Ethnic media are loosely defined as newspapers, television, radio or Web sites aimed at culturally defined communities. They provide a voice and a way of connecting apart from the mainstream, often in the target audience’s first language. These profiles explore a range of ethnic media in the D.C. Metro area.

Building on a couple’s hard work, Zeba Magazine offers a different view of Afghan culture in glossy pages
By Kathy Gypson

WHUT-TV reflects another aspect of Howard University
By Ava-joye Burnett

Washington Archdiocese’s El Pregonero gives voice to generations of Latino
By Samantha Tyrka

A one-man production, Zethiopia tells the stories of local Ethiopian immigrants
By Uzo Nnabuihe

The Baltimore Times: ‘There’s no place like home’
By Janine Cooper

Small and targeted, American Indian Report Magazine serves as mouthpiece for institute on tribal-government issues
By Dorry Samuels

Vietnamese American Television finds a home on MHz Network’s airwaves
By Katie Unthank

El Tiempo Latino: ‘We are not only making a paper, we try to help the community’
By Radina Gigova

Afro American Tribune: ‘I stay here because I love my people’
By Adina Young

Rang-A-Rang Television broadcasts Iranian Americans’ message of dissent to a global audience
By Lisa Tanger

India This Week and Express India: For one immigrant entrepreuner, the American Dream manifests in newsprint
By Noelle Harmon and Cristina Fernandez-Pereda

Tropical rhythms, early mornings and loyal listeners fuel the Spanish-language El Zol 99.1 FM
By Juliana Monsalve

Share on Facebook

El Zol has been on the air only three years and It is among the most listed to radio stations in the metropolitan area, according to the latest report from Arbitron.

El Zol generated a lot of buzz in the local media, when in 2005 it was announced that its all-Spanish music format was going to replace the largest rock station in Washington, WHFS, owned by Infinity. For many who were loyal listeners of the so-called “alternative rock” station, this news came by surprise. And the decision even prompted listeners to post petitions online for the return of the rock station. For Hispanics, the switch just showed how much they were growing and the influence they could have.

Today El Zol, owned by CBS Radio, enjoys the support and positive response of its Hispanic audience. And at the rhythm of tropical music, they continue their mission to entertain and inform their listeners.

Photo by Juliana Monsalve
Pedro Biaggi at El Zol radio station.

The morning show — “Pedro Biaggi en la Mañana” (Pedro Biaggi in the Morning) — conducted by Pedro Biaggi and Lisbela Lopez is very popular. Latin Americans laugh and enjoy as they listen to the talk show, which also plays music during the morning drive.

Biaggi says this is a dream come true and that there is nothing else he’d rather be doing. He recalls when at a very young age, he would go across the street to a radio station — in his aunt’s neighborhood in Ponce, Puerto Rico — and dreamed of being just like those radio personalities he saw.

“Being that became my fervent aspiration,” Biaggi said. “When I become dramatic, silly or un-self-confident, I remember that I asked for this, that I prayed to God for this. And I said to myself, this is what you asked for, this is what you got. So there is no reason to be complaining.”

Biaggi gets to the station at about 4:45 a.m, and gets ready to go on air by drinking lots of coffee. He gets to the audio booth which is well-equipped, large enough and very clear. As he walks in, he immediately becomes ready. Biaggi gets energetic, funny, loud — or, as he says “encendido,” which means fired up — even if it is not the right day, or if his mood is more dark than bright.

The show finishes at 10:00 a.m, but Biaggi’s day is just starting. After the show he attends meetings, records commercials, and starts preparation for next day show and upcoming events.

Although Biaggi is known by his audience for being very spontaneous and less than serious, he says he doesn’t take his job lightly. He is very demanding of himself and of his colleagues. He knows that at the end of the day, it all comes down to numbers.

Biaggi and his co-talent, Lisbela Lopez, have in common more than the love for what they do, they also consider the biggest reward to be the love of their listeners. They still aren’t use to waking up so early.

Lopez’s day starts at 4:00 a.m. By 5:00 a.m. she is ready in the studio to record the first segment of news and, by 5:45 she is reporting on the traffic. Her day goes as busy and fast as Biaggi’s day. She hardly has time to do personal things.

“My life is to work — this is my professional and my personal life. I don’t work to live; I live to work,” Lopez said

Before Lopez goes to bed, she checks her work-emails and responds to her listeners. During the weekend, she attends various work-related events and does promotions for endorsers.

