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As we approach the second half of 2012, we’ve been looking at how consumers are feeling about their lives. What excites them, what they’re afraid of and what they think about the whirlwind political environment that ceaselessly dominates the conversation in America – be it mainstream news media, the blogosphere or social engagement.

Against this backdrop, we asked Hispanics and non-Hispanics across a variety of geographies and segments: Republicans, Democrats and Independents; gender and age coh

When it comes to reaching the growing US Hispanic market, there's a new reality settling in. From the boardroom to the C-suite, companies are starting to wake up to the notion that Latinos are here to stay, that we're big in numbers, that we're brand loyal, and that we have mucho dinero to spend.

Hispanic buying power will reach $1.5 trillion by 2015. This number is thrilling. Think of this: if the US Hispanic community were a world economy, we would be the 14th largest, ahead of Turkey, Austral

In advance of California’s Republican primary tomorrow, here are 10 important facts about immigrants and people of color in the state that display their significant economic, cultural, and electoral power.

1. Communities of color are driving California’s population growth. The Hispanic share of California’s population grew from just over 25 percent in 1990 to almost 38 percent in 2010, while the Asian* share of the population grew from 9.2 percent to 13.1 percent. While the United States will no

The growing influence of Hispanics in Nevada’s business community is clear.

Since 1990, the state’s Latino population has more than doubled, from 10.4 percent to 26.6 percent. More than three-quarters of a million Latinos now live in Nevada.

The growth of the demographic has translated into more Latino business ownership. Hispanics own 8 percent of the state’s companies, and their 18,000 businesses generate $3.2 billion in sales and receipts. They employ tens of thousands of workers.

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The wave is young, eligible Hispanic voters--more than 50,000 Latinos turn 18 years old each month in the United States, according to Rep. Charlie Gonzalez, a Democrat from Texas and chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus. And 47 percent of the under-18 U.S. population is Latino, so that's a trend that will only continue, he said during a recent Capitol Hill press conference kicking off a voter registration effort, Voto Latino, aimed at young Hispanics.

Actress America Ferrera, of television

Buying a home has long been a way for immigrant groups to signal that they have “made it.”
For Hispanic Americans, a mega-boom in homeownership is revving up.

With U.S. Census data reporting that more than half of all infants born in the United States last year were minorities or multiracial, with whites having 1.1 births for every death and Hispanics counting 8.9 births for every death, it stands to reason that the profile of home buyers is also undergoing a change that may accelerate in years t

In our recent poll on what it means to be sick in America, one ethnic group stands out as having special problems – Hispanic Americans.

The national survey, conducted by NPR with the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the Harvard School of Public Health, sheds new light on Hispanics' health issues. It runs counter to the widespread impression that African-Americans are worst-off when it comes to the cost and quality of health care.

Take the pocketbook issue. When we asked about the burden of out

If Rosetta Stone hasn’t taught you que from quien, maybe a passion for pepperoni will do the trick.

Texas-based chain Pizza Patrón, which has locations in Las Vegas and has traditionally marketed to Hispanics, is offering a free, large pepperoni pizza to anyone who orders in Spanish between 5 and 8 p.m. on June 5. And, while pizza may hardly seem a topic that courts controversy, as USA Today reported last week, the campaign has drawn critics from all sides.

“Maybe they thought it was a cute thin

The first Latino president of the United States already has been born.

Henry Cisneros, the former San Antonio mayor who was secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development in the Clinton administration, made the suggestion three years ago in an interview with the Spanish-language news service EFE.

"I don't know if he or she's in elementary school or in law school or is already elected ... to public office, but I believe that that person is already alive, and we're 20 years or less a

Sketching impressive contributions to society in intensely personal terms, President Barack Obama presented the Medal of Freedom to more than a dozen political and cultural greats Tuesday, including farmworker union trailblazer Dolores Huerta.

Other honorees included rocker Bob Dylan, astronaut John Glenn and novelist Toni Morrison.

In awarding the nation's highest civilian honor to 13 recipients, living and dead, the president took note of the overflow crowd in the East Room and said it was "a

Future physician Maria Garcia-Jimenez was planning a nutrition class for at-risk Latina teens when it became clear, in discussions with her community partner, that the girls had other, equally pressing needs. Which is how García, 23 at the time, found herself designing an eight-week sex-education workshop.

