The media industry is one of the biggest, if not the most prominent industry available for people to consume. It is how people get information on current events, the newest trend, or even for something as simple as knowing the weather forecast. Yet, when you think about representation regarding ethnic groups like Latinos or Hispanics, there isn’t as much representation, even less recently.

 

“There’s not a lot of representation of Latinos in the media. I didn’t think about journalism as a career because I didn’t see people that looked like me. A brown, dark skin, undocumented, first-generation, Latina.” said Brenda Verano, a Latina journalist for CALO News.

 

According to a 2021 study conducted by the Government Accountability Office (GAO), they discovered “Hispanics are underrepresented in the media industry compared to their representation in the rest of the workforce, according to GAO's analysis of American Community Survey (ACS) data from the U.S. Census Bureau. In 2019, the most recent year data were available, Hispanics made up an estimated 12 percent of workers in the media industry, which includes film, television, publishing, and news, compared to an estimated 18 percent of workers in the rest of the workforce, which includes all other industries combined.”  

 

The newsroom in recent years has gotten more diverse with different ethnic groups joining and contributing to the media industry. However, Latinos still fall behind in that regard, and lack representation not only in newsrooms but in other mediums of media as well, such as entertainment. 

 

“I feel like there aren’t enough openings. I was talking to someone from the LA Times, and Los Angeles has had a number of Latino mayors, but the LA Times has never had a Latino editor-in-chief. For the biggest metropolitan newspaper to never have a [Latino] editor-in-chief, that just shows the inequity or lack of diversity.”

 

Whether it is a newsroom, a different form of media, or another job. Latinos make up a healthy population, yet the lack of representation or misrepresentation is heavily present. The Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism found that “Latinxs are the second-largest so-called ethnic group in America, encompassing almost 20 percent of the country’s population. They make up about half the residents of New Mexico and close to 40 percent of those living in Texas and California, two of the biggest states measured by population and local economy.” 

 

Seeing such a high number but not making up a bigger percentage in newsrooms means that ethnic groups will fall behind in news and quickly be covered over by something else. News is always changing and forming something bigger than yesterday's news. 

 

Even more so in areas where the population is massive. There are even major publications that reside in these heavily Latino-populated areas that do not include Latinos as much as they could. 

 

In fact, a study was done by the University of California Los Angeles’ Latino Policy and Politics Institute on the Los Angeles Times. Where they analyzed the authorship and content of published work between Jan. 2020 and May 2021. 

 

They discovered that Latinos are severely underrepresented in The Los Angeles Times (LA Times) editorial board. And not only for the LA Times but for other major publications like The Washington Post and The New York Times. 

 

“The representation gap between the percentage of Latinos on the newspaper’s editorial board and the Latino share of the newspaper’s county population is 26.5 percentage points at The Dallas Morning News, 17.9 percentage points at The New York Times, 9.4 percentage points at The Miami Herald, and five percentage points at The Washington Post.”

 

Verano also mentions, “I’ve been in other newsrooms where if I’m not the only Latina, I’m one of the few Latinas,” said Verano. “When you’re a senior reported, you have that confidence, but when you’re young, at least for me, I’ve ventured into newsrooms and feel out of place. Even though I know I could do the job, you don’t know if you actually belong here.” 

 

In fact, rather than more Latinos getting representation in the media, it seems like the opposite is occurring. Latinos are falling behind in the media, despite having many diverse Latino or Hispanic groups. 

 

And when Latinos are covered, it is usually in a negative spotlight. After all, Latinos and all ethnic groups, are not meant to be seen as people that can be used for just writing purposes, in newsrooms, stories about Latinos are those of hardship or some tragedy that occurred within the community, and while these stories are very important, they do not make up the entire Latino community. 

 

“If we’re writing about a news story, an editor will talk about what street vendor got assaulted. Yes, it’s important, but I do feel uncomfortable subjecting Latinos to a very low standard because their Latinos like they have to go through a hard time.” Verano stated. “When I go out to interview, it’s about getting the saddest story, and I’ve retaliated to that, just because you're Latino doesn’t mean you had to have a really tough start-up.” 

Like most unique and diverse ethnic groups, informative representation is important to understand because that is how people do not stay ignorant or use stereotypes against these groups. Otherwise, it could lead to problems down the line with said group.

 

But Latinos in particular, have often been represented in movies, television, and other forms of media, which can come with positives and negatives depending on the portrayal of Latinos. While some shows like “Family Guy” or “South Park” where they make fun of telenovelas, culture, and Latinos, and have intentional jokes or cutaways to make fun of Latinos. Some may find it offensive, and some may not, regardless, they are stereotypical and people consume those jokes. 

 

There are also shows that were not made to be necessarily full satire and are more like regular sitcoms. However, when there is Latinos being portrayed, the production of the show does not know that these are stereotypes that they are enforcing. And there are different examples of these stereotypes. 

 

And even when Latinos do get cast for roles, they are still misrepresented. These roles can include stereotypes like maids, gang-related Latinos, and Spanish-only Latinos. 

 

An article written by the Los Angeles Times stated, “Latinos are more than 18% of the population yet made up only 5.3% of the share of broadcast TV roles in the 2018-19 season, according to the 2020 UCLA ‘Hollywood Diversity Report.’ Big-screen representation is similarly bleak: Latinos accounted for only 4.6% of movie roles in 2019, according to the same report.”

 

The issue of Latinos falling behind in newsrooms and media representation has gotten to a point where Latino figures and smaller publications have tried to raise awareness for better and more representation.

 

Latinos have been seen as a large ethnic group, a massive player in the economy of entertainment or the workforce. But cannot seem to get proper recognition for the same industries they help move. 

 

CNBC wrote an article on how famous music producer Emilio Estefan said “I feel proud that I didn’t have to change my last name I didn’t have to change my sound because people liked it,” he said. “We bring something a little bit different and that’s what makes America.”

 

The article also found that only 3.1 percent of lead actors in TV shows are Latinos. But Hispanic customers purchased 29 percent of all box office tickets sold in 2019. 

 

Outside of entertainment, newsrooms could try different practices. Verano mentions hiring more Latinos and creating programs to help Latino staff reporters get a higher position in media. To understand and better know the community. 

 

It can also be important to understand that Latinos are not responsible, like other ethnic groups, for educating non-Latinos about practices, cultures, or ways of life. It creates so much work for Latinos that it can be very exhausting, so it will be helpful for both sides, to educate themselves on things they want to know more about. 

 

“Honestly, giving people of color a chance, creating shows that are good in diversity. Going for roles that are outside the narrative, the media has to have a really big shift in order for all of us to be represented and seen. If that doesn’t happen, as the years go on, we will stop consuming media, and I think that is already happening for Gen Z.” stated Verano. 

 

Latinos being passive consumers of media, both sides could be hurt by the loss of one another. If Latinos stop consuming as much media, the media doesn’t get as many views, clicks, etc.  After being underrepresented for some time now, Latinos could use the help of other groups to help be seen. To help them break the walls that stereotypes have put up and find ways to connect with the Latino community.