Clemenseando

Latinos And The NYT

Stuart Elliott has a straightforward piece in today's New York Times about the Hispanic market.

Hispanic Ratings Watch

Full Disclosure - I often write for a trade publication owned by VNU, which also owns Nielsen Media Research. Furthermore, more than a decade ago I worked for first Telemundo and then NBC.

La Madrastra is going from strength to strength. Tuesday was the highest rated episode last week when according to Nielsen there were some 5.65 million viewers. "Apuesta por un Amor" was second on the top 25 list of primetime Spanish-language programming. Cristina was third and since Boli-Nica seems to be interested Gilberto Gless was ranked seventh.

 "Cuerpo del Deseo" is Telemundo's top rated program at number 14 and is doing fine with a 5.9 rating. The reality show featuring Andres Garcia and his son Leonardo, "El Principe Azul", came in at number 15. (Mamita Mala wrote about the show in a post entitled "Mad Black Loose Latina". Definitely worth reading.)

Mexican soccer league programming provided both Telefutura and Azteca America with entries on the list. Once again, Ripley's hold the last slot on the top 25 list.

On the English side, Fox holds five of the top ten most-watched programs by Hispanics.

The Three Latinos

I would never have expected the combination of Marc Antony, Chayanne and Alejandro Fernandez to work as a concert draw. Yet, they are doing just fine. I probably would have argued that you are crazy to mix three such distinct musical styles under the same roof on the same evening. That the pop fans would never stick around for the salsa and ranchero performances and vice versa. Clear Channel, the company that organized the tour, obviously thought otherwise and they were right.

I am pretty catholic when it comes to music. The first concert I attended was the Police at the Orange Bowl during the Synchronicity tour. The last concert I attended was Los Tigres del Norte at the Auditorio Nacional in Mexico City some six weeks ago. I suppose there are many, many others who are equally heterodox in their musical taste. Folks who are open to hearing different Latino music genres. Maybe, just maybe, this is emblematic of the beginning of the creation of a distinctly Latino culture. I doubt it, but the folks at Clear Channel are clearly onto something.

PS Another possible and less flattering and somewhat sexist explanation is made here.

More Ring My Bell

Just after yesterday's morning post about the Hispanic ringtones market came this afternoon announcement from US Cellular.

"I Cracked Down"

It is tough to craft a compelling and well-written press release and easy to write a really awful one. At CNN as an assignment editor and bureau chief, I threw hundreds of releases into the waste basket. (These were the days when they were still mostly sent by fax rather than email.)

This release put out by Boost Mobile on August 24 and distributed through Hispanic PR Wire is the worst one I have read in a very long time.

I counted seventeen clichés in the text.

The first sentence begins with "once again", which is that punchiest of phrases. The writer then talks about how Boost Mobile and the ad agency Berlin Cameron/Red Cell have "raised the bar" with a "cutting edge comedic concept." Said "comedic concept" showcases "chart-topping" artists Eve and Fat Joe who are oddly referred to as "two visible icons."

Happily both artists are "at the top of their respective games." So it is only fitting that they work with an "acclaimed director" who "applies some creative license" and goes "back in time" to portray Fat Joe "back in the day" when he was still a "hidden talent" as opposed to a "lyrical legend" (What is a lyrical legend? Is that some kind of Homeric ode?)

Fat Joe and Eve would be very different individuals if they hadn't been saved by the "chirp" of their Boost Mobile phones alerting them to a life-changing call at a "pivotal moment." Otherwise, Eve might have found herself "ultimately succumbing to a position as an assistant ballet instructor in eastern Ukraine." Similarly, there but by the grace of God and Boost Mobile, Fat Joe would be "a respected NYC pet psychiatrist." This must be the "tongue-in-cheek approach" mentioned in the release.

The campaign is designed to "take young people to a higher level" by highlighting "those once-in-a-lifetime moments when you need instant information so you don't miss that golden opportunity." Thank goodness, Boost Mobile is there to assist me when it comes to "staying ahead of the pack in terms of being 'where it's at'"

After all, I too wish to "succeed in the youth branding game" where it is important to be "fresh and authentic every time."

As my twelfth-grade Latin American history teacher, Armando Rodriguez, used to say in a thick Cuban accent "It was so funny I cracked down."

Ring My Bell

A Reuters write via ZDNet talks about how wireless operators allegedly believe the next growth area for ring tones lies with the Hurban market. The ZDNet sub-head refers to young Hispanics as "Multimedia Mavens" and quotes a Forrester Research study to bolster the argument. Mention is also made of something called the Billboard Hot Ring Tones chart. I didn't know anyone was keeping track of this sort of thing.

I use my cellphone as an alarm clock and not much else.

Full Disclosure - I often freelance for a trade publication owned by VNU, which also owns Billboard magazine.

Wal-Mart Gets "Wise"

The Christian Latino market is underserved and too often ignored by mainstream marketers even those interested in the general Hispanic market. One minor deal does not change that but since it involves Wal-Mart it may have an outsized impact.

Disney has provided Wal-Mart with the exclusive right to sell a DVD of "The Three Wise Men." The popular Christian recording artists Jaci Velasquez (five million records sold) and Marcos Witt (eight million records sold) have been cast as voices in the animated film.

