The battle to prevent a question on U.S. citizenship status in the upcoming 2020 Census has driven Univision beyond its usual brand of activism. Now, the network has evolved into being an active participant in the legal proceedings surrounding the question.
Never mind that Mexico, Canada, and Spain all pose citizenship questions. Univision has taken it upon itself to “Stand Up for Hispanic America”, facts notwithstanding. From its press release heralding the network’s amicus brief:
From Vota Conmigo ("Vote with me") to Census2020, our commitment to Hispanic America is simple: every voice must be heard, every vote must be cast, and every person must be counted.
Univision makes a similar argument in its court brief, which states (link to full brief here):
Univision Communications Inc. is the leading media company serving Hispanic America. It uses and relies on Census data in conveying accurate news and information to its viewers and in conducting its business operations, in addition to doing business regularly with advertisers that also rely on such data in their decision making. Univision and its viewers would be harmed by inaccurate Census data.
It is refreshing to see Univision show an interest in conveying accurate data, even if only to perpetuate its business model.
For years, we’ve posited that Univision primarily exists as an immigration special-interest group with a TV studio. The network’s “Hispanic America” language belies the fact that most of its audience is out West. There is no monolithic “Hispanic America”, and the 2016 election proved that Univision neither speaks for the community, nor has the power to persuade it to the extent of flipping a presidential election.
This legal action now suggests an evolution in furtherance of that special interest, and raises questions as to how far Univision might be willing to go. Here’s Univision’s chief anchorman, Jorge Ramos, to remind us all that Univision’s domestic television business interests are essentially modeled upon the continued existence of a broken immigration system. It is in this light that the network’s court filing in opposition to the inclusion of a citizenship question in the 2020 U.S. Census makes perfect sense:
JORGE RAMOS, SENIOR ANCHOR, UNIVISION: I think the future of Spanish-language media is assured for decades, simply, for a very simple reason: In spite of the fact that the majority of the growth within the Hispanic community is coming from people being born here, we still have one to two million immigrants, legally and illegally coming in every single year. Most of them speak Spanish. So, therefore, we have a market that is growing and growing.