Lopez says the morning show’s success is due to the fact that they (Biaggi and Lopez) are very real. She says they have opened themselves to the audience and created a bond. She says the major reason why the station obtains such a good response from listeners is because of the stability and continuity of the talents (radio personalities). “Listeners know who we are, and they feel they are part of our lives,” Lopez said.

Lopez says there are challenges every day — keeping up with the news, satisfying the listeners, and filling up people’s expectations — but for her, it is all worthwhile.

To help Biaggi, Lopez and the other talent at the radio station, El Zol has a reliable staff. The latest events have included raising money for the Salvadorian telethon and offering a Spanish job fair.

El Zol is also known for its legal segment in which an immigration lawyer gives legal advice and educates the audience on immigration subjects. Another very popular segment is on Tuesday and Thursdays, when in the morning show they have a clinical psychologist / therapist who responds the listeners’ questions about sexuality and relationships.

Listener Rocio Castillo, from Gaithersburg, Md., believes that El Zol — besides entertaining and informing the audience — has taken an active role in bringing attention to real community issues.

She mentioned issues such as “discrimination, lack of resources and unfair policies.” Castillo also says, “they have used their status as public figures for something more than fame, for being a voice for a minority group that has lately been attacked and persecuted.”

Share on Facebook

U Street in Washington D.C. is famous with its cultural heritage. It was dubbed “The Black Broadway” because of its jazz clubs. Both police and protesters were grabbing a bite at Ben’s Chili Bowl restaurant during the 1968 riots. At the same time, this part of town is the home of the largest Ethiopian community outside Ethiopia. So it’s natural that U Street also has a compilation of the last 15 years of the neighborhood’s history in one spot.

And that is not the African American Civil War Memorial, but rather the shoe repair shop of George Peña.

Peña, 54, originally from El Salvador, is the owner of the little shop with green window frames and a red blinking sign that says “Open,” located on the corner of 13th and U Street.

I turned the door handle and the few steps led me into the ground-floor room. Behind the counter Peña welcomed me with a big warm smile.

Video by Radina Gigova

“I’ve been waiting for you,” he said and before I even turned on my camera, he took out his and took a picture of me. He said he likes to keep memories and pointed towards one of the walls.

The wall was covered with newspaper articles, pictures, souvenirs, an old painting and even glued-on bills of international currency. Peña said one of his regular costumers travels a lot and always brings him international money as a souvenir. Then he reached for his wallet and pulled out 20 British pounds.

“That’s a lot of money. I’m saving it for my grandchildren,” he said. “I have six kids, six,” Peña said, while raising six fingers and smiling proudly. “Five daughters and one boy.”

“Can you believe who came here?” he asked, and pointed to a framed photograph of him and Bill Cosby from 1996. On the wall there were also pictures of Frank Smith, a former D.C. Council member and Paul Berry, a former Channel 7 anchor. There was a small poster of Italy’s national soccer team and a wood carving, a gift from a Jamaican friend.

Peña said that he is well-known in the neighborhood. He said sometimes his clients bring their out-of-town guests to his shop as if it was a tourist site.

“I’m a happy guy. I am honest and people love the job that I do,” he said.

Peña turned on one of his machines and polished the overused heels of a pair of black stilettos. He joked that the lady who owned the shoes had probably danced all night. Then he pointed to an old Singer sewing machine. “It’s old, but it’s excellent,” he said. Peña went to his register to print a receipt. He said the register was almost an antique because it was more than 27 years old.

Peña worked in El Salvador at a shoe factory when he was 16. There he learned almost everything about shoes. He said he can create a shoe from scratch. Peña said he made the shoes that he was wearing. “They are very comfortable,” he said, stepping back and forth. The brown leather shoes had thick but flexible soles, made of different layers. The stitches were straight and precise. The shoes were new, but they seemed as comfortable as an old pair.

Peña said he came to the United States not only looking for a job, but also looking for peace. “This country gave me an opportunity. I was very happy to be able to open my own business,” he said.

Peña worked at the same shop on U Street for 15 years and saw how the street and the community were changing before his eyes. He said that Metro, the restaurants and the Starbucks coffee shop across the street brought him more clientele. Before, he said, people were not walking and now there were a lot of them on the street.

“Every day a new costumer comes in,” he said.

Over the years, his business kept growing and Peña opened another shop, just a few blocks down U Street, on the corner with 15th. There works his longtime friend, Willy Posey. They have known each other for more than 30 years.