The Hollywood Reporter/Reuters article says, "'Wise Men' appeals to three of Wal-Mart's core demographic groups -- family, Latino and Christian, said Lori MacPherson, senior vp brand marketing and product management at Disney's Buena Vista Home Entertainment."

Yep.

PS Here's a link to the biblical passage that tells of the visit of the wise men to Bethlehem.

"Who this?"

There is a NYT article today by Jon Pareles about Daddy Yankee. I always feel I learn something when I read an article by Pareles. I am pathetically ignorant when it comes to music and Pareles helps school me. His writing is always a joy to read. Today was no exception. However, he clearly doesn't report much about demographic changes in the States.  

"The 2002 census estimated that one in eight Americans was Hispanic. Many are bilingual, but reggaetón offers them fantasies of street life in their first language, while video clips show the stars flaunting diamonds and surrounded by scantily clad women."

There was no Census in 2002 and it is inaccurate to imply that Spanish is the "first language" of many or all Hispanics. Unfortunately, Spanish is more often a second and weaker language among many Latinos.

Still, a fine piece overall.

Do You Speak Spanish? Does It Matter?

"Not much boom for the buck in Latino marketing book" is a rather harsh review of Chiqui Cartagena's newly published book "Latino Boom! Everything You Need to Know to Grow Your Business in the U.S. Hispanic Market." It is the sort of review that authors dread - well-argued, witty and dismissive.

"News Bulletin: The Hispanic/Latino market is very important, and there are enormous opportunities to increase your business by marketing to it.

"Unless you've been in a coma or on an expedition to the outer moons of Neptune, this is not really a revelation."

Oh, that hurts.

I do not know Chiqui Cartagena and have not read her book so I can't really offer an opinion as to the accuracy or fairness of the review. However, I can say the reviewer raises a number of vital questions.

The most important and obvious being "Other than language, what commonalities exist that serve to meld Spanish speakers into a single group?"

And what happens when Spanish is no longer (if, in fact, it still is) the predominant language among Hispanics. Without Spanish, do we still have enough distinguishing traits that make us undeniably Latino regardless of whether we are of Argentine, Cuban, Dominican, Mexican or Puerto Rican descent? Whether or not we are first, second or seventh generation?

I don't know. I don't have a clue even though I dedicate many of my waking hours to thinking and talking and writing about Hispanics. 

Recently, I interviewed a Hispanic media executive about young Latinos in the States. She said "You and I know it is not about language." She went on to suggest that "it" is about culture and values.

I am not so sure.

The view that culture trumps language among Latinos is certainly on the ascendant among Hispanic marketing and media executives. The Herald article refers to "Hispanic values, like love of family, children and such, are typical themes [in advertising]."

I wonder, though, if values are the most accurate way of defining a culture. Maybe so, maybe not. It strikes me that most (not all) cultures value family and children, which means Hispanic culture then becomes a question of degree rather than absolutes. That Latinos, particularly immigrants, place a relatively greater emphasis on the betterment of their children and have a greater tolerance for living with and spending heaps of time with their relatives is conventional wisdom. Are those the only features that make Hispanic culture distinct? Can't those attributes be shared or even surpassed by other cultures? If so, then the Irish men and women I have met are decidedly Latino-like.

I read a study a few days ago about the proportion of "negative" and "positive" health ads in women's magazines targeting the general market, African American readers and Latinas. The authors toted up the number of white and black faces in the ads. They tried to do the same with the Hispanic faces but couldn't. They gave up on the effort. There were a number of Hispanics among the co-authors but they couldn't say with certainty which models were Latina. This is not negative. It is the inevitable result of the racial and ethnic diversity found among Hispanics. It does however point to the difficulties of identifying what makes us Latino. It ain't race, that's clear.

I think there will come a time in the not-too-distant future when the majority of Hispanics in the US will not speak Spanish. Sociologists refer to the US as a language graveyard. Many Hispanic marketers are convinced that Spanish will prove the exception to this rule. I hope so, but I just don't see it.

How will we define ourselves as a group without Spanish? Without even sufficient residual kitchen Spanish to follow a telenovela?

No tengo ni puta idea. But I do fully appreciate the irony of writing about all this in English.

Hispanic Ratings Watch

Full Disclosure - I often freelance for a publication owned by VNU, which is the same company that owns Nielsen. More than a decade ago I worked for Telemundo and then NBC.

La Madrastra remains number one on Nielsen's list of top twenty-five Spanish-language primetime programs. Its 26.2 rating translates into an audience of over 5 million people, which is a very strong performance. Cristina is back in the top three and Univision holds the first thirteen slots on the list. Normally, it has the first fourteen programs.

Telemundo did well with Rumbo al Mundial with a 10.2 rating, which is the highest number I recall seeing for them in a long while. Their new reality show Principe Azul is starting off with decent ratings of 5.9 and Los Plateados continues to demonstrate slow but steady improvement from a month ago. Telefutura had two movies on the list and Azteca America snuck back onto the very bottom of the list with the airing of a football match.

WWE Smackdown! remains the most popular English-language program with Hispanics garnering an audience of more than 900,000 viewers.

El Chavo holds nine of the top ten slots on the Spanish-language cable ratings for a combined audience of almost 3.4 million viewers. It seems fans of El Chavo are busy buying DVDS of his program. Six hundred thousand of them to be precise.

PS Last week BoliNica made the valid suggestion that I include the full Nielsen list or a link to it. He was right. So here's the list.