As a freshman, I had an inkling desire to become a broadcast journalist. Not just any run-of-the-mill anchor, though. I wanted to do great things on Spanish-language stations like Telemundo or Univision, and possibly move to a large international market.
Although I changed my mind and became a magazine student, there are still many students who share my old dreams. However, Syracuse University lacks a program that would give students an opportunity to produce a Spanish-language newscast and develop experience in the Latino market. S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications is one of the top communication schools in the country and needs to give students experiences that reflect the present trends in American news.
The Latino market continues to grow and flourish across the country from Los Angeles to New York. By the year 2050, the U.S. Census Bureau expects the Latino population to double, becoming one quarter of the total United States population. Ignoring the inevitable shift in media focus and failing to offer real-life practice in college prevents our talented students interested in becoming Spanish-language journalists from entering Latino markets with experience.
Currently, a student-led initiative is in the process of creating a Spanish broadcast show before the end of the semester. Jason Tarr, a junior broadcast journalism student from Los Angeles (and a staff writer for The Daily Orange), started the push for the initiative. He, like some other broadcast students, is interested in working in the Latino news market and wishes there were opportunities on campus to practice Spanish news.
"We don't have an outlet for this," Tarr said.
Since his freshman year, Tarr's observations of interested students and a lack of Spanish news programs have motivated him to create a newscast on campus.
The proposed Spanish-language broadcast would provide opportunities for students on campus while providing a product for the community that covers Latino news from SU, the Syracuse area and worldwide.
A challenge facing the Spanish-language broadcast's creation is a need for faculty support, said Sarina Morales, a senior broadcast journalism major and president of the SU chapter of the National Association of Hispanic Journalists.
"It's difficult because we don't have a professor's support to edit our work," she said.
There is one Spanish journalism course offered on campus, SPA 400 Journalist Practices, but this class is not affiliated with Newhouse. Morales hopes the Spanish-language broadcast show can serve as a bridge between the two.
It is time that SU prepares interested students for the booming Latino media with programs that accurately reflect the population's market. While I may be biased toward the development of a Spanish-language newscast, I hope that this inspires all students of color to create programs that represent their communities and cultures.
Celina R. Tousignant is a biweekly columnist for The Daily Orange and secretary of the National Association of Hispanic Journalists. She can be reached at crtousig@syr.edu.
is a member of the 