“He [Posey] is a very sweet guy, he knows everything about U Street,” Peña said.

Posey, who is African American, came to Washington from South Carolina in 1964. He’s 72 years old. “The bus was 15 cents when I first got here,” he said.

The two met while working at Stern’s Shoe Repair in Silver Spring, Md.

“I haven’t known him for that long. And we just, I don’t know what it was, you know, a bond. If you have a bond with somebody you go away for a few years and when you come back it seems that the bond never broke. It’s not like that with everybody,” Posey said.

When Peña opened his second shop, Posey was more than happy to work there.

“He [Peña] reminds me of the guy that I started out with when I was 12 years old in South Carolina. They have the same mentality — very spiritual, very spiritual man. He just wanted everybody to be peaceful and that’s why I knew I’ll be here for a long time,” Posey said.

He said both shops, the one on 13th and the one on 15th, have plenty of business. But if Posey has some free time, he said, he steps outside and starts talking to the people that pass by on the sidewalk.

“I am capable of making everybody laugh. This has been proven,” he said.

Posey said he used to carry a box of peppermints. “When I see somebody getting a frown on their face, I say ‘Take that lemon out of your mouth and try one of those peppermints,’ ” he said. “”We are all humans, and no matter how you are trying to portray it, there is a soft spot in you, you know,” Posey added.

A costumer opened the door of the shop and Posey welcomed him with the usual smile. They seemed to know each other. Vinnie, who didn’t want to give his last name, lives in the neighborhood. He said that was the first time he brought in shoes to be repaired. But Vinnie said he often chats with Posey on the street. “I see him outside all the time. He is always very nice,” Vinnie said.

Peña’s nephew, Pablo, also works at the shop.

“People come in here because they know we can fix everything,” he said while giving change to Vinnie.

“We are the only ’shoeologists’ on the planet,” added Posey.

Over, at the shop on 13th Street, Peña said he plans to keep working for at least another ten years. He took out a big black Bible with many highlighted verses.

“The secret is praying and reading the Bible. Every day I come in here, read a little, pray, and then I start working. Did you see the sign?”

He pointed to a cardboard sign next to the counter that reads, “Only Christ can save you.” And right next to the message for salvation stood another dear image — a photograph of Posey and Peña, hugging and smiling. It was the same photograph that hung on the white wall above the counter at the shop where Posey was working.

“When we see a smile, it automatically opens us up. We are addicted to smiles, both of us,” Posey said, and started giggling.

***

View Larger Map

Click on the map to navigate through the community

Share on Facebook

“La Plazita” is what Latinos in the area call a busy shopping center located in Takoma Park, Maryland. In the crowded corner of University Boulevard and New Hampshire, more than a hundred Latinos wait every morning for casual employers looking for cheap labor.

Benedicto Marquez rests against a tree under the shadow, his face looks tired and his voice is very low — as if he didn’t want to be heard. Marquez is a 35-year-old Guatemalan who came to the United States a year ago. Although he seems to be unwinding, he is very attentive and is constantly looking around as if he is waiting for someone.

Marquez’s story is no different from those of the many Latinos who lived in the Takoma Park area. Although some have the “luxury” of having stable jobs that provide them with the security o knowing who their employer is. And offer them a salary, an insurance and sometimes even sponsorship to legalize their immigration status — if they don’t have documents. Others don’t quite have the same luck, and this new wave of immigrant prosecution has left them anxious, scared and with few job opportunities.

Marquez has been in what he calls “La Plazita” since 5:00 a.m. this morning. Hesitant to give more information about himself than he needs to, Marquez says that the day sometimes goes very slow and it seems to be longer than it is.

Today is one of those days.

It is 11:00 a.m., and Marquez is still waiting. “Only some people have come, and I haven’t been lucky. Others have been taken to work,” he said.

Photo by Angie Chuang.
Just as La Plazita has become an unofficial hub for Langley Park’s Latin American immigrants, small offices such as this one on University Boulevard provide more official spaces for essential services that they need: driver’s licenses, taxes, immigration, check cashing. The flags of Our Lady of Guadalupe, Guatemala, Honduras flap in the breeze.

Every day Marquez goes to the Takoma Park shopping center, with hopes that someone would come looking for cheap labor, and that he would have a job for the day.

“People would come here to get Latinos who can work in construction, landscape, painting, cleaning warehouses, moving, and other manual labor. They know we [Latinos] are hard workers and do whatever they ask us to do,” he says.

