MRC Latino is mostly known for its constant drumbeat pointing out and countering slanted or dishonest reporting in the U.S. Hispanic news segment. In recent months, the critique has often included the relative dearth of reporting on U.S. economic news.
But Univision just gave us a welcome break from the routine by reporting on the latest figures from the U.S. Census Bureau, which show the poverty rate among Hispanic-Americans has fallen to an all-time low of 18.3% for 2017.
In this rare gem, correspondent Luis Megid reports straight up on this good news for the country’s burgeoning Latino population. Even more notably, the report also explicitly ties this good news, at least in part, to the policies of the Trump administration, along with lower levels of immigration:
LUIS MEGID, CORRESPONDENT, UNIVISION: The latest Census figures reveal that the level of poverty among Hispanics fell to the lowest level in history. In 2017 it reached 18.3%, a significant drop of more than one percent over the previous year.
PRESIDENT TRUMP: Thank you very much
MEGID: The President is celebrating it as one of his accomplishments. And while you can attribute it to a growing economy, Tomás Jiménez of Stanford University believes that it is also due to another phenomenon. For him, Hispanic poverty is falling because fewer immigrants are arriving and there are more Hispanics who were born here.
TOMÁS JIMÉNEZ, PROFESSOR, STANFORD UNIVERSITY: And the population born here has more education, earns more money, earns a better living than their parents. You have a, you have a mm, they are assimilating.
In essence, the story helps explain why President Trump continues to benefit from growing support among Latino voters across the country. Pocketbook issues are usually top-of-mind for voters, so along with record-low Hispanic unemployment, these are developments that bode well for the President’s re-election prospects in 2020. As David Bernstein in Politico recently noted, the good economy “is a powerful incentive to keep the current political leadership in place.”
To see the full transcript of the above-referenced report that aired on the March 4, 2019 edition of Noticiciero Univision, click “expand.”
Noticiero Univisión
March 4, 2019
6:41:05 PM - 6:43:14 PM
ILIA CALDERÓN, ANCHOR, UNIVISIÓN: There is good news on the economy for Hispanics in the United States and it is that they are now less poor. Data from the Census Bureau confirms that the poverty rate for this group of the population fell to a historical level. Luis Megid brings us the numbers and the information.
LUIS MEGID, CORRESPONDENT, UNIVISION: For Sergio, the lean times are gone.
MAN: Busy, really busy, yes
LUIS MEGID: He has plenty of work and he is optimistic about the future. The latest Census figures reveal that the level of poverty among Hispanics fell to the lowest level in history. In 2017 it reached 18.3%, a significant drop of more than one percent over the previous year.
PRESIDENT TRUMP: Thank you very much
MEGID: The President is celebrating it as one of his accomplishments. And while you can attribute it to a growing economy, Tomás Jiménez of Stanford University believes that it is also due to another phenomenon. For him, Hispanic poverty is falling because fewer immigrants are arriving and there are more Hispanics who were born here.
TOMÁS JIMÉNEZ, PROFESSOR, STANFORD UNIVERSITY: And the population born here has more education, earns more money, earns better living than their parents. You have a, you have a mm, they are assimilating, really.
MEGID: But, what does poverty mean for the government? According to federal figures from a couple of years ago, a person was considered poor if he earned less than $12,000 per year. For a family of four, a family so poor earned less than $24,600 annually. Thus the Government classifies it although there are people who earn more and do not feel particularly wealthy.
MARCELA GARCÍA-CASTAÑÓN, PROFESSOR, SAN FRANCISCO STATE UNIVERSITY: Prices are also increasing and yes it has an effect on one´s economy.
MEGID: In some ways poverty is relative. $24,000 in Northern California doesn't go too far.
LATINA: It may be that at the federal level it is not poor, but here $24,000 does not provide for anything. Rent, food, a car, it will not get you the same as in Arkansas or Arizona.
MEGID: Some see the glass half full, others see it half empty. There is still much work to do. In San Francisco, Luis Megid, Univision.
