The Latino Newsletter

For our latest episode, The Latino Newsletter and El Planeta teams interview Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey about Latino communities in the state and what they are experiencing in 2025. This episode marks the start of a new bilingual partnership between the two outlets. Reporters Rosanna Marinelli and Liza Martin Carfi, along with The Latino Newsletter founder Julio Ricardo Varela, share their thoughts about the interview.

Rea...

Host Michelle Zacarias talks with legendary labor leader and activist Dolores Huerta about the ongoing fight for workers’ rights, the power of organizing, and the challenges facing the Latino community today. Dolores shares insights from her decades of activism, reflects on the evolution of social movements, and offers advice for the next generation of changemakers.

This episode was produced by Joaquin Cotler, Juan Diego Ramirez, an...

Chicano activist and political cartoonist Lalo Alcaraz on growing up in a border town, politics in comic strips, and AI in the art world. 
From the controversial comic strips “La Cucaracha” to his latest project, a musical compilation called “Contra ICE,” Lalo’s work is thought-provoking, iconoclastic, and at times hilarious. He says the job of a cartoonist is to make people think — not necessarily always make them laugh.

This ep...

Multi-faceted artist and reggaeton historian Katelina Eccleston, known as La Gata, on becoming the first queer, Black femme with a platform discussing the roots and reverberations of Reggaeton.

From her online course Perreo 101 to lecturing at Harvard to her international college-level course, La Gata has become an essential voice in the Reggaeton community. And she has some hot takes on Bad Bunny too!

This episode was produced by J...

Now that we're planning to drop a new episode of The Latino Newsletter every two weeks, we have some big news.

Award-winning journalist Michelle Zacarias takes over the chair as our new host, but not before she talks to her first guest: former host, Julio Ricardo Varela.

This episode was produced by Joaquin Cotler, Juan Diego Ramirez, and Michelle Zacarias. It was edited by Julio Ricardo Varela.

Music by Cast of Characters via ...

Season 2 of The Latino Newsletter podcast is back with a very special guest: Bobbito García, aka Kool Bob Love.

Host Julio Ricardo Varela welcomes Bobbito to talk about his latest memoir, Bobbito's Book of B-Ball Bong Bong! They cover an array of topics, from NYC hoops, identity, and the time Bobbito played pro ball in Puerto Rico.

The Latino Newsletter podcast is produced by Joaquin Cotler and edited by Joaquin Cotler and Julio...

As we close out Second Chance Month, The Latino Newsletter podcast presents a powerful collaboration with our friends at CALÓ News.

Guest hosts Brenda Verano and Michelle Zacarias sit down with newly sworn-in attorney Ester Mendez. a first-generation Oaxacan American who transformed a cycle of incarceration into a life of purpose. Ester opens up about navigating mental health challenges, criminal charges, and the long road to becomi...

Julio Ricardo Varela talks with Melisa López Franzen, a former Minnesota State Senator leader now running in the 2026 Democratic-Farmer-Labor (DFL) primary for the United States Senate.

Born and raised in Puerto Rico, López Franzen reflects on building a life in Minnesota, how her roots shaped her politics, and why she believes this moment calls her back to public service.This episode was produced and edited by Julio Ricardo Varela...

Live from Miami and the Knight Media Forum, Julio Ricardo Varela hosts a discussion with FCC Commissioner Anna M. Gomez and FTC Commissioner Alvaro Bedoya. They delve into pressing issues surrounding Latino media, the challenges of audience measurement, and the representation of Latinos in music and television.

This episode was produced by Julio Ricardo Varela. Original audio and photos from the Knight Media Forum.

Music by Cast of C...

For the final episode of our first season, host Julio Ricardo Varela explores the evolving future of Latinidad with Dr. Manuel Pastor, Distinguished Professor of Sociology and American Studies & Ethnicity at the University of Southern California and director of the Equity Research Institute. Dr. Pastor provides valuable insights into the challenges and opportunities facing the Latino community as 2024 draws to a close.

This epi...

Host Julio Ricardo Varela welcomes journalist and cultural producer Alisha Miranda to discuss how her "Latinx Industry Night" series is redefining storytelling and amplifying Latino voices in Philadelphia’s hospitality scene. They talk about how these events challenge stereotypes, spotlight rising stars, and create intentional spaces for representation and community.

This episode was produced by Julio Ricardo Varela and⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠...

Puerto Rico's 7th (yes, 7th) non-binding status plebiscite happened on Election Day, with statehood getting 57% of the symbolic vote and independence getting 31%. What does it all mean, or what doesn't it mean?

Host Julio Ricardo Varela welcomes Christina D. Ponsa-Kraus, the George Welwood Murray Professor of Legal History at Columbia Law School, to dissect and discuss.

This episode was produced by Julio Ricardo Varela and⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠...

In the third of a series of conversations about the Latino vote and the 2024 election cycle, host⁠ ⁠Julio Ricardo Varela talks with Jesus Lara, President of Local Media at TelevisaUnivision, about what the network did this past election cycle and what it means for the future of the U.S. Latino community.

This episode was produced and edited by Julio Ricardo Varela.

Music by Cast of Characters via⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Soundstripe⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠...

In the second of a series of conversations about the Latino vote and the 2024 election cycle, host ⁠Julio Ricardo Varela ⁠welcomes Jorge Bonilla⁠, veteran Latino conservative writer and radio personality, to talk about what American political media missed about President-elect Donald Trump’s support with Latinos and what it may mean.  

Photo: Donald Trump in Glendale, Arizona (Gage Skidmore/CC BY-SA 2.0)

This episode was produced b...

In the first of a series of conversations about the Latino vote and the 2024 election cycle, host Julio Ricardo Varela welcomes Geraldo Cadava, a contributing writer at The New Yorker, co-editor-in-chief of Public Books, and host of the “Writing Latinos” podcast. Cadava is also a professor of history and Latina and Latino studies at Northwestern University.

Photo: President Joe Biden greets President-elect Donald Trump, Wednesday, ...

SPRINGFIELD, MA — National exit polls revealed that Donald Trump achieved historic support among Latino voters, securing 45% of their votes—a level not reached by a Republican candidate since George W. Bush in 2004. In western Massachusetts cities like Holyoke and Springfield, where Latinos make up nearly half the population, preliminary results showed a noticeable shift toward Republican candidates.

To understand these voting tren...

Here at The Latino Newsletter podcast, we have been following election results in both the United States and Puerto Rico. Host Julio Ricardo Varela welcomes veteran journalist Susanne Ramirez de Arellano to talk about what Tuesday's results mean both for San Juan and Washington, D.C.

Photo by Carlos Berríos Polanco for The Latino Newsletter.

This episode was produced by Julio Ricardo Varela and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Joaquin Cotler⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠...

SPRINGFIELD, MA — Besides the presidential election, there is also a Senate election in Massachusetts on Tuesday. NEPM and GBH hosted a senate debate in October with incumbent U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-MA, and Republican candidate John Deaton. Both answered post-debate questions about supporting Latino business owners in western Massachusetts.

As the 2024 election season unfolds, the ⁠Latino Election Project⁠ from The Latino Ne...