He also claims they get paid between $10 and $12 per hour. And although they often get less than what the employers promise, it is always better than what he made working in Guatemala. In his country, Marquez used to grow corn. He said he worked long hours and he barely made $4 per day.

“With that much money, who could support their family?” Marquez said.

Although he is not happy being away from his wife and children, Marquez says that at least from here he can help them. He says he only works, sends money, and saves the rest. With the expectation of one day going back home, Marquez waits in “La Plazita” for work — work that sometimes has caused him abuses, humiliations and pain.

In Takoma Park, more than 14 percent of the residents are of Hispanic origin, according to MuniNetGuide.com, a Web site for municipal research. These Latinos have brought their culture to Takoma Park where many Hispanic stores are located, young Latinos drive their cars playing Bachata music, and popular places such as Pollo Campero are crowded with people from other origins.

In contrast to Marquez, Fredy Orellana, 24, talks freely and loudly. He sits a few feet away from Marquez with another three young Latinos. Orellana plays with his hands as he talks and smiles to the others.

“Those in the other corner are new,” he said, “I have never seen them before.”

One of the other men who is with Orellana, tells him to stop pointing. “It’s disrespectful,” he says.

As one big moving truck approaches, all of the men pay attention. The truck stops and the driver pulls down the window. Five Latinos approach the truck and the driver shows with his hand that he needs only two. “How much?” one of the men asks. Two of the Latinos get in the truck and they drive away.

Orellana says he has never seen a fight for work. “We all approach thecars, some go and others don’t. We just wait for the next opportunity,” he said.

The problem is that lately, because there is not much work and some Latinos have offered themselves for less money, about $5 per hour. “And $5 per hour is nothing; most of the time we work long hours doing really hard work. But now those [the employers], who come here often, offer to pay $6 or $7 per hour, and they know someone will be willing to go,” Orellana said.

He claims that once he went with a woman who offered to pay him $8 per hour to put fliers in some apartments in Washington, D.C. He walked all day doing that, and when he was about to finish, she came and asked him how many more fliers he had. “I only have these ones,” Orellana said, showing her just a couple of fliers.

She told him to finish putting the fliers, and that she would meet him in the corner where she had dropped him off earlier. He said he entered the apartment building to put the rest of the fliers and when he got to the corner where she was supposed to meet him, she wasn’t there.

“I waited for an hour, and she never showed up. I didn’t even have money for the bus to go back home,” Orellana said.

After he tells the story, he looks at the ground and laughs. The spirited man then says that as long as there is work, he is fine. He mentions his daughter, who is 6 years old and lives with her mother, who is only 20, in their country, Honduras. Orellana says that although he misses them, he is thankful to be here, and would be willing to take the risks of coming here every time he is sent back by immigration officials.

In fact, Orellana has taken the risk twice already. He says that the first time he came to the United States from Honduras, it took him about a month. He says he was lucky because although he had to walk from Honduras to Mexico, in Mexico City he was able to take a plane that took him to Tijuana. From there he walked across the border.

He had been in Maryland for a year, when a police officer stopped him and some friends who were in the car, because they were going in the wrong direction on a street close to the Pentagon. The police officer asked them for their documents, and called immigration officials who deported them.

Determined to come back to the United States again, Orellana paid a coyote $6,000 he borrowed from various friends. “I walked and walked, took various buses until I made it with a group of about 20 people to the border. In the trip about three didn’t make it because they couldn’t resist the heat. They got dehydrated and we had to leave them,” Orellana said.

His friend Noel Ramirez, 27, who is also on the corner of “La Plazita,” says he had a similar experience in his way here. Ramirez remembers leaving his family behind, but just like Orellana maintains a determined attitude. They tell their stories as if they were simple odysseys. Both of them come from very poor isolated parts of their respective countries.

They laughed when they said that the first time they got here, the most amazing thing they saw was the “soda machine, you put money in, and you get a soda,” Orellana says, while Ramirez laughs.

Ramirez says that during the weekends, he likes to watch television. He says that he doesn’t drink or smoke, nor does he use an drugs.

Ramirez says about the Latino community in Takoma Park that most are very humble, hard working people who only want to help their families back home. “Yes, there are some Latinos who make us look bad by forming those gangs or doing bad things,” Ramirez says. “But most of us are good people.”

View Larger Map

Click on the map to navigate through the community.

Share on Facebook

Imagine leaving everything you have ever known to move to a foreign country where you know no one and do not speak the language. Imagine being a second-or third-generation Hispanic American who faces daily struggles to maintain and understand your Latino culture while embracing American ways of life.