Health was Garcia’s area of expertise — she’s a medical and masters-degree student, after all, in the UC Berkeley-UC San Francisco Joint Medical Program (JMP). Yet it felt like a tall order —

A social media-based group of Latinos is getting serious about influencing politics, online and off. Latinos in Social Media (LATISM) will hold a tech conference at Google's New York offices in June, and will give the White House a town hall style forum at its annual conference in October.

"It's the epicenter for all the Latinos in social media," said Elianne Ramos, vice-chair, marketing for the group [photo left], describing the LATISM 2012 conference to be held in Houston, Texas.

The three-yea

Latina mommy bloggers are gaining clout across South Florida, reflecting an explosion in Hispanic buying power and the vital role of women in household purchasing decisions.

Hundreds of Hispanic moms now write blogs in English, Spanish or both, exploring such topics as family and children, food and recipes, immigration, fashion, coupons and deals. Some have made the blogs their jobs, making money through ads or often from companies whose products they discuss.

West Palm Beach resident Denisse Ic

Eva Longoria actually tried to defend a series she had agreed to co-produce about Latinas cast as housekeepers. But in the process, the Hispanic television star came across as, well, desperate.

The program — “Devious Maids,” which was set to debut this fall on ABC — was, if you'll excuse the expression, the brainchild of Marc Cherry. One would expect more from the creator of the hit show “Desperate Housewives,” which starred Longoria and recently wrapped up its final season.

Casting Latinas as m

In the most predictable demographic revolution ever, the Census Bureau reported that nonwhite babies now make up a majority of all births.

This shift was inevitable as long as the basic architecture of the 1965 Immigration and Nationality Act remained in place. It ended the old system of per-country quotas and -- together with subsequent liberalizations -- unleashed a flood of immigration from Latin America and Asia. So long as about a million new immigrants entered the country every year, a dem

Hispanic voters are a crucial constituency in the presidential election, but reaching young Hispanics will require new tactics – and some experts say mobile-phone outreach will be key.

There are more than 21 million eligible Hispanic voters – and more than 30 percent of them are 18 to 30 years old. About 50,000 Hispanics reach the voting age of 18 each month.

But Hispanic voters under 30 have the lowest turnout of any group: Only 41 percent of them voted in 2008.

Young voters and Hispanic voters

Chicago’s population is more than one-third Latino, but you’d have never known it by looking at the protesters who marched against NATO last weekend.

I covered most of the events held by the anti-NATO demonstrators, from the People’s Summit on the South Side to the die-in at Boeing on Monday, and I was hard-pressed to find a Latino to talk to about why he or she was protesting.

Even at an immigration rally, only about 50 Latino activists marched from Little Village to the Immigration Court Build

Spanish or English – Espanol o Ingles?

To reach young Hispanic voters, most politicians and organizations have taken a bilingual approach, to varying degrees.

But most young Hispanics lead English-dominant lives, raising the question of whether the Spanish-language campaign communication still is necessary.

“What both Romney and Obama need to start doing to the Latino community – they need to start talking to them in English,” said Maria Teresa Kumar, the executive director of Voto Latino, a non

During my time in New York City last week, I had the pleasure to attend a special event hosted by Cosmos for Latinas at Macy’s Herald Square to celebrate the beauty and culture of Brasil. As part of their “Brasil: A Magical Journey” campaign, Macy’s has put together an amazing display of limited-edition capsule collections created by renowned Brazilian designers, Brazil-inspired fashion from other designers, including existing Macy’s brands.

After a brief introduction from Donna Kalajian Lagani,

Swing states with large Hispanic populations are generating higher mobile ad prices for political advertisers than other 2012 election battleground states. Though it's not clear that the desire to reach Hispanic voters is driving up prices, the data from mobile ad firm Pontiflex suggests it could cost campaigns more to target mobile ads to them.

Political candidates and groups using the firm's mobile signup ads are spending nearly $1 more per lead on average in Nevada and $2 more per lead on ave