Uncovers the network of Spanish-language writers and editors in 19th-century New York, whose media innovations fueled anticolonial struggles and democratic ideals At the end of the nineteenth century, New York City was a vital hub for writers from Latin America, providing a haven of press freedom and the latest printing technology. In Printing Nueva York, Kelley Kreitz reexamines the development of mass media in the United States by highlighting the significant contributions of Spanish-language newspapers and magazines created by US-based Latinx writers, editors, and their allies. This dynamic, hemispheric network of collaborators used a mix of storytelling and strategic media engagement to model democratic principles centered on equality and collective action. Kreitz's work offers a fresh look at U.S. media and literary history, challenging established narratives that have primarily focused on English-language publications. Through a vivid analysis of innovative figures such as Jose Marti, Rafael Serra, and Sotero Figueroa, the book uncovers a rich intellectual exchange that crossed national and linguistic borders. Unlike many Anglophone outlets that emphasized passive consumption, these trans-American media networks promoted active participation, cultural exchange, and collective mobilization to address pressing issues of the time, including colonialism, anarchism, and the pursuit of economic, gender, and racial equality. Printing Nueva York demonstrates how early Latinx writers and editors redefined what democracy could be, offering insights that are highly relevant to our current digital age. The book encourages readers to consider how storytelling, participation, and the transformative power of technology can continue to drive the potential of contemporary media to build a more democratic future.
Kelley Kreitz is Associate Professor of English at Pace University. Her research combines media studies, hemispheric studies, and U.S. and Latin American literary studies. She is also the co-founder and director of Babble Lab, a digital humanities center at Pace University.
"An important scholarly contribution showing the crucial relationship of the US Spanish-language press to local communities and international networks set against the vibrant growth of Hispanophone populations in Gilded-Age New York City. Kelley Kreitz's analysis brings attention to lesser-known publications by women, Black intellectuals, and anarchist writers to argue that the changing ideas of the period moved beyond the dominant modes of pro-capitalist thought." - Rodrigo Lazo, author of Letters from Filadelfia: Early Latino Literature and the Trans-American Elite