Many of the Latin and Hispanic Americans who come to the United States emigrate from their countries to escape poverty and minimal professional opportunities. El Pregonero, the oldest Spanish-language newspaper in the Washington, D.C.-metro area, hopes to assist these newcomers, as well as inform second-and third-generation Hispanic Americans, according Rafael Roncal, the editor of El Pregonero.

“We try to help newcomers and make the process of transition easier for them, make things better and get them to know the rules,” Roncal said. “It’s a new environment and you have different languages, different customs, etc. They feel lost, so we try to help them in that transition.”

Often times faith serves as a unifier for people who often feel isolated, which is why, in 1977, the Archdiocese of Washington founded El Pregonero, according to former staff member, Ernesto Clavijo.

“We established the paper as a way to communicate to the Latino community about what was going around in the area. Mainly about religion and what services were available to the newcomers,” Clavijo said.

One of the ways that El Pregonero tries to help immigrants feel welcome is by emphasizing the importance of political, social and civic involvement, according to Roncal. While people of all communities and backgrounds should be concerned with politics, it is particularly important for Hispanic Americans living in the District.

“Participation is the corner of everything here. If you don’t participate you don’t count,” Roncal said.

The rights and family values of the working class have always been subjects of importance for the readers of El Pregonero, according to Tom Schmidt, the publisher. Recently, Hispanic Americans have taken a great interest in the economy, immigration and education, Schmidt said.

One of the main reasons that immigration and education are so significant to the Hispanic community is because of the recent developments in immigration legislation, Roncal said. Many people want to make a difference and voice their opinions, but are unable to because of their lack of education, he said.

“It’s not just saying I want to do something about this. It’s how can you make a change,” Roncal said. “The only way that you can do that is by having a higher position, one where you are responsible for having decision power.”

The most rewarding part of working for El Pregonero was helping and informing a severely underrepresented group of society, according to Clavijo. While at El Pregonero, he said the thing he value most was, “the opportunity to inform a voiceless community, a community that had not been taken care of by the other media. The general-market media pretty much ignored them” he said.

The recent redesign and re-launch of the El Pregonero Web site has proved beneficial, Schmidt said. The Web site has helped the El Pregonero communicate issues more effectively, he said. While all news media outlets are currently struggling to find innovative ways of disseminating information, smaller publications aren’t as vulnerable to the emerging new media, he said.

However, Clavijo believes that El Pregonero is no longer the main source of information for most Hispanic Americans in the District. Now as the news director for the Spanish-language television station, Univision Washington, Clavijo says that most people rely on the Internet and television to get their news. Many Latinos want up-to-date information on a daily or even hourly basis, and as a weekly newspaper, El Pregonero cannot compete, he said.

“In the beginning the idea was to have some voice for the Latino community, to inform the Latino community about what was going on and what affected them,” Clavijo said. “There were just two radio stations then, so it was a very good source of information for the community, but not any longer. Now we see the importance of television and the radio.”

While El Pregonero is classified as an alternative community news source, the influence from its Catholic publishers is obvious, according to Roncal. The newspaper, which is distributed for free and relies heavily on advertising revenue, will never accept ads from tobacco or alcohol companies.

The fact that the paper is able to survey parishioners regarding what information is important to them is vital, he said. The Catholic Church’s presence and assistance with the newspaper, contributes to its success.

“We have the privilege to have the backing of a 2,000-year-old institution,” Roncal said.

Share on Facebook

At ten o’clock in the morning, surrounding an old, brown table, six members of the Baltimore Times staff are holding an editorial meeting. Most of the things discussed you probably wouldn’t hear in a mainstream newsroom.

“This is hot off the press, this is smoking hot!” yells Donnie Manuel.

Again, Manuel stresses the excitement of the business magazine by staying positive and having a good outlook for the future.

“The magazine is about to blow up. Ba-boom!” he says.

Manuel has been the Director of Advertising for two and a half years. He is referring to the paper’s upcoming projects that are in store, including the launch party for their latest small business magazine.

Photo by Janine Cooper
The Baltimore Times headquarters on North Charles Street.

“People are finally recognizing us as their source for small business,” says Manuel.

The magazine, which is part of the numerous publications along with the Baltimore Times, will aim towards the business community. Mostly an entrepreneurial magazine, it allows for networking between small businesses in the area and the publication.

Most of the staff members at the Baltimore Times are predominantly African American, but they hope that the appeal is to a much wider audience.

“It’s not just for African Americans, even though it will always be swayed towards African Americans,” says Manuel.

Along the walls of the conference room, community service awards given from the City of Baltimore and many others grace the walls. The Baltimore Times, located on North Charles Street in Downtown Baltimore has a look of a New York City brownstone — old, and filled with history.

Inside, it looks more like a house, with its red and brown carpet, and a staff that welcomes a person in like they are family. And family they are. While in the editorial meeting, the staff cracks jokes with each other, talking about the previous weekend and everything from anniversary plans to movies. However, when it’s time to discuss work, everyone gets down to business.

“Everybody gets your ads in,” says Manuel.

The Baltimore Times staff understands the importance of advertising dollars. Ads are bought by local businesses, like Diamond Cinemas, to major department stores, like Macy’s.

When dealing with smaller staffs than larger media publications, the norm at most ethnic media outlets, staff members take on extra jobs. Ty Winston sells ads to businesses and lately, she has also taken on the role of staff photographer.

“I’m also the photographer right now in addition to my other duties,” Winston says proudly.

The staff makes sure that Winston’s new duties don’t go unnoticed. Each person in the room knows how important it is to work together — giving their input and utilizing all sources in order to put out their publication and do what’s best for it.

“There’s a difference between the black media and the white media and how they operate. We have to be twice as good, three times less expensive. We wear a lot of different hats. Case in point,” says Manuel, motioning toward Winston.

The Baltimore Times is not the only weekly the staff publishes. Other weeklies that are a part of this community are the Prince George’s County Times and the Annapolis Times. The company also has two quarterly magazines, Healthy You and the Maryland Small/Minority Business Magazine.

In the middle of a discussion about ads, Dena Wane, a manager of special projects talks about the 5K run that supports the Victim’s Fund. All staff members talk about participating in the run, but make jokes about walking most of the time.

Manuel, who started his career out as a musician, is now the director of advertising at the Baltimore Times. Once working for the Afro-Newspaper, which is conveniently located right next door to the Baltimore Times, he made the transition to advertising and realized that a small ethnic media outlet was the job for him.

“It’s kind of like a family atmosphere. I enjoy working for ethnic newspapers. I would have been confined in mainstream media, rigid. You will be lost in the sauce,” he says. “On working in small business, your voice is heard. There is no glass ceiling like there is in corporate America.”

While in the meeting, everyone is there to contribute in any way that they can. Silas Price works on a story idea that centers on a “Dress for Success” theme for the next issue of the magazine. This idea turns into a long discussion to determine what will grab a readers’ attention. Price also talks about how important it is to network in and around the community in order to gain connections, especially in places that may seem foreign to some.

“There is a need to network on golf courses. White counterparts do that and I think blacks are recognizing the need to do that,” Price says.

With all of the meeting mostly focusing on the next issue of the small business magazine, Joy Bramble, the publisher, tells the staff that while executing the next magazine, they must not forget about the Baltimore Times itself, ensuring the importance of this paper.

“You cannot neglect the Baltimore Times for a glossy magazine,” Bramble says. “It’s gravy.”

After the editorial meeting is over, everyone gets to work, including Frederick Howard. Walking slowly through the hallway, an older gentleman passes each door, greeting the workers. Howard’s formal title is the director of operations at the Baltimore Times, but most people know and greet him as simply, “Mr. Freddie.” He is in charge of laying out the paper each week and has been doing the job for years.

Like other staff members, Manuel stays positive. You can sense the excitement from the staff of a small publication that’s making some huge changes for the better in the business of ethnic media.

“We are at the cusp of some great things,” Manuel says. “We are on the fringes.”

Share on Facebook

Miguel Guilarte never thought that running the D.C. Marathon would make him the sports editor of the Spanish newspaper, El Tiempo Latino.

Looking through the window of his seventh–floor office at the paper’s headquarters in Arlington, Va., Guilarte remembers the first day when he opened the door of the newsroom. He was applying for a job as an accountant in the sales department.

Photo by Radina Gigova
Miguel Guilarte in the
El Tiempo Latino newsroom.

Guilarte came to the United States eight years ago from Caracas, Venezuela, to study English. He was an accounting manager for the Transportation Authority in Caracas, which is the equivalent of Metro in Washington. When he met with the editor-in-chief at the job interview, Guilarte accidentally mentioned that he was a little tired because the previous day he had ran the marathon. The editor then asked him if he wanted to be a sports reporter.

