LOS ANGELES, January 26, 2005 – Embracing the growing strength of the affluent U.S.-born Latino market, Ciudad, LLC, a subsidiary of Emmis Communications Corporation (Nasdaq: EMMS), today announced its plan to launch Tu Ciudad Los Angeles, an English-language magazine catering to upwardly-mobile Latinos in Los Angeles, the city with the nation’s largest Hispanic population.
The bi-monthly magazine, targeting three and a half million affluent Latinos, will debut on newsstands and reach subscribers in May 2005. Tu Ciudad (pronounced TOO SEE-YOU-DAHD), which literally means “your city,” will be the definitive guide to Los Angeles culture, entertainment and lifestyle for urbane Latinos and other like-minded Angelenos.
“I’m thrilled that Emmis has joined us in producing a magazine that speaks to the lives of Latinos in Los Angeles,” says Jaime Gamboa, publisher of the new magazine. “I’ve lived in this city my entire life and know firsthand that ambitious, on-the-move Latinos are looking for sources of culture that reflect equally on our Latino and American experience.”
The full-color, high gloss magazine will serve as the authoritative source for Latino culture in the city, showcasing L.A. people, places and trends while tackling serious issues. “Latinos, and in particular Mexican-Americans, have been a vital part of the history and fabric of Los Angeles from its inception,” says Angelo Figueroa, Tu Ciudad’s editorial director and the founding editor of both Time Inc.’s People en Espanol and the San Jose Mercury News’ Nuevo Mundo, a Spanish-language newspaper. “Now they’ll have a magazine that reflects and celebrates the fact that they are transforming the economic and cultural landscape of the city.”
The publication of Tu Ciudad heralds a tectonic shift away from the notion of Latino identity built around language, and toward the new reality of culturally identified and geographically dispersed U.S.-born Latinos who are a growing percentage of high-income individuals in metro areas across the U.S. This hot market, with a buying power of $78 billion in Los Angeles alone, is just beginning to be noticed.
Gabriel Grimalt, Tu Ciudad’s associate publisher, says the magazine will give advertisers an opportunity to reach the highly coveted English-dominant segment of the Latino population, which tends to be more affluent than their foreign born, Spanish-dominant counterparts.
Grimalt, who co-founded the magazine with Gamboa, is a former vice president of operations for Spanish Broadcasting Systems. Gamboa is an 11-year veteran of publishing, having worked for Weider Publications, Time Inc. and Conde Nast Publications.
Emmis Publishing has owned Los Angeles magazine since 2000, acquiring it from Fairchild Publications, at the time a division of Disney Corp. Los Angeles magazine is the leading publication in L.A., with a paid circulation of 150,000 and a readership of 350,000. Emmis Publishing also owns Texas Monthly, Atlanta, Cincinnati, Indianapolis Monthly and Country Sampler magazines. In May 2004, the company picked up more than a third of all national awards given by the City and Regional Magazine Association. Emmis executives Gary Thoe, President of Emmis Publishing, and Deborah Paul, Executive Vice President/Editorial Director, will oversee the operation of Tu Ciudad.
Bios are available upon request.
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