Vida Nueva, the official monthly Spanish-language publication of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, was recognized by the National Association of Hispanic Publications (NAHP) as the best monthly Hispanic newspaper in the United States in 2018.
The publication won a total of 11 José Martí Media Awards, the oldest and largest Latino mainstream media contest in the nation, for its photojournalism and articles with a local and Latin American perspective.
“Vida Nueva has not only sought to strengthen the Catholic faith, but has also provided the necessary information regarding education, job opportunities, community resources, health issues, political and social changes, immigration issues and workers' rights,” said Victor Aleman, the publication’s editor.
“Personally, I feel deeply fortunate to have been working as an editor for Vida Nueva for the last 28 years, and I always pray to God and to Our Lady of Guadalupe that we may continue to be inspired to inform our community in this great city of Los Angeles, because as the saying goes, ‘information is power’. On behalf of the Vida Nueva staff, we are extremely happy to have received this prestigious award from the National Association of Hispanic Publications.”
The national organization announced the awards at its annual convention held on Oct. 24-27 in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Aleman’s photography won three first place in the news event category for “Unidos y sin miedo” (Together and with no fear), community photo category for “Día del Trabajo” (Labor Day), and in the cultural photo category, for “Situaciones” (Situations).
The NAHP honored Vida Nueva’s designer Osvaldo Cisternas with the first place for the front-page design of a newspaper with circulation above 30,000 for the cover story “Día del Trabajo.”
Assistant editor and writer Alicia Morandi earned three second place prizes in the categories of local political article, for the story “Bajo el sol de Venice, un paraíso perdido” (Under the sun of Venice, a lost paradise); Latin American and international political article, for “Chocolate con sabor a esclavitud” (Chocolate flavored with slavery); and health article, for “Adicción a la comida: un hambre emocional más que fisiológico” (Food addiction: an emotional hunger rather than physiological).
Writer Robert Dellinger also won a silver award in the category of education article for the story “Yo sería alguien diferente en este momento” (I’d be something else right now).
“Being part of the Vida Nueva team for me has always been a source of pride, and without a doubt the best work and personal experience I've had,” said Morandi. “With the articles that I have written for this publication I have learned more than what I can teach; I also have the possibility to be the voice of those who do not have it, and I have been able to verify that we help make positive changes in the lives of many readers. I celebrate with joy the well-deserved first place that Vida Nueva has won.”
The publication won two Bronze Awards in the categories of cultural article (Cardinal Roger Mahony), and immigration article (Maria Luisa Torres).
In July, Vida Nueva received three awards from the Catholic Press Association’s 2018 Catholic Media Conference. The national organization recognized both the English-language archdiocesan publication Angelus News and Vida Nueva for high quality reporting, analysis, photojournalism, design and covers on social justice issues, such as immigration, homelessness and violence.
According to NAHP, Vida Nueva is among the Catholic Spanish-language publications with highest circulation in the country. The organization reports that 57 percent of Latino households use local newspapers or magazines on a weekly basis. Among Latino publications, the combined gross ad revenue totaled $1.2 billion in 2016, with $84 million from online sales. In the U.S. there are a total of 1,827 Hispanic publications with a circulation in 2017 of almost 42 million copies, according to the NAHP.
The Archdiocese of Los Angeles began publishing Vida Nueva in 1991. The publication routinely wins national awards, including the Best Spanish-Language Monthly Newspaper (2015, 2011, 2010, 2003) in the U.S. from the National Association of Hispanic Publications (NAHP). The same organization honored Vida Nueva with a first place as the best Spanish-language weekly in 2001, when the newspaper had a weekly release; six first place honors as a bimonthly Spanish-language publication in the 1990s, when Vida Nueva ran as a bimonthly publication.
Following is a detailed list of the awards received by Vida Nueva in the category of newspapers with a circulation of more than 30,000 copies:
GOLD AWARDS
OUTSTANDING MONTHLY NEWSPAPER
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Vida Nueva newspaper
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OUTSTANDING NEWS EVENT PHOTO
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“Unidos sin miedo” (Together with no fear), by Victor Aleman
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OUTSTANDING COMMUNITY PHOTO
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“Día del trabajo” (Labor Day), by Victor Aleman
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OUTSTANDING CULTURAL PHOTO
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“Situaciones” (Situations), by Victor Aleman
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OUTSTANDING FRONT PAGE DESIGN
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“Día del trabajo” (Labor Day), by Osvaldo Cisternas
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SILVER AWARDS
OUTSTANDING LOCAL POLITICAL ARTICLE
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“Bajo el sol de Venice, un paraíso perdido” (Under the sun of Venice, a lost paradise) by Alicia Morandi
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OUTSTANDING EDUCATION ARTICLE
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“Yo sería alguien diferente en este momento” (I’d be something else right now) by Robert W. Dellinger
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OUTSTANDING LATIN AMERICAN/INTERNATIONAL POLITICAL ARTICLE
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“Chocolate con sabor a esclavitud” (Chocolate flavored with slavery) by Alicia Morandi
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OUTSTANDING HEALTH ARTICLE
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“Adicción a la comida: un hambre emocional, más que fisiológico” (Food addiction: an emotional hunger rather than physiological) by Alicia Morandi
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BRONZE AWARDS
OUTSTANDING CULTURAL ARTICLE
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“Si le gustan los duraznos, le gustarán los inmigrantes” (If you like peaches, you will like immigrants) by Cardinal Roger Mahony
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OUTSTANDING IMMIGRATION ARTICLE
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“Sí se puede” (Yes you can) by Maria Luisa Torres.
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For more information, visit Vida-Nueva.com, or facebook.com/losangelesVidaNueva.
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