Juan Gonzales
Juan Gonzales | |
|---|---|
| Born | Juan Gonzales 1948 (age 75–76) Stockton, California, United States |
| Education | San Francisco State University |
| Occupation(s) | Journalist and college instructor |
| Years active | 1970–present |
| Notable credit | Founder of El Tecolote |
Juan Gonzales (born 1948) is an American journalist.[1] He is the founder and was the first editor of the bilingual newspaper El Tecolote.[2] El Tecolote is the longest running English-Spanish newspaper in California.[3]
Early life
[edit]He was born and raised in east Stockton.[4] He is the son of U.S. farmworkers.[5] He attended Franklin High School.[6] He worked as a writer and editor for his high school paper.[7] When he attended San Francisco State University he wrote and edited for the university's newspaper.[8] He graduated from San Francisco State University in 1968.[9]
The early beginnings of El Tecolote
[edit]When he began his teaching career at San Francisco State University there was a lot of social and political changes taking place.[10] El Tecolote came out of this social activism.[11] The newspaper came out of a La Raza Studies class that had been created by him.[12] The Final part of the class work was to create a bilingual newspaper that was both written in Spanish and English. He was its founder and first editor.[13] It came out on August 24, 1970.[14] It was given the Spanish name of El Tecolote, which means The Owl in English.[15] The wise owl is its signature logo.[16] The paper about a year later moved out of its college setting and into the Mission District.[17] It started as a bi-monthly, four-page tabloid with a press run of 5,000.[18]
The need for a Latino community newspaper
[edit]Juan Gonzales like many others thought there was a strong need for the creation of a bilingual local newspaper for the Latino community in the Mission District of San Francisco.[19] To many, the mainstream media did not cover enough of the Latino news in the Mission.[20] Many felt Latinos in the area were dealing with issues that the bigger papers did not pay much attention to. Juan has said about this need: "We started the paper in order to voice out through the community's perspective."[21] And many in the Latino community did not speak or read English, making it very difficult to get local news that affected them.[22] He also believed a small Latino newspaper was just as important as any major newspaper, especially if it covered stories about issues that was affecting that person.[23] El Tecolote does not just cover the day-to-day life of the Latino community in the Mission,[22] it also has tried to cover all the major social and political events concerning Latinos, from bilingual services and gentrification to trying to humanize the plight of undocumented people.[24] And the newspaper has focused on reducing poor government services, high dropout rates among Latinos, and police brutality.
Advocating and practicing social activism
[edit]Juan Gonzales doesn't believe in journalistic objectivity and has often advocated for the Latinos in San Francisco.[25] He does believe journalists can be fair and should always practice accuracy and journalistic ethics, but he does not believe it is possible to be objective as a journalist.[26] El Tecolote is a mission-driven newspaper, purposely and consciously trying to bring about progressive social change.[25] Having an unapologetic very liberal view and promoting community activism has always been a central theme of the newspaper.[27] Juan Gonzales considers the paper as an advocate for the continuation of the quest for Latino Civil Rights.[28]
Career
[edit]As an instructor he has taught journalism for fifteen years at San Francisco State University. It was here when he taught the first college-level course on Hispanic journalism titled La Raza Journalism.[29] Then he went on to become an instructor of journalism for City College of San Francisco where he became chair of the Department of Journalism.[30] And as he taught, he has also worked as a publisher, editor, reporter, and columnist.[31] In the 1970s and 1980s he worked as a reporter for United Press International and the Associated Press.[32] Today he still helps out occasionally with the running of El Tecolote, offering advice, acting as a public face for the newspaper, and also seeking resources for the paper.[33]
Awards
[edit]He has received a Heroes of Excellence Award from KGO-TV.[34] In 2000, he was honored by the Society of Professional Journalists with its Distinguished Service Award.[35] In 2009, he was inducted into the National Association of Hispanic Journalists Hall of Fame for advancing the interests of journalism and the interests of Latinos in Journalism.[36] In 2011, Horace Mann Middle School had him depicted in a mural on an exterior of a wall.[37] In March 2015 he accepted a certificate of recognition from Mayor Ed Lee for his 45 years of service as a publisher, journalism teacher, and for being a department chair of journalism.[14]
References
[edit]- ^ Marech, Rona. "El Tecolote Gives a Voice To the Mission". SF Gate. Retrieved November 20, 2015.
- ^ Lambert, Matt. "Instructor immortalized at Mission district middle school". The Guardsman Online. Retrieved November 20, 2015.
- ^ "Best Community Newspaper El Tecolote". SF Weekly. Retrieved November 20, 2015.
- ^ Rodriguez, Jenny. "Journalist tells story of Latino history". Recordnet.com. Retrieved November 20, 2015.
