The New York Times has killed a Spanish-language news site after the offshoot failed to become “financially successful.”
The Old Gray Lady launched its Spanish spin off in 2016 to expand its coverage and audience in Latin American countries, but the venture failed to build a sustainable subscriber base, according to a statement the Times put out Tuesday.
The project, called New York Times en Español, reported original stories in Spanish-speaking countries as well as translated about 10 news stories into Spanish each day.
“We launched NYT in Spanish as part of an experiment that expanded our coverage to different languages, in an attempt to reach and attract more international readers,” the Times statement said. “Although the Spanish site attracted a considerable new audience towards our journalism, and regularly produced articles of which we are proud, it did not prove to be financially successful.”
About nine positions will close along with the venture. The newspaper will continue to produce content for Spanish speakers, translating stories into Spanish that will then be posted on www.nytimes.com/es.
New York Times en Español‘s closure comes days after the Washington Post closed its free Washington, D.C., commuter newspaper, Washington Post Express. The Express shuttered and all staff were laid off after 16 years in operation.
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