“I guess they needed more a sports reporter than an accountant,” Guilarte said.

Even before he began working at the paper, Guilarte cared about the issues that concern the Hispanic community, like immigration and employment.

Guilarte didn’t have any journalism experience, but knew that the people from the community saw the pages of the paper as a forum for their sorrow and joy. He decided to accept the offer.

As a reporter Guilarte started going to basketball and baseball games, and to boxing matches. He watched different soccer teams practicing and attended charity events. Often when the paper was short-staffed, he had to write the entire sports section.

Photo by Radina Gigova
Guilarte shows one of his awards.

* The mission of the paper is stated in the lyrics of this song. You can hear it on the Web site at eltiempolatino.com.

Latin-American Times
Music and Lyrics by Verny Varela
(English Translation)

I am the power, the resistance and the fun
That the people experience.
Those who are searching will find this message of hope;
“Yes you can, don’t give up!”

I am the city – a mix of colors, cultures, flavors and a thousand slangs.
I am the one who talks to you and informs you in what you are interested.
Listen, I am your friend, I am “El Tiempo Latino.”

El Tiempo Latino Cancion
Letra y Musica de Verny Varela (Spanish Version)

Yo say la fuerza y la persistencia, y la alegria,
La que la gente presenta.
El que busca y encuentra, este mensaje de esperanza:
“Que si, se peuede, qhe no rendirse”.

Yo soy el pueblo, mezcla de colores, culturas, sabores, de mil menciones.
El que te dice y te informa en lo que te interesa.
Oye, yo soy tu amigo, soy “El Tiempo Latino.”

“Sometimes I was coming home after one o’clock in the morning but I loved it,” Guilarte said.

Over the years, Guilarte has won many awards for excellence in journalism, including the Jose Marti Spanish Media Award for outstanding newspaper section, given by the National Association of Hispanic Publications (NAHP). He said the paper as a whole has been among the top three Spanish papers in the D.C. area at least for the last five years, according to NAHP ratings.

Guilarte said El Tiempo Latino’s mission goes beyond delivering just useful information.

“We are not only making a paper, we try to help the community. And we’ve never stopped, for more than 15 years. No matter if it’s snowing or icing, we are out there.”

Guilarte said people from the Hispanic community not only read the paper, but trust it as well. He said if people are in a difficult situation and don’t have the resources to seek justice, they often come to the paper to share their struggles. He pointed as an
example the cover story of the March 14 issue. A man from Mexico went to Capitol Hill to ask for permission for his deported wife to return to Washington. He wasn’t successful.

“Sometimes people don’t care but we do, because he is Latino,” Guilarte said.

El Tiempo Latino, which means Latin American Times, covers the D.C. Metropolitan area, Richmond and Baltimore. Its circulation is 55,000. The paper has news, sports, arts, real estate and classified-ad sections. One of the issues that the paper covers extensively is immigration. El Tiempo has also a well-developed Web site.

The staff consists of 20 people from different Spanish-speaking countries: Venezuela, Uruguay, Peru, El Salvador, Spain, Colombia, Mexico and Bolivia.

Photo by Radina Gigova
Design Director Carlos Albuquerque in the newsroom.

The paper is a publication of The Washington Post Company. Four years ago, when The Washington Post Company wanted to buy a paper appealing to the Latino community, it conducted a survey to find out which paper the Hispanic population trusted the most. It was El Tiempo.

Although the paper gets support from The Washington Post Company, El Tiempo Latino generates big portion of its revenue from advertising. But often, as part of its service to the community, the paper lets non-profit organizations to advertise for free.

Design Director Carlos Alburqueque, originally from Peru, said the paper was constantly working to improve its content and design to be more appealing to the Hispanic audience.

“We are always trying to work with the public and with the clients. We try to work with fresh hands. We are always updating our content, design and the technology that we use,” Alburqueque said.

Photo by Radina Gigova
Francesca Ferro, hairstylist and El Tiempo Latino reader, at her workplace.

“You can find everything you need in this newspaper,” said Francesca Ferro from the Dominican Republic, who works as a hairstylist in Virginia.

“It explains to the Hispanic people what’s going on in the world, especially to those who don’t speak English and don’t understand what is good and bad for them.”

Share on Facebook

Photo by Angie Chuang
International Corridor: Kim Nguyen, a Vietnamese American Langley Park resident, takes in the scenery in front of Tijuana’s Mexican Cafe and Angkor Market, a Cambodian-run business, on University Boulevard.

