• by Ray Schultz , December 27, 2023

The San Diego Union Tribune, recently acquired by Alden Global Capital, is sunsetting its weekly Spanish-language tabloid. 

“The last issue of U-T en Español will be published on Dec. 30,”  Laura Castañeda, deputy editor of editorial & opinion, wrote on X earlier this month, according to the San Diego Reader.

Castañeda added, “I wish the best to my colleagues, especially [Lilia O’Hara] for 25 years of dedication to the Latino community on both sides of the border.”

Alden Global Capital’s MediaNews acquired the Union-Tribune from Patrick Soon-Shiong, owner of The Los Angeles Times, in July, and promptly started trimming expenses, according to local reports.

“Barely two weeks after Alden acquired the Union-Tribune, Jeff Light, editor and publisher, left the paper,” Andrea Donohue wrote in the Voice of San Diego.

Donohue continued, “Internally, one newsroom worker said employees estimate that somewhere between 60 and 80 people are left from the 108-person newsroom under Soon-Shiong.”