Democracy as established in the Constitution of the United States of America should have protected the minority from majority rule. But during the antislavery movement, states went as far as to make laws abridging the freedom of speech. Illinois lawmakers, for instance, decided that the First Amendment did not apply to abolitionists. Editors for papers serving the African American community were attacked and their printing presses were destroyed. Nevertheless, people like Frederick Douglass persisted in their pursuit of equality.

Today, media outlets still seek to serve underrepresented populations in the United States, but not necessarily in the fight for equal treatment. In Washington D.C., the Washington Hispanic (c.1994) publishes with the motto “The voice of the Hispanic community in Washington, Maryland and Virginia” and the coverage I sought out seemed to be exactly that: coverage about the community not picked up by the major media conglomerates. The Washington Hispanic prints 55,000 copies per week. According to its Wikipedia page, the publication is headquartered in Adams Morgan, making it the only Spanish language outlet in the actual district.

On its homepage on 11/13/12, I found the following five stories – all related to the election – rotating in the top page element:

“The Latino electorate turned out in impressive numbers to the polls -15,000,000-and 70% gave their vote to Obama.”

“Maryland already has a Dream Act. They also legalized gay marriage and the expansion of casinos.”

“America is changing, and the results of the last presidential elections prove it.”

“In Ecuador, Rafael Correa announces his candidacy for reelection, and he rides a bicycle.”

“In January there will be automatic cuts in the national budget and tax increases if Obama and Congress fail to reach an agreement.”

What I like about the Washington Hispanic is its commitment to civic engagement, focusing on the aspects of the election that are a.) most important to its audience but b.) will inevitably increase voter turnout next time. One of the headlines – the third – seems to lack a tie to a news element, but when I clicked to read the story it explained how Latinos can become a very influential population in the election process, giving their growing numbers and growing voter turnout (a story which fits into the current national narrative that the GOP must do something about their Latino disconnect).

If the mass media aren’t covering these kinds of issues in a way that caters to all minority communities, then they need to start by diversifying in their newsrooms as Pamela Newkirk suggests in her essay about the minority press. One of the problems with newsrooms remaining largely white and male is that the homogenous makeup reinforces limited coverage, and as the electorate – and society – diversifies, journalism as a mirror must do so as well. It makes me wonder – will newspapers like the Washington Hispanic eventually fold because the mainstream press must broaden their coverage and steal readers? Or will the mainstream press buy out papers like the Washington Hispanic to gain diversity in the organization? Or will we eventually see a “Washington Post – Hispanic section?” Perhaps the most important question is, though, will the U.S. Latino population follow the coverage of their community to the mainstream papers? Because while it is the responsibility of the media to hold a mirror to society, they also need to sell papers, and if their readership continues to reflect a homogenous population rather than changing with the growth in minority populations, it seems unfair to ask them to change their coverage. But perhaps they need to change their coverage to get the new Latino readers. Or perhaps the homogenous population of subscribers needs to read about the Latino population, regardless of whether the coverage helps business or not. Unfortunately, the “which came first, the chicken or the egg?” question comes into play, and it might take a few guinea pig publications to test it before the media figures out how to best cover the diversifying community.