Langley Park coverage:

For one immigrant, robbery at gunpoint leads to awareness: Langley Park diverse community grapples with ‘invisible’ crime
By Noelle Harmon

Portraits of darkness and light: gang-prevention center reaches youth through art
By Jeff Lambert

A day’s work: Latino immigrants gather at ‘La Plazita’ to seek employment, community
By Juliana Monsalve

Click on the map to navigate through the community

View Larger Map

Share on Facebook

Melba Calderon, program director for the Maryland Multicultural Youth Center in Langley Park, stands in front of a small, unframed painting. A figure, wearing sunglasses, rises out of the dark blue and black tones. A 19-year-old gang member painted this self-portrait, which Calderon says hints at serious depression. But in the canvas, she also sees hope.

“He’s expressed all his feelings through a painting,” Calderon said. “For him to do that, it’s a big realization.”

Calderon’s office is covered in self-portraits, just one project she’s implemented with her organization’s Youth Empowerment and Success Program. The initiative aims to empower youth and help draw them away from the dangers of gang life.

This task is all the more relevant in Langley Park, the neighborhood where her office-cum-gallery sits. The area has experienced a wave of violence, as young gang members flock into the community, which stands on the dividing line between Maryland’s Montgomery and Prince George’s counties. Demetrius Mallisham, a case manager for the organization’s students who have dropped out of school, said that county officials aren’t doing enough to alleviate the community’s gang issues.

“People sweep these problems under the rug,” Mallisham said of gang violence in the suburbs. “We need to acknowledge that there is a problem, and not cut programs in schools like athletics and after-school activities. These kids don’t have places to go.”

The resources that the office provides — from job readiness and GED courses to elementary school gang prevention classes — are offering young people in Langley Park an alternative to gangs and a new way to connect to their community. Calderon said the organization is better equipped than a county service provider to meets the needs of the community, because it relies on a grassroots network instead of an unwieldy bureaucracy.

“If one of my staff comes to me with a homeless kid who needs to eat, I just go down the block and buy him something,” Calderon said. “If I were to work for the government, I’d have to fill out a trail of paperwork to prove why this kid needs to eat a hamburger.”

Through relationships with other community organizations and churches, Calderon said that she can produce “action in an instant,” with a phone call instead of a paper trail. Claudia Vasquez, the organization’s GED instructor, echoed a divide between the functionality of community and county service providers.

Photo by Angie Chuang
A new generation of Latinos grows up in Langley Park as community organizations like Maryland Multicultural Youth Center in Langley Park fights to steer their older counterparts on the right path.

“PG country has not equipped its residents to either retain high school students or to help them afterwards,” Vasquez said. “I’ve encountered very little resources that actually provide out-of-school youth with any guidance.”

By providing educational and counseling resources to at-risk youth, Mallisham says the organization is assessing the needs of its own neighborhood, helping to engender a sense of community in Langley Park’s youth. His out-of-school students recently completed a mural project at a graffiti-covered wall on the corner of New Hampshire Avenue and Piney Branch Road, transforming a symbol of gang activity into a symbol of community vitality, according to Mallisham.

“We had several youth working on that project, from different ethnicities and different backgrounds,” Mallisham said. “All of them coming together, it was something really beautiful to see.”

The arts programs help young people to better express themselves, without resorting to gang-related tags. The art that covers Calderon’s office—3 large murals and numerous self portraits—was the product of a two week effort to help the students articulate their emotions through art. Calderon said that after two weeks of working on the self-portraits, she had changed the students’ perspectives.

“This is why working with youth is so important,” Calderon said. “We are at a critical point where we can be the turning point in their lives.”

One of the murals in her office shows two different worlds, which Calderon says represent the present and the future for her students.

On the “present” side, guns and bodies hover in the night sky. A menacing blue-and-white clown stands next to a burning police station. The clown, and the blue and white paints used on his face, are part of the symbology of Mara Salvatrucha, or MS-13. The street gang’s local representation, Langley Park Salvatruchas, has been implicated in much of the violence experienced by the community.

“This is the present for some of them,” Calderon said, adding that many of her program’s participants are former members of MS-13. “Death is all around them. But on the other side is how they want to see themselves—playing football, bright colors. It represents Langley Park, their community. And it’s all clean—no weapons, no gang members.”

View Larger Map

Click on the map to navigate through the community.

Share on Facebook