, New Mexico and Colorado.

Univision is the nation's largest Spanish-language media company, and it has long prided itself on its Spanish-language content. In recent years, officials have quietly acknowledged that in order to maintain and expand viewership, they also need to provide content to second- and third-generation Latinos who speak English as their first language.

Univision officials and ABC News spokesman Jeff Schneider declined to comment on Monday.

The move comes in response to the 2010 census, which showed U.S. born Latinos made up nearly 60 percent of the growth in the nation's Hispanic population over the last decade.

The proposed deal also reflects the stepped up efforts of mainstream media companies to target Latinos. Fox News added its Fox News Latino website in 2010 and Huffington Post now has an online Huffpost LatinoVoices site. Meanwhile, NBC Universal has increased the cross-pollination between its NBC News division and that of its Spanish language network, Telemundo.

Top Telemundo news anchor Jose Diaz-Balart has anchored NBC News and MSNBC programs. NBC also recently unveiled its NBC Latino tumblr website in English. Univision News also has a tumblr English site, and a small but growing social media presence.

Jorge Plasencia, vice chair of the National Council of La Raza and CEO of the Hispanic marketing firm Republica, which includes Univision among its clients, said he believes that a news channel in English would fulfill a niche.

"There's nearly 50 million Latinos in the U.S. They do want to know what's going on in Mexico, Puerto Rico and all over Latin America. The major networks don't cover that news," he said. "It's hard for those networks to go into those issues in depth because they're trying reach all of America."

Univision and other Spanish-language networks have provided significant coverage of Latin America for their viewers. Plasencia believes second- and third-generation Latinos are still interested in that coverage, but they want it in English.

For Latinos who live in cities like Los Angeles, New York and Miami that have large Hispanic populations, local broadcasts often have Latino anchors and cover stories that are particularly relevant to the Hispanic community. But the national broadcasts are lagging in that type of coverage, he added.

"That's why I think this and Huffpost LatinoVoices exist, because there's an appetite," Plasencia said.

Last month, SiriusXM's Cristina Radio channel launched a new all-English political show, hosted by top Democratic and Republican Latina analysts, as well as a bilingual foreign affairs program out of Washington. Other online news sites are continuing to pop up.

Voxxi, a new Hispanic online news magazine, was throwing its launch party Tuesday at the Newseum in Washington, D.C.

Plasencia noted that the controversy regarding Arizona's Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio, over his aggressive efforts to seek out illegal immigrants, has received significant coverage on Spanish-language networks but not so much in English.

"This network will take our issues and make them mainstream because many other people besides Latinos may be watching," he said.

Roberto Suro, a professor of journalism and public policy at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, says finding the right audience may be tricky.

"There are several assumptions here. Is there room for another all-news channel? And within the Hispanic market, is there enough demand for an all-news channel?" Suro said.

Already CNN, Fox and MSNB compete in English. CNN en Espanol provides 24 hour coverage in Spanish.

The new channel would reflect the growing trend toward more niche audiences, but he added that the English-speaking Latino market is much more diverse than the Spanish-language market.

"There's a longstanding effort to try and create content for English speaking Latinos," Suro said. "This is a very broad population segment, and the question is, "what is the identity? Is it heavily Hispanic, all about news about Latinos? Or is it who delivers the news? It's an elusive brand."

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AP Television Writer Lynn Elber and AP Business Writer Ryan Nakashima in Los Angeles contributed to this report.

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Comments

[stevealfaro]

01:04 AM on 02/08/2012

[Robert Medina]

08:45 PM on 02/07/2012

People come to the United States of America, to become American Citizens, you have to read and write in English to do so, this initiative will do nothing but divide us and give power to a foreign sovereign state. It has providences here and demands tribute to Rome, it is called the Vatican and as such has no right to do more than to serve the spiritual need of catholic’s. The Vatican is an enemy of our Constitution and we better be aware of it.

[Dominic87]

01:41 PM on 02/08/2012

It's going to be an english language news channel.

[Rob Paterson1]

06:16 PM on 02/07/2012

good idea, i will watch and tune in, in English Language Hispanic News Channel, reason i tune in to Latino Voices!, all those anti-latino rhetoric channels im over and done with!

[Karen1]

02:34 AM on 03/15/2012

AMEN.

Goodbye CNN and your totally lame "Latino in America" show. Goodbye MSNBC and your refusal to hire even one Hispanic reporter.

[Rob Paterson1]

05:55 PM on 02/07/2012

great idea,..for sure i would rather tune in English language news channels about issues that concern Mexican-Americans and other latinos in the U.S., rather than anti-immigration anti-latino rhetoric channels, reason i come to this website Hispanic-Voices!

[Sean Porter]

05:54 PM on 02/07/2012

With Disney involved, it sounds like a Mickey Mouse operation to me.

[ednasmith]

05:49 PM on 02/07/2012

Should be an interesting combo.

[patianneb]

04:19 PM on 02/07/2012

I wish Univision would telecast some of its Spanish programming (news, dramas, etc) with english subtitles--I have a nodding acquaintance with Spanish and it would help me refresh and learn a little more vocabulary.