- ^ Garofoli, Joe. "Bilingual newspaper provides passionate voice as it faces own challenges". San Francisco Chronicle Online. Retrieved November 21, 2015.
- ^ Rodriguez, Jenny. "Journalist tells story of Latino History". Recordnet.com. Retrieved November 20, 2015.
- ^ Rodriguez, Jennie. "Journalist tells story of Latino History". Recordnet.com. Retrieved November 21, 2015.
- ^ Daisy, Miao. "Campus strike helped launch student into career of journalism and local activism". San Francisco State University. Retrieved November 21, 2015.
- ^ Rodriguez, Jennie. "Journalist tells story of Latino history". Recordnet.com. Retrieved November 21, 2015.
- ^ Flores Landa, Francisco. "El Tecolote: social and political conditions during its inception--1970". Found. Retrieved November 21, 2015.
- ^ Marchildon, Jared. "Publishers: Neighborhood papers write vital social history". San Francisco Public Press. Retrieved November 21, 2015.
- ^ "About". El Tecolote. Retrieved November 21, 2015.
- ^ Lambert, Matt. "Instructor immortalized at Mission district middle school". The Guardsman Online. Retrieved November 21, 2015.
- ^ a b Carruthers, Will. "Journalists fete trailblazing publisher Juan Gonzales". Guild Freelancers. Retrieved November 21, 2015.
- ^ Marech, Rona. "El Tecolote Gives a Voice To the Mission". SF Gate. Retrieved November 21, 2015.
- ^ Garofoli, Joe. "bilingual newspaper provides passionate voice as it faces own challenges". San Francisco Chronicle Online. Retrieved November 21, 2015.
- ^ Anda, Juan De. "Tourism for Locals: El Tecolote Bridges English and Spanish Speakers in San Francisco". SF Weekly. Retrieved November 21, 2015.
- ^ Miao, Daisy. "Campus strike helped launch student into career of journalism and local activism". San Francisco State University. Retrieved November 21, 2015.
- ^ Flores Landa, Francisco. "El Tecolote: social and political conditions during its inception--1970". Found. Retrieved November 25, 2015.
- ^ Flores Landa, Francisco. "El Tecolote: social and political conditions during its inception--1970". Found. Retrieved November 25, 2015.
- ^ Miao, Daisy. "Campus strike helped launch student into career of journalism and local activism". San Francisco State University. Retrieved November 23, 2015.
- ^ a b Lipsky, Jessica. "Neighborhood papers tell the story of SF". San Francisco Bay Guardian Online. Retrieved November 23, 2015.
- ^ Kaufman, Deborah. "2009 Hall of Famer: Juan Gonzales". TVWeek. Retrieved November 25, 2015.
- ^ Kaufman, Deborah. "2009 Hall of Famer: Juan Gonzales". TVWeek. Retrieved November 25, 2015.
- ^ a b Marchildon, Jared. "Publishers: Neighborhood papers write vital social history". San Francisco Public Press. Retrieved November 23, 2015.
- ^ Carruthers, Will. "Journalists fete trailblazing publisher Juan Gonzales". Guild Freelancers. Retrieved November 23, 2015.
- ^ Marech, Rona. "El Tecolote Gives a Voice To the Mission". SF Gate. Retrieved November 23, 2015.
- ^ Anda, Juan De. "Tourism for Locals: El Tecolote Bridges English and Spanish Speakers in San Francisco". SF Weekly. Retrieved November 25, 2015.
- ^ Roman, Ivan. "HAHJ to Induct Geraldo Rivera, Ysabel Duron and Juan Gonzales for National Association of Hispanic Journalists". National Association of Hispanic Journalists. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
- ^ Strope, Mary. "After 30 years leading City College Journalist Department, 'not over yet' for Juan Gonzales". The San Francisco Bay View National Black Newswpaper. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
- ^ "About Us". Accion Latina. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
- ^ Miao, Daisy. "Campus strike helped launch student into career of journalism and local activism". San Francisco State University. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
- ^ Carruthers, Will. "Journalists fete trailblazing publisher Juan Gonzales". Guild Freelancers. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
- ^ Strpoe, Mary. "After 30 years leading City College Journalism Department, 'not over yet' for Juan Gonzales". The San Francisco Bay View National Black Newspaper. Retrieved November 21, 2015.
- ^ "Faculty in Review". Journalism Department of SFSU. Retrieved November 21, 2015.
- ^ Roman, Ivan. "NAHJ to Induct Geraldo Rivera, Ysabel Duron and Juan Gonzales into Hall of Fame". National Association of Hispanic Journalists. Retrieved November 21, 2015.
- ^ Lambert, Matt. "Instructor immortalized at Mission district middle school". The Guardsman Online. Retrieved November 21, 2015.