Happy Friday!
June 27 (today) marks the official one-year anniversary of when The Latino Newsletter became a registered nonprofit, both in Massachusetts and with the Internal Revenue Service. To acknowledge that, I thought it would be good to review our growth since then.
It’s been a year.
I can say without question that The Latino Newsletter has become a trusted source for news, voices, and analysis focused on Latino communities, as well as creating professional opportunities for Latino and Latina journalists.
Here’s what we’ve accomplished together:
284 posts published —including this one— elevating a range of stories and commentaries
90 contributors from across the United States and Puerto Rico
2,655 newsletter subscribers (Beehiiv + LinkedIn)
A 65.5% newsletter open rate, far exceeding industry averages
Around 19,000 social followers across all major platforms
Over 500,000 total article views across our website, newsletters, syndication partners, and organic search
Over 3,500 podcast listens
Over 400,000 video views across our platforms
Syndication that reached tens of thousands through MSN and the Latino Media Content Hub
Top stories read by more than 17,000 people each
Online readers and listeners in more than a dozen countries
From the donation side, with no development department or fundraising budget, we have received more than $18,000 from 241 online donations, averaging $75 per gift. We are currently in the middle of a Season 2 podcast fundraising drive, and you can contribute at any time to help us meet our goal of raising $2,000 per episode.
Speaking of financials, last year on this very same day, The Latino Newsletter’s bank account balance was $0. Since then, this organization has generated $109,600 in revenue (donations and grants combined). About $95,000 of that paid for all the editorial work we have done. That means that 87% of what The Latino Newsletter receives in donations and grants goes directly to journalists, producers, and editors. Running the company monthly is only around $1,200 per month. That’s just a 13% overhead rate. Not bad for Year 1.
A year from now, when we complete The Latino Newsletter’s second year, we will be on track to be four times that, even five. Yes, by the end of Year 2, our plan is to be a $500,000 nonprofit. And we will have (drum roll, please) actual staff positions for the little core newsroom team we are building. The response to our Senior Producer position has been outstanding. The quality of our candidates is top-notch, which only proves that our mission of elevating our community and amplifying the work of Latino and Latina journalists is a critical one.
We are also grateful that our work has been featured in prominent outlets, including The New York Times, BBC News, CBS News, WBUR, and GBH.
This community-powered journalism is made possible by you. The readers, contributors, supporters, and partners who believe in what we’re building.
Our mission is clearer than ever: to serve Latino communities with trustworthy journalism that is free and accessible to all. No paywalls. No pop-up thingies.
And storytelling that centers us.
Together, we’ll make year two even bigger.
Help Us Launch Season 2 of Our Podcast
What We’re Reading
SCOTUS and Birthright Citizenship: From the Associated Press, “At the Supreme Court Friday, justices lambasted one another over the extent of judicial authority. Dissenting Justice Sonia Sotomayor accused President Donald Trump of trying to game the courts to break the law. The president expressed joy in reclaiming some power back from the judiciary, while advocates sounded worries for immigrant families before filing new legal challenges.”
Julio Ricardo Varela is the founder of The Latino Newsletter. He is also its current part-time publisher and executive director. Email him here.
Consider donating to The Latino Newsletter. Any contribution, no matter how small, helps keep this newsletter free and accessible to all. ¡Gracias mil!