After shutting down earlier this summer, bilingual newspaper La Prensa has emerged in a new form — and led by the son of longtime publisher Tino Duran.
La Prensa Texas launched last month as a 12-page newspaper with plans to expand as it racks up more ad sales. A website will launch later this summer, and as the publication's name suggests, there are also longer-term plans to expand distribution statewide.
"I just couldn't see it being closed," said Steve Duran, who funded the revamp with $10,000 from his retirement account. "It's my dad's legacy. It was his dream."
Much will remain the same — the paper's focus on positive coverage of the Hispanic community, for example, and its distribution in mom-and-pop businesses across the South and West sides. Its staff also includes two writers and an ad salesperson who worked at La Prensa when it was launched in 1989.
Tino Duran's youngest daughter, Nina, took over as the paper's editor and publisher after their father's 2016 retirement. (He died a year ago.) She announced the closure in June after she was unable to shed enough of the company's debt to keep it viable.
Steve Duran, who helped his father start the paper, said he talked with his sister about buying out the debt, but he ultimately decided to make a fresh start. He added that he's undaunted by the changes in the media business, including the flight of ad dollars to online sources.
"The thing is the Hispanic community is still picking up newspapers," Duran said. "I got a lot of calls from readers saying, 'What are we going to do now?'"
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