El Nuevo Día, Puerto Rico’s leading publication and newspaper of record, celebrated its 50^th anniversary on May 18. As part of the anniversary celebration, it issued a special commemorative edition which provided a tour through five decades of the island’s news, events, and challenges. The celebration was complemented with several initiatives and multiple content pieces through its Web site, podcasts, and social media platforms.

Juan Mario Álvarez, chief executive officer for GFR Media, the newspaper’s parent company, said this milestone happens at a critical time in the evolution of the island’s media.

“At El Nuevo Día, we are proud to say that our audiences have evolved with us, and in that journey, they have given us their vote of confidence by making us their benchmark news media in Puerto Rico. A publication that had a print run of 100,000 copies in its first two years has reached a wide presence on several digital platforms, with an average of six million monthly visitors and users.”

Growing beyond print

The media company has strengthened its digital media offerings, thus bolstering its leadership in the island, Álvarez also. Its most recent project is the Android Auto and iOS Car Play, which allow users to access El Nuevo Día’s podcasts from their car so they can listen to interviews, opinions, and the variety of perspectives about what happens in Puerto Rico.

“It is critical for us to appropriately respond to the users’ demand of having multiple channels to remain informed. At the same time, we have evolved our content to improve interactivity, with live broadcasts, podcasts, as well as more photos and video,” Álvarez said.

Jorge Cabezas, GFR Media’s editorial director, recognised the hard work of El Nuevo Día reporters, photojournalists, and videographers who “during every moment of our country’s history have been there to document, ask, communicate, and convey the news. What we have collected during these five decades is the reflection of Puerto Rico, with its successes and challenges.

“Over time, through all our platforms, we have also tried to share solutions and alternatives that contribute to writing the history of the upcoming 50 years, projecting care and credibility in times where fake and imprecise news cause confusion and uncertainty.”

A boyhood dream grows up

The beginnings of the newspaper were in Ponce, on the South coast of Puerto Rico, when Antonio Luis Ferré assumed the reins of the newspaper, making one of his childhood dreams come true. At the age of 12, he wrote, illustrated, and designed a newspaper that he called El Nuevo Día and which, together with an extraordinary group of collaborators, later became the leading newspaper in Puerto Rico.

“Today, we proudly celebrate the day our father, Antonio Luis Ferré, published El Nuevo Día’s first edition in San Juan, back on May 18, 1970. Since that day we have kept our commitment to sharing the news in the most complete and transparent way with all Puerto Ricans in the island and the diaspora,” said María Luisa Ferré Rangel, El Nuevo Día’s editor and chief executive officer of Grupo Ferré Rangel.

“Our innovative editorial proposal prioritises the needs and interests of our fellow Puerto Ricans. El Nuevo Día is an institution and now, more than ever, we keep in mind that we cannot give up on our aim of conveying the truth, scrutinizing and defending the principles that guided my father when founding the newspaper.”

María Eugenia Ferré Rangel, GFR Media’s board of directors president, also highlighted the business history of the Ferré Rangel Family, which has been committed to the island for more than 100 years through multiple generations and in several industries.

“Our business journey has always been focused on supporting Puerto Rico’s social and economic development. Throughout these 50 years, El Nuevo Día has been a vehicle to promote a discussion that contributes to rebuilding the island and making Puerto Rico a better one for future generations. The historical moment that we are living as a society requires us to keep a firm commitment to a top-level journalism, with transparency and depth of analysis that leads our users to feel better informed, regardless of the  channel or platform they use to connect with us.”

Journey through the past

As part of the celebration, El Nuevo Día also launched an advertising campaign named “We live it with you.”

“We are very happy with the campaign executions, as they take us through a journey of these five decades, showing our history of triumphs and mistakes, which were key in the development and evolution of El Nuevo Día,” Alvarez said. “In each of them, our journalists and photojournalists were present and, thanks to their work, we were able to experience those triumphs and mistakes together with all Puerto Ricans.” 

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