Viva Colorado is expanding its reach by converting the publication to Spanish- and English-language content.
Previously published in Spanish only, the weekly newspaper launched the bilingual approach starting with today’s edition. It also launched a stand-alone bilingual website, .
Editor and publisher Rowena Alegría said the change is designed to attract more Latino readers whose primary language is English.
“Denver’s Latino population is incredibly diverse,” Alegría said. “Going bilingual is a way for us to reach a broad segment of that community.”
Viva Colorado is published by The Denver Post. The paper distributes 50,000 free issues weekly at 1,200 newsstands and retail outlets from Castle Rock to Greeley.
Analyst Leslie Smith of Los Angeles- based multicultural market-research firm New American Dimensions noted that most of the increase in the Latino population is from people born in the U.S.
“That makes the next generation of Latinos bilingual and bicultural,” Smith said.
In Colorado, other bilingual publications include El Semanario and La Voz. Spanish-language newspapers include El Comercio, El Hispano and El Reportero.
Viva Colorado, founded in 2006, initially carried entertainment-oriented content from Mexican and international sources.
In 2009, it hired local reporters and editors to produce articles on Denver and Colorado issues.
Marketing analyst Laura Sonderup of Denver-based Hispanidad said Viva Colorado’s bilingual launch is likely to attract a broader audience.
“The Hispanic market is not a monolithic market,” she said. “Give me that information in both languages so it gives me an opportunity to view it in the way I choose.”
The bilingual edition could prove popular with advertisers seeking to market to English-speaking Latinos, Sonderup said.
The number of Latino-oriented newspapers in the U.S. has grown from 355 in 1990 to 835 in 2009, with combined circulation of 5 million, according to research firm Latino Print Network.
The 2010 census found that more than half of U.S. population growth from 2000 to 2010 was attributable to Latinos, who represent 16 percent of the total U.S. population of 308.7 million. Their purchasing power is estimated at $1 trillion annually.
Steve Raabe: 303-954-1948 or sraabe@denverpost.com
