Local Spotlight

As we continue the film’s journey, we’ll be spotlighting local news outlets we meet along the way.

When did you publish your first issue? We launched The Americano on May 5, 2020. We call ourselves a pandemic-proof newsroom because the US went into a lockdown that following Monday. Floricua was launched as a daily newsletter on the same date, and we now serve close to 20K Boricuas in Florida every day. In Oct 2020, we also launched Floricua as a subsite within The Americano’s umbrella, as well as our own Floricua dedicated social platforms. (@Floricuas)

Location: We operate remotely with reporters in Missouri, Florida, Puerto Rico, NY, covering the Deep South with a heavy focus on Florida, PR, GA, TX, IA, AZ.

Website: www.theamericanonews.com + www.theamericanonews.com/floricua (our hyperlocal sub-site dedicated to Florida Puerto Ricans)

Who is your audience? We are social/platform-first focused and our audience is primarily young Latinas (14.1 total pop amongst the states mentioned above, mostly Mexican, 25-34) in the states mentioned above for Americano and for Floricua, Puerto Ricans in the Sunshine State (800K approximately, ages 25-55, primarily women).

What was the most important local news story of the past year? In my opinion, the Covid-19 spread and the incompetence of our leaders go hand in hand. And we exist to fill the gap of information and fight the rampant disinformation attacks targeted towards Latinos. We are proud to hold those in power accountable, at a national, state, local level with stories like these on our website:

The Americano: ‘Florida Is in Full Pandemic Resurgence,’ Says White House COVID-19 Task Force

The Americano: Florida Doctors Take a Blowtorch to Trump and DeSantis’ “Heartbreaking and Irresponsible” COVID-19 Response

Because we believe we need to meet Latinos where they are, social-first (Instagram-focused) stories like these also make us very proud: The John Lewis Voting Rights Act Explained | Climate Change is Already Taking a Toll on Florida | What to Know About the Puerto Rico Self-Determination Act | Vieques Island Needs Much More Than COVID Vaccines

Personally, why do you do what you do? Because I’m my audience. The Americano + Floricua are the only US civic news sites created by Latinas for Latinas. We cover all that matters to our communities, particularly local issues in Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, Arizona, Texas, and Puerto Rico. My team and I strongly believe an informed electorate is essential for a strong democracy and that the decline of local news throughout the country has adversely impacted civic engagement. As journalists, we are committed to quality local reporting that offers engaging and fact-based news that is relevant to our readers’ everyday lives. And because I want to break the stereotype that Latinos—especially, Latinas—don’t care about politics.