Our mission
We are a community paper giving our community a place to tell our stories. We lift up our community by sharing our strengths, our history, our challenges and our successes. We talk about the problems, but we are focused on the solution. We uplift one another and build a stronger community together, through collaboration rather than competition.
Our mission in action
- Cultural education & historical preservation
- We preserve and document the contributions of Hispanic Americans and people of color to the fabric of the United States, reporting on items of cultural significance and importance in English and Spanish, at a local, state-wide, national and international level.
- Economic stability & mobility
- Our mission is to inform and educate the general public by providing critical services that contribute to economic stability and mobility, teaching people where to find resources in their own community.
- Voter & civic education
- We educate voters on the voting process, and our character and civic education resources encourage our community to make good life choices and become responsible citizens in their communities.
- Literacy through the newspaper
- We promote literacy by using the newspaper as a teaching tool. Teachers use newspapers, in print and digital form, as a “living textbook” to teach history, reading, math, economics and government at all grade levels. And because we are bilingual, we teach in both English and Spanish.
What we stand for
- Bilingual by design
- Every edition serves English and Spanish readers side by side, not as a translation afterthought.
- Community first
- We are a community paper giving our community a place to tell our stories, lifting up our strengths, history, challenges and successes.
- Solutions, not just problems
- We talk about the problems, but our focus is the solution. We are not a mainstream media source reporting on crime.
Our history
More than a century of firsts, closures, comebacks and community. This is the story of La Prensa.
1913
The voice of a community
La Prensa was established in 1913, making it the oldest bilingual newspaper in Texas. Its mission was to serve as the voice of the Mexican exile community, defending their views and challenging public policy in Mexico. For nearly 50 years, La Prensa thrived as the leading Spanish-language newspaper in South Texas and, at one point, was the most widely circulated Spanish-language newspaper in the United States, with an international readership.
1961
A quiet chapter
The rise of television and radio led to a decline in readership. La Prensa changed ownership several times before ultimately closing its doors.
1989
The Duran family brings it back
In 1989, the late Tino Duran and his wife, Millie, relaunched La Prensa de San Antonio. For 27 years, Tino focused on showcasing the Latino community positively, countering mainstream media's often negative portrayals.
2017 to 2018
Twice resurrected
After Tino's passing in 2017, his daughter announced the impending closure of the publication. But it was resurrected once more by Tino's son, Steve Duran, and Yvette Tello, who ensured the paper continued without missing a single weekly edition. On Father's Day, June 17, 2018, La Prensa Texas made its comeback, Yvette overseeing business operations and technical publication.
2020
A nonprofit built to last
With the support of Leonard Rodriguez, a former White House advisor, La Prensa Texas found a home at the Westside Development Corporation. As Steve Duran's health declined, the publication was transitioned into a nonprofit corporation to ensure its survival. Amid the challenges of the pandemic, a new board of directors formed on August 26, 2020, Leonard Rodriguez, Louis Escareno, Yvette Tello, Commissioner Tommy Calvert, Dr. William Elizondo, Dr. Ricardo Romo and Fernando Reyes, committed to continuing Tino Duran's legacy by amplifying positive stories and defending the underserved in San Antonio.
2020 to 2025
Growing through every storm
Under Yvette Tello's leadership, La Prensa Texas digitized the publication, launched a weekly column and recruited a dynamic team of young journalists deeply connected to San Antonio's Hispanic community. The print edition never missed a week, through the pandemic, the 2021 winter freeze, and every challenge in between. Yvette also forged partnerships with Telemundo and KROV FM radio, ensuring collaboration rather than competition, and the team covered pivotal events including the 2020 presidential election and the winter freeze.
September 2025
A new era: Let's Talk About It
A pivotal change: the board was dissolved, and a podcast emerged as a spinoff of Tello's weekly column, Let's Talk About It. La Prensa Texas now aims to support all businesses aligned with its mission, focusing on collaboration rather than competition. Their mission: uplift one another and build a stronger community together.
2026
A new chapter, We The Women
La Prensa Texas enters a new chapter under the ownership and leadership of Publisher Yvette Tello, a Latina media owner preserving a community voice that has endured since 1913. In 2026, the We The Women campaign takes that legacy another bold step forward, carrying the paper's mission into a national movement.
Carrying the legacy forward
Today, La Prensa Texas enters a new chapter under the ownership and leadership of Publisher Yvette Tello, a Latina media owner carrying forward the legacy of one of San Antonio's most historic bilingual publications.
Her leadership represents more than ownership, it represents the preservation of a community voice that has endured since 1913. In 2026, that legacy takes another bold step forward with the launch of We The Women, the boldest movement yet, built on the foundation the paper's generations worked to build. Our stories. Our voices. Our legacy. Our future.
We The Women
Our national campaign for women supporting women, free membership, mentorship and ambassadors, launching in 2026 with the official announcement at the September 23 Gala.
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