The Melting Blog

While I Was Gone Part IV: The Latino L.A. Edition

This one's ambitious. Emmis Publishing, the folks behind Los Angeles Magazine, is launching a bi-monthly glossy lifestyle rag this spring geared toward the upscale Latino Angeleno. A geographically-based print publication targeted to Latinos is ballsy enough, but this one -- called Tu Ciudad Los Angeles -- will also be published en ingles, aimed squarely at "biculturals" and the "acculturated". Here's a snippet:

The full-color, high gloss magazine will serve as the authoritative source for Latino culture in the city, showcasing L.A. people, places and trends while tackling serious issues. "Latinos, and in particular Mexican-Americans, have been a vital part of the history and fabric of Los Angeles from its inception," says Angelo Figueroa, Tu Ciudad's editorial director and the founding editor of both Time Inc.'s People en Espanol and the San Jose Mercury News' Nuevo Mundo, a Spanish-language newspaper. "Now they'll have a magazine that reflects and celebrates the fact that they are transforming the economic and cultural landscape of the city."

The publication of Tu Ciudad heralds a tectonic shift away from the notion of Latino identity built around language, and toward the new reality of culturally identified and geographically dispersed U.S.-born Latinos who are a growing percentage of high-income individuals in metro areas across the U.S. This hot market, with a buying power of $78 million in Los Angeles alone, is just beginning to be noticed.

Sources tell me this venture's got some deep pockets behind it, and they've already lured away some top editors from other publications (i.e., The Los Angeles Times) to steer the helm. While there's no question in my mind they'll find a considerable Latino reader base for Tu Ciudad, the weird economics behind magazine publishing are dictated by whether said substantial readership is in fact large enough to sustain high circulation figures. The hidden part of this ROI equation (return-on-investment) may well be determined by the cross-over market. Afterall, there's a whole lotta hipster Latinophiles in the City of Angels who are a shoe-in audience for this 'zine too.

Look for copies on your newstand this May (if you're in Southern California that is).

Posted by thomas at February 9, 2005 01:02 AM | TrackBack