[Dominic87]

04:13 PM on 02/07/2012

As a Latino who doesn't speak spanish I thank you Disney. LOL. Maybe now we can see something other than illegal-immigration. Because that's pretty much the only way we are mentioned on the other networks.

[Dan Crabtree]

01:37 PM on 02/07/2012

Of course they are as the upcoming hispanic market will soon dominate all of television period. And there will be many changes coming as the american culture dissolves to the background and the hispanic culture takes over the united states..already hispanics control many border towns and the entire population is now hispanic and yes english is not the given languge in any of these towns some even fly the mexican flag..Not bad at all the take-over of a nation all with-in the past ten years from immigration..not bad at all.

[HipsterCorgi]

03:23 PM on 02/07/2012

You must be Native-American.

[Dominic87]

04:07 PM on 02/07/2012

Is that what your Republicans tell you to think? That's ridiculous. Whoever has the money will control the country. If you're not rich and white or Jewish you're not going to control anything.

[GraphicMatt]

12:51 PM on 02/08/2012

Interesting that you choose to take offense to Dan's ridiculous comments about Hispanics taking over the country by throwing another group under the bus. I am Jewish and I assure, I don't control anything either.

[frankerin]

12:11 PM on 02/07/2012

English is good, now we can actually know the leftist latin attitudes to America and their reconquistadores policies. On the other hand, The disney involvment really identifies the caliber of the entire cable news noise and personality cult. There is little real news, national or world wide without somebodies donated videos or a catastrophic event, like a car chase in los angeles. Aren't they fun, disney should make a movie. The only reason for the channels to me are the news tickers, abrupt and truncated as they are, they at least suggest there is something else going on besides what these cable kitties decide we should know after three teases and two commericial and cable promotion. Is Disney now pandering to their west coast immegrant communities. I think so.

[Guanabacoa Kid]

11:55 AM on 02/07/2012

I've just watched the NY Giants Superbowl Championship parade up Broadway (no, I'm not in the 1%. but I do work in the Wall Street area), and I just noticed the Irish flag front and center, ahead of the bagpipers. Now, I didn't see the Puerto Rican flag, or the Mexican flag, or a Cuban flag, or a Dominican flag in front of a salsa band. So I guess it's OK to be ethnic, but only in the Anglo ways.

[Dominic87]

04:09 PM on 02/07/2012

Of course. All these people crying just love playing the victim. They rather put the blame on other people as to why their lives are so pathetic.

[arthur-in-miami]

11:27 AM on 02/07/2012

I understand that Latino heritage makes up the largest percentage of Americans but we have so many news channels and Disney has always been known for easy going, fun loving programing and places to visit and movies to watch - why a News station now and why Latino based? Why can't Disny just be Disny a huge company with huge profits doing what its been doing for more than haqlf a century and doing it well. I think a news station will cause a turn-off to the Disney company if they lean in any particular direction and it come back to bite them in the ---!

[mo524]

12:22 PM on 02/07/2012

They own several networks already so its nothing new really.

[arthur-in-miami]

01:38 PM on 02/07/2012

Disney owns entertainment channels and venues not news outlets - there is a huge difference and I personally think it will danage Disney and people will begin to boycott Disney over issue they report and the way they report - why change what works - it's like a recipe that is good or a restaurant that has been the same for 40 years - if it works don't change it

[Di InscoeOakes]

11:24 AM on 02/07/2012

No but in all fairness, this is America, there are ENOUGH! news TV wise and otherwise, leave us Amercan women who DO love the SOAP OPERA GENRE alone! Are you a citizen? There are enough Hispanic telenova's on, American soaps include all races of people in situations that we all can get into, plus the fantasy in imagination that we all love that is called escapism, GIVE US OUR DUE!

[HipsterCorgi]

11:18 AM on 02/07/2012

Huff Po: Why are so many racist, bigoted statements being allowed here? I've only seen one deleted.

[celtcalgal]

11:40 AM on 02/07/2012

Its called ' freedom of speech '

[Guanabacoa Kid]

12:24 PM on 02/07/2012

Oh, you're so right, ma'am; I agree 100%, so we've found common ground! Let each express himself freely, so that we may know him for who he really is.

[HipsterCorgi]

03:54 PM on 02/07/2012

It is one thing discuss different views on an issue, but some of the statements I've seen here are completely inappropriate and not even on-topic. There are guidelines to posting.

[Guanabacoa Kid]

11:42 AM on 02/07/2012

This is America, my friend, let it be seen for what it is.

[Di InscoeOakes]

10:47 AM on 02/07/2012

What ABC and the Disney Networksers and franchise need to do is to start LISTENING to their viewing public wants and QUIT! with re-inventing "new" shoes, reality shows, cooking shows, the usual "fix-it-yourself" programming and pay attention to daytime showings. Parden your delicate ttention but your programming in the daytime TV SUCKS! We want our soaps back, surely three hours a day, five days a week isn't too much to ask & that way, everyone is happy. Right now, you & your whole programming system is in huge jepordy & I no longer turn on my TV unless A&E has Criminal minds re-runs or marathons on.

[HipsterCorgi]

11:05 AM on 02/07/2012

I think that's what they are doing. Not all of us watch soap operas.

[michaelgary1]

11:45 AM on 02/07/2012

Or sports,which has to many channels anyway.