Recommended U.S. Latino Websites
by Susan A. Vega García
This list includes Chicano (Mexican
American), Puerto Rican, and Cuban American Web resources, as well as sites
that pertain to Salvadorans, Dominicans, Colombians, and Guatemalans residing
in the US.
Only Web sites that are reflective of US Latino realities were considered;
sites that are exclusively Latin American in focus are not included. (See LANIC
for
Latin American websites.)
Web index sites, clearinghouses,
directories (all sites that gather or point to resources elsewhere),
and e-journals and electronic news are the focus. A new section reviews
a number of new commercial US Latino portals and commercial
subject directories now being developed and marketed to Latinos in the
US. There's also a new section called QPD that lists
Latino web casualities.
Web
Index Sites, Clearinghouses, & Directories
Latino-Focused
Portals & Subject Directories
(In their July/Aug 1999 issue,
Hispanic Magazine defined Latino portals
as "... one-stop Web sites that serve as gateways to the Internet." The following
commercial sites were profiled as noteworthy (if not always "recommended,")
and thus are reviewed here. To date, no portal seems to offer high quality,
authoritative content (in English and in Spanish) and powerful
search capabilities and truly useful services and good design.
At least one of the major portals has officially ceased: Qué Pasa.com,
with some contents still online (as of 4/01), has ceased business as of March
2001. Will others follow?)
e-Journals,
e-News
QPD
- Qué en paz descansen
A listing of some of our
now discontinued favorites...
Colombian Post
Another Colombian newspaper in the US bites the dust. Formerly, this site
featured Colombian, Colombian American, and Latino current news hosted by
Holanet and focusing on the Miami area. As of
early 2001, slow load time noted; domain for sale as of 6/2001.
Crítica: A Journal of
Puerto Rican Policy and Politics
Okay, I now accept (4/01) that this newsletter is offline and never, ever
coming back. Online newsletter that focused on policy and identity issues,
with no holds barred. Individual articles were accessible via IPRNet's online
library, which is also gone now. In English. The IPRNet website has been offline
for years, and promising - also for years - that it was being redesigned due
to its merger with PRLDEF. Not much has happened since 1999. See information
above, at PRLDEF.
Daily Roots Stand
Alternative and innovative electronic newspaper from Brooklyn, NY featured
"Apartamento 3A" column by Nellie Rosario, who frequently wrote on Dominican,
Cuban, and Afro-Latin identity issues. Included interactive chat forum for
reader feedback and conversations. In English. Another sad casualty of the
new commercially-driven Web. Daily Roots Stand, a portion of the Café
Los Negroes site, officially closed down mid-November 1998.
Desde Cuba
As of 4/01, this e-news site is officially offline and gone. Previously described
as uncensored Cuban news; includes numerous links. In Spanish. For many years,
there were signs that no maintenance was taking place on the site, though
it was still online in summer 1999 as a sort of neglected, virtual archive
of Cuba-related news stories from the mid-1990's. Many links were broken;
a dead artifact in cyberspace.
Frontera Literary Magazine
Essential literary e-journal with numerous critical articles and interviews
in every issue; focus on Chicano / Mexican American literature and authors.
Includes comments and discussion section, plus links elsewhere. In English;
no search engine. Site offline in 4/01, optimistically promising a "Look
for a relaunch soon!" A revisit in 6/01 found the same message; apparently
dead.
Habaguanex Ciboney: Web Magazine
of Cuba in Exile
Another artifact of the Web that for years seemed not to be maintained, and
has now (4/01) disappeared. Previously included archived articles and some
of the links are still useful. Includes articles, "factelitos" or little facts
about Cuba, movie reviews, poetry, recipes and entertainment for Cuban Americans
and exiles; includes extensive links. In English, includes separate Spanish
section.
HispaNet
Some years ago, this website was a major
Dominican site for politics, news, short stories, mailing services, products,
and e-journals. In 1999, it began billing itself
as a "Spanish learning center," while evolving toward coverage of all Latin
American countries and losing much of its previous Dominican focus. In Spanish.
Closed down sometime in 2000-01.
The Hispanic/Latino Telaraña
This website has been offline for some time. Formerly, it was a Latino web
gem hosted by the University of Florida, Gainesville, and designed (as I recall)
by webmaster and pioneer Gerir López-Fernández. When his association
with the website ended a few years back, the website apparently dwindled.
This formerly extensive site included
links to creative arts, careers, cultural centers, e-publications, newsgroups
and mailing lists, and organizations. Focus was on Latin American, peninsular
Spanish, and some Chicano, general Latino, Cuban American, Puerto Rican sites.
In English (bilingual main menu); no search engine.
Hispanic/Latino News Service
Well-organized abstracting service of current news articles and editorials
on Latino and some Latin American topics from Web news sources. Includes partial
archives dating back to late 1998, though links may no longer be active. Includes
additional features such as Latin music charts, online polls, and homepage
services. In English; smaller, parallel Spanish site features abstracts of
Spanish-language news articles from the Web; search engine. (For more information,
see also my
published review from C&RL News.) This impressive website was
created and maintained by a third year law student, who has apparently moved
on to other things. 4/01
Latino.com / Latino Link
Major e-zine that transformed into a portal and fee-based information provider,
with news, articles, entertainment with focus on many US Latino groups and
various Latin American issues; included bulletin boards and chat forums. In
English and some Spanish; included search engine. Announced its demise March
2001.
LatinoWeb
One of the most inclusive sites, and definitely one of the easiest to search
and browse. This massive site originally collected and annotated links ranging
from arts, business, jobs & bilingual classifieds, education, history, government
agencies, non-profit organizations, newspapers & magazines, personal pages.
Unique features included an interactive chat forum, talent directory, book
advertisements, and a listing of Latino radio and television sites. Included
information relevant to many specific US Latino groups; some Latin American
and peninsular Spanish sites. In English and Spanish (some sections bilingual);
included search engine. As of early 2001, website
looked suspiciously lean on content, and (as of April 2001), home page featured
news stories from Feb. 2001. Wreckage of the
site is currently (6/2001) online, but website obviously dead.
New York Semanal
All the major portions of this weekly news service link unexpectedly to well-known
sites such as CNN en español and PBS Online, but it also includes major
sections of En español.com and other resources.
Worth exploring. Mostly in Spanish, some English; no search engine. Unable
to access 4/01 and 6/01.
Nueva Vista: Latino/Puerto Rican
Issues & Views
Update: Officially defunct (4/01), but replaced by an advertising firm
called Alegre Advertising. QPD. Formerly,
this site presented news, viewpoints, and partially annotated links on many
topics. Puerto Rican, Chicano, and general Latino sites; also includes some
Latin American information. Later, it began
billing itself as "Latino Perspective," had several major overhauls, and went
offline. In English; no search engine.
Picosito.com
Bilingual portal site from San Francisco with full-text news articles, plus
business news, health, immigration, culture, and sports. A "quizito" offers
lowest-common denominator quizzes on Latino culture and issues. Also offers
e-mail services; home pages, a discussion forum, and other interactive features
were also being planned but not available during our initial 8/99 visit. Overall,
the site seemed low on content, both Latino-centered and otherwise. Worth
a browse, but not recommended. In Spanish and English; included search engine.
Portal went under early 2001; as of 6/01 no reappearance.
QuéPasa.com
Update: This portal now closed, as of March 2001.
Formerly, a Yahoo-like directory and search engine dedicated to mostly Latin
American and some US Latino website retrieval, from Phoenix, Arizona. Crisp
organization, but retrieval often slow and contents quite uneven and definitely
not comprehensive. For example, a search for revistas or journals pulled up
numerous Colombian medical journals, but few titles from other Latin American
countries or from the US. Bilingual with parallel sites in Spanish and in
English.
Comments: savega@iastate.edu
Iowa State University
Original URL: http://www.public.iastate.edu/~savega/us_latin.htm
Last updated: 25 February 2005
E-version created: 15
January 1998
Copyright © 1998-
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