Ethnic Media Cautiously Laud Obama's Nomination

New America Media, News Report, Various Authors, Posted: Jun 06, 2008

Editors of the country’s leading ethnic newspapers are celebrating Barack Obama’s historic nomination as an important step for all Americans. Yet the candidate has a tough fight ahead of him, they warn, as Obama’s lack of communication with non African-American ethnic media could finally catch up to him.

Obama’s nomination was proclaimed on the front pages of Korean, Chinese, Spanish, Russian and other ethnic newspapers this week as a personal victory.

“The impossible has happened,” says Sung Tae Kim, chief editor of the metro desk for Korea Daily in Los Angeles. “The White House may not be a house for whites anymore. Regardless of the turnout in November, a new chapter in U.S. history has opened. Personally, I think this moment will open doors for Asian Americans, Hispanics and other minorities, especially for Korean Americans.”

Obama’s Filipino-American supporters saw his victory as their own, writes Joseph Pimentel for Asian Journal. "Let’s not forget he grew up in Hawaii among the Filipino community,” Los Angeles resident Danny Lamila told Asian Journal. "We are creating history."

Spanish-language La Opinión, which endorsed Obama and McCain in their respective primaries, also saw this as a hopeful sign for all Americans. “We celebrate Obama’s candidacy for what it says about the society we live in,” editors wrote in a June 5 editorial. “The lesson of these primaries is that a charismatic candidate with a fitting message and an efficient organization can compete and win regardless of his race. This is the nation that makes us proud.”

The perception that the rise to power of an African American could have a positive impact on other ethnic groups was reflected in a mutlilingual poll on race relations conducted last year by Bendixen & Associates and sponsored by New American Media and nine ethnic media outlets.

The poll of 1,105 African-American, Asian-American and Hispanic adults found that a majority of respondents agreed that the ascendance of another ethnic group in universities, businesses, media, and government benefited their own community. Large numbers of Latinos (73 percent) and Asian Americans (65 percent) also said that African Americans have helped all racial and ethnic groups by leading the fight for civil rights and against discrimination.

For Latino voters, who favored Clinton by a 2-to-1 ratio on Super Tuesday, Obama’s nomination highlighted the question pundits have been asking on the editorial pages of newspapers across the country: With Clinton out of the race, will Latinos back Obama or McCain?

La Opinión called Obama’s nomination “a challenge and an opportunity for Latinos. On the one hand, political participation demands, as it does for the rest of the electorate, casting aside existing prejudices to focus on solutions. On the other hand, it is a political example to follow.”

While some pundits have interpreted Latinos’ support of Clinton as a sign of Latinos’ racism against blacks, editors of Latino newspapers vehemently disagreed, pointing to Clinton’s name recognition and long history of outreach to Latino media.

The Obama and McCain campaigns, by contrast, have “practically ignored” Latino and other ethnic media, notes political columnist Pilar Marrero. “Obama may be able to win the nomination without the support of a majority of Latinos,” she writes, “but one thing is clear: he can’t reach the White House without them."

Editors warn that Obama’s lack of communication with ethnic media could come back to haunt him. “Russian-speaking immigrants do not know much about Barack Obama,” says Ari Kagan, senior editor of the Russian-language Vecherni New York. “He did not initiate a meeting with them in New York, where there is one of the biggest (Russian) communities throughout the United States. The only thing they know about Obama comes from the media. Consequently their perceptions are limited. They will back a person who they know and whose work and experience they are familiar with.”

Sam Guo, chief reporter for Ming Pao Daily News in New York, says that he personally supports Obama because he is “young, energetic, ambitious and can bring change to America.” But Guo sees himself as an exception in his community. “As for my Chinese American readers, they like Hillary more than Obama. Hillary went to Chinatown in New York several times while Obama never comes."

Jerry Cao, a reporter with New York’s Chinese-language World Journal, agrees. Clinton, he says, has been “more friendly to Asians.” Cao adds, “If Hillary pulls out of the election, I will vote for McCain. I think Obama lacks experience."

McCain is perhaps most popular among Vietnamese Americans, who traditionally vote Republican. “The opinion in the Vietnamese community is that many will be supporting Senator McCain because he fought in the Vietnam War and was jailed in the Hanoi Hilton for many years as well as being a benefactor to Vietnamese refugees in America,” observes Tran Vu, a reporter for the Vietnamese newspaper Calitoday, in San Jose, Calif.

The two factors that could cut into the McCain vote, he says, are the turnout of young Vietnamese American voters, who – like other young voters – favor Obama, and the possibility of a Clinton vice presidency. “If Hillary Clinton agrees to be vice president, standing beside Obama,” Vu says, “that will bring a heavy pressure to bear for McCain and the Republicans.”

Translated and compiled by Elena Shore, Wen Yi Li, Kenneth Kim, Ekaterina Basilaia and Andrew Lam.


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Latinos Confront Old Racism as Election Nears

Obama's Continuing Latino Problem

Obama and McCain Ignore Latino Media

Candidates Reach out to APIAs in Townhall


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