A glimpse of the coming Latinization of America
■"Sounds of Happiness, Heard in Two Languages," by Anita Gates, New York Times, 11 October 2004, p. B8.
I have long told audiences that if they want to see the coming Latinization of America (e.g., two-thirds of U.S. population growth between now and 2050 is expected to be Latinos coming up from south of the border), then one of the first places to watch this adjustment will be in children's TV programming, because that's where the demographics will shift first.
This article is a simple description of a new PBS series called "Maya & Miguel" that is produced by Scholastic Entertainment. Reflective of the rising influence of Spanish in our society, the show will be liberally sprinkled with Spanish phrases, so it's sort of a bilingual education in both directions.
Expect to see a lot more of these types of shows appearing, along with others geared for Asian audiences or featuring Asian themes, like PBS's "Sagwa."