LATINOS IN THE USA

Just one decade after the turn of the century, the US population is expected to reach 308.4 million in 2010.

It took 139 years for the US to reach its first 100 million after declaring independence from Britain in 1776. The second 100 million came 52 years later, and the third took only 39 years. Demographers project the US population could reach 400 million by 2043.

What will it look like?

The fastest growing demographic group, Latinos, will dominate our growth into the twenty first century, expected to hit the 50 million mark in 2010. Growth will be characterized by both organic growth from within the U.S. and immigration growth.

While there are some warnings that recent Latino immigrants face high social hurdles, 'As almost nothing else can, immigration-led growth signals the attractiveness of the American economy and policy,' said Kenneth Prewitt, former Census Bureau chief and now professor of public affairs at Columbia University.

Given the complexity of both country or origin and distinct generation profiles, marketers must be sensitive to the nuances that make up each group.

WHAT IF NEWSPAPERS DIE ?

The current issue of BrandWeek touts the results of an AdWeek Media/Harris Poll that suggests that, while newspapers are read both online and in print by a majority of adults, paying for online content is not in the cards.

The newspaper industry has unfortunately created an appetite for free online news content in an effort to generate traffic for their websites. As more eyes landed on the their sites and as aggregation sites began to re-publish news content, the model began to backfire as newspaper circulation and online cpms dropped. It became a lose-lose combination.

A recent study released by the Pew's Center Project for Excellence in Journalism paints a picture that goes a long way to support Rupert Murdoch's efforts to raise a pay wall for online newspaper content. The study suggests that while the news landscape had expanded considerably through online channels, most of what the public reads and learns is overwhelmingly driven by traditional media -- primarily newspapers.

What happens if newspapers die?

To quote from the study ..."The questions are becoming increasingly urgent. As the economic model that has subsidized professional journalism collapses, the number of people gathering news in traditional television, print and radio organizations is shrinking markedly. What, if anything, is taking up that slack?"

Until such time that circulation and advertising can support the online models (unlikely), only a payment for content model will keep the information flow from drying up. If we do not wake up and pay for content origination, we are doomed to a Twitter-like world and information without substance.