'O.C. Register's' Spanish-Language Weekly Launching Entertainment Tab

By: E&P Staff Excelsior, the Spanish-language weekly published by The Orange County (Calif.) Register, is launching a bilingual entertainment tabloid beginning with its issue this Friday.

Expresso's content will revolve around gossip, television, and weekend entertainment options -- and will include elements familiar to Mexican newspaper readers.

For instance, the astrology column will be from Walter Mercado, a kind of Liberace of horoscopes. Expresso will also run the comic Condorito, another Mexican favorite.

"Expresso particularly caters to young, second-generation Hispanic readers
who are interested in Latin American culture, but read and speak English as their dominant language," said Julio Saenz, Excelsior's editor and general manager. "Entertainment content in Expresso will better reflect the interests of this growing audience."

Expresso also hopes to be a more attractive environment for advertisers. Saenz said local restaurants, night clubs, and other Mom&Pop advertisers should be an easier sell because the paper uses modular advertising sizes rather than the traditional column-inch sizes. Ads are sold in full-page, junior page, half-page, quarter-page and eighth-page sizes.

As part of the Expresso launch, Excelsior is also increasing its distribution to local high schools by 3,000 copies, hoping to capitalize on its appeal to younger people.

"A bilingual Expresso can serve as an entertainment resource for Hispanics, while also serving a non-Hispanic audience who embraces its music and culture," Saenz said. "The goal is to have Excelsior evolve as
a 'meeting place' or 'Main street' in print form, where different generations of Hispanics can bond by reading the same news source."

Excelsior distributes 25,000 copies weekly through 900 news racks across Orange County in Hispanic communities with annual household incomes of more than $34,500. It delivers another 10,000 copies as opt-ins with the Register on Fridays.

Orange County has the fifth biggest Hispanic population among counties in the United States. One of every three
people in Orange County is Hispanic, the paper said.

Saenz previously launched the bilingual ConXion in Rochester, N.Y. Within two years, the paper expanded to Buffalo, Syracuse, and Albany. It was acquired by Gannett Co. in 2005, and became part of